Robin Hardy's Abbey Lands
The Stories of the Abbey of St. Benedict on the Sea
Random Mutterings
The Giant Hand of Vyrnwy
Jan. 15, 2026: There is an area of trees in Wales known as The Giants of Vyrnwy (VURN way). One of these trees, a Douglas fir certified as the tallest tree in the UK at over 50 meters (164 feet) high, was damaged in a storm so that it appeared it must be cut down for safety's sake. But rather than cut it down entirely, the Forest Commission cut it to a stump of 50 feet and invited area artists to apply for the job of sculpting it. Simon O'Rourke was chosen, and submitted the design of a giant hand reaching to the sky, modeling it on his own hand and arm.
Time's Up
Jan. 12, 2026: This is the Torre dei Modenesi, an old clock tower in Finale Emilia, Italy, moments after it was damaged by a magnitude 6.0 earthquake on May 20, 2012. The earthquake struck just after 4 a.m. local time, causing extensive damage to historic structures in the region. Before the earthquake, the tower had stood for over 800 years. A subsequent tremor in late May or early June 2012 caused the remaining half of the tower to completely collapse.
Today Is Caturday!
Jan. 9, 2026: Actually, it's Friday, but today is the day that I unload all my cat memes that have been cluttering up my desktop. We'll start with the two for which I have no hope of crediting their creator:
Of course we have a cat taking Adam's place in The Creation of Adam because why not?
And against all logic and experience, we'll throw in a cat cuddling a puppy.
Now for a charming cat on a chair by Yelena Bryksenkova
And one of those thousands of photos of cats in impossible positions on X (by Yog)
Are you not entertained?
Is This Happiness?
Jan. 6, 2026: This GIF purportedly shows how happiness is created in the brain. But it doesn't. This clip is just a snippet of the original video, which is over 3 minutes long. According to Science Alert, "The original video's lead creator, medical artist, and animator John Liebler explained the real story in 2014.... Liebler and the team at XVIVO created the 3D computer animation in 2006 for a biology classroom video called 'The Inner Life of the Cell' in collaboration with two Harvard University researchers, Robert Lue and Alain Viel. The key point here is that the educational video wasn't intended to depict a brain process at all; instead, the video is designed to take the viewer 'on a journey through the microscopic world of a cell, illustrating mechanisms that allow a white blood cell to sense its surroundings and respond to an external stimulus.'"
(click the pic to watch)
In the end, happiness is just a feeling. But joy is something deeper that can only come from a relationship with God.
The Fooler
Jan. 3, 2026: Because this is so good, you get another Penn & Teller contestant today. Bryan Saint is not only a magician, but a comedian, and he does a bang-up job of fooling everybody while making them laugh. So click the pic above to watch. ​
And when you're done with that, check out his first appearance in this crucible of entertainment.
The Flutist
Remedios Varo, 1955
Dec. 31, 2025: We're ending the year with a touch of surrealism by Spanish painter Remedios Varo. Why not play a little tune while rocks are falling around you and there's a stairway leading into the unknown? It's the perfect parable of entering the new year. The Museum of Modern Art has more on this fascinating work here.
It's Bizarro
Dec. 28, 2025: I don't know how Dan Piraro found out anything about my life, but this cartoon shows me telling my friend all about my son. I can't help it; I'm very proud of him. But I kinda resent being shown publicly, in my cardigan over my granny dress. There's even my avant-garde art on the wall.
Will the Real Santa Claus Please Stand Up?
1847 Christmas illustration by Kenny Meadows
Dec. 25, 2025: In "The History of Father Christmas" Tom Moriarty takes us on a fun ride through the evolution of our modern Santa Claus from two distinct beginnings: Father Christmas in England and Sinterklaas in Europe. Sinterklaas evolved from stories based on the life of St. Nicholas, a Greek bishop of the 4th century.
Sinterklaas and Krampus
Part of what makes it so much fun is seeing how rowdy our forebears were. Tom says, "[T]he Sinterklaas 'universe' expanded to include a host of frightening, violent characters who dished out punishments to naughty children - including Krampus, Pere Fouettard (‘Old Man Whipper’), Ru-Klaus (‘Rough Nicholas’), Pelsnickel (‘Furry Nicholas’) and Knecht Rupert (‘Farmhand Rupert’)."
So if you want anything from "jolly old St. Nicholas" this Christmas, have the respect to check out his whole story.
Faerie Tale Villages
Photo by BANU ERÖNCEL
Dec. 22, 2025: When I first saw the photo above of Assisi, Italy—a medieval town known as the birthplace of St. Francis of Assisi—I literally gasped, because I thought I was looking at the Main Road of the Abbey Lands. On second thought, however, it does need room for horses.
Then I ran across this photo (below) of Alberobello, in southern Italy. Because their ancient whitewashed huts with conical stone roofs (trulli) are found nowhere else in the world, they were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996.
They don't have room for horses, either. :/
The Running Tree
Dec. 19, 2025: This is the famous "running tree" (a hala tree) at Waihe'e Beach Park, on the windward side of West Maui. It looks like it's running because coastal erosion has washed away the sand around the tree's base, exposing its roots.
Two Too Funny Shorts
Dec. 16, 2025: Both of these YouTube shorts are so funny, I couldn't decide which one to post. So you get both of them. Click the pics to watch. You're welcome.
Playing with the Sun
Dec. 13, 2025: I could have added today's photos to my previous post on The Art of Timing, but these are in a class by themselves, as they incorporate the sun as media.*
In the photo above left, Mitesh Patil captures the sun as part of a game. Above right, catches the reflections of the rising sun on railroad tracks in Homer, Illinois. As it happens only in the first week of September, he waits patiently to get just the right shot.
In the photo bottom left, Elias Chasiotis caught the sun's devil horns over the Persian Gulf.
At bottom right is the Fontana Luminosa, which was designed to make the flowing water appear to be glowing lava when the sun hits it just right.
*Professional photographers use special techniques and filters to photograph the sun without blinding themselves or damaging their equipment.
The Art of Timing
Dec. 10, 2025: Part of a photog-rapher's skill is developing the art of timing. Sometimes this involves waiting for hours or days to catch a fleeting moment.
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To the left is a photo by Wilma Hurskainen. The time required to achieve this effect without photo-shopping had to be considerable. But the best photographers hone their skills by means of incredible patience.
To the right is a photo of a bald eagle perfectly aligned with its reflection in the water at the Canadian Raptor Conservancy.
This moment was captured by photographer Steve Biro, whose body of work displays the results of waiting for just the right shot.
It strikes me that the benefit of waiting applies to many other areas of work and life as well.
You could call it Chataine's Guardian 2.0