On our first family bike riding adventure of the season we spent more time sightseeing in the southwestern German town of Otterberg than cycling the path that led us there The plan was to make our way along a roughly 2.5-mile section of the Pfälzer Land cycle path from the Otterbach train station to neighboring Otterberg a historic town of about 5,000 about 6 miles north of Kaiserslautern The Pfälzer Land route runs east-west for about 30 miles from Altenglan to Enkenbach and the moderately difficult dirt terrain of the stretch we chose passes streams and almond trees we intended to take a break exploring its 12th-century Abteikirche the second-largest church in the Pfalz region after the cathedral in Speyer the church impressed us so much that we ended up devoting part of the afternoon to exploring it The church’s well-preserved facade stands out downtown the imposing structure eclipses nearby buildings Some of the intricacies of the church are challenging to uncover with an untrained eye The stacks of both English and German brochures at the entrance were empty breathing in the damp smell and contemplative quiet I admired the natural light streaming in through the stained glass windows which had a faint yellow hue but no bright colors Built between 1168 and 1254 on the site of a monastery belonging to the Cistercians a Catholic religious order known for its austerity and strictly regulated monastic life The church served both Catholics and Protestants after the Reformation A wall installed to separate the two was removed during renovations in 1979 worshippers of both denominations share the space We exited the sanctuary through a fish-handle door with its carved granite sculpture depicting historic church life and a Baroque town hall-turned-history museum which also houses the tourist information center The square is the modern setting for church concerts and markets We explored the town using a map of the historic district as a guide to buildings dating back to the 17th century including well-maintained half-timbered structures and the old town tall A QR code tour in German is also available More ambitious wanderers can continue their two-wheeled journey to other points on the Pfälzer trail but we were exhausted and consequently opted to finish our cycling tour by bus Otterberg’s main street abounds in bus stops with direct lines back to Otterbach train station and Kaiserslautern Receive emails when new obituariesare published to our website Welcome to Meierhoffer Funeral Home & Crematory When you have experienced the loss of a loved one you can trust us to guide you through the arrangements necessary to create a meaningful ceremony that celebrates the unique life being honored Our staff is committed to providing your family with the highest quality care and service in your time of need and we take pride in our responsibility to lighten your burden as you take the first steps toward healing.  At Meierhoffer Funeral Home & Crematory we want to relieve you of the stress of funeral planning Whether you choose a full-service funeral or a budget-friendly direct cremation Funeral services can include a viewing or open-casket optional service Cremation services can be affordable and straightforward with a direct cremation without a service you can arrange cremation with a memorial ceremony our team can help you without the urgency of time You can plan ahead instead of forcing your family to make dozens of decisions regarding caskets when you choose our facility with an on-site crematory and a reception center your loved ones only have to make one stop Our Meierhoffer Funeral Home & Crematory team serves St. Joseph, Savannah, Avenue City, Agency, Clarksdale, Faucett Our permanent memorialization options will help you honor your loved ones in the way they would have wanted Meet with a member of our team at Meierhoffer Funeral Home & Crematory to tour the facility and get to know our staff. 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Upgrade now. at the 2023 Joint Midyear Meeting held at the JW Marriott Chicago the Assembly listened to a DEI presentation and Inclusion in the Legal Profession," by Toussaint Romain with the Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy Advertising Opportunities Photographers often write to me to share their portfolios and websites Today's photography is repetitive and derivative in a way that I find immensely underwhelming Susanne Otterberg was born in 1962 and lives and works in Gothenburg Susanne claims that she never leaves home without her camera this close relationship with her camera is on full view in her highly intimate photographs Her work is entirely monochrome and always richly engaging Let's take a closer look at some of her work we are immediately drawn in by the subject and the uncertainty that is present what is the relationship that allows the photographer to be so intimate with the dead and yet be able to photograph them so objectively We are asked to think about what we are seeing and to consider all the possibilities This photograph immediately brings Daido Moriyama to mind. Or, perhaps a little closer to home for Otterberg, Anders Petersen What more could a photographer wish for than to have their work evoke such comparisons How did she achieve such a perfectly black background There is a great abstract quality to this image even though we also know what we are looking at The rich blackness is like a hole into which we are drawn against our will This is one of my favorite images from this selection of work Otterberg is also able to brilliantly capture the more domesticated of our wildlife too This image of a cat is seductive in that the haphazard focus is unsettling This house cat becomes a wild and terrifying animal thanks to Otterberg's ability to disrupt and enrapture through non-conventional technical acumen Imagine the image in sharp focus and you will see how the cat becomes docile to the point of almost becoming uninteresting Otterberg has an uncanny ability to perceive a scene and translate it to an image we have a weird image that evokes oddness and even freakishness The anatomy is a little off — look at the bends in the fingers Otterberg drags us into the realm of questions which is exactly how it should be with good photography as many photographs are so derivative that as soon as we see the photo we "know" what we are seeing because we have seen it so often before there are so many little things that converge to make this a great photograph the dramatic fold in the cloth of the dress the broken line of applique on the dress — it all combines to engage the viewer in just the right way I stopped and continued to look for several minutes I immediately thought about abstract painting but because of the flatness of the tire and how the rubber ripples and folds there is a misconception that anyone can draw a line or a box But that line better be just so and in just the right place on the canvas This is what separates real abstract art from the stuff we see people making in so many "how-to" videos The fold in the rubber is just right to make the image work Nudes are another notoriously difficult thing to do well so much depends on the right lines and shadows we have a butt crack that is just a little peculiar and also just so in length and the shadow on the wall all contribute to the image's effectiveness This image is as good as anything from Nan Goldin Here we have a photograph that is most likely the product of Otterberg's dedication to carrying her camera Here the skill is in the timing; being in the right place at the right time camera in hand Did someone stay under the hairdryer too long The nonplussed man on the roof and the ladder peeking up from the bottom of the frame both add additional layers of oddness These are the things that make her work so rich Her ability to master high-contrast black and white photos is also a reason for her success Getting contrast right is not an easy feat — too little and the work drains of emotion and energy too much and the photos become too gimmicky Otterberg strikes a perfect balance again and again Yes, sometimes a photographer still comes along who can capture our attention even in this world where we have seen every photograph before. Susanne Otterberg is one such photographer. I invite you to follow her and check out more of her work on her website.  Images used with permission of Susanne Otterberg. In a word: fantastic! Michael, thank you very much, especially for the good text that accompanies these impressive pictures. I have to look at them again (and again) and take my time - just them on nothing else on the screen. What very awesome photographs thank you, thank you for this photographers insight. As an older myself the simplicity of black and white, clarity make the challenges of my age all the more poignant. Jan & Albert, thanks for taking the time to make positive comments! This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. The action you just performed triggered the security solution. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. 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Shi Heng YiPublished by Naveen Reddy on January 23 2024Shi Heng Yi is a popular Shaolin master He serves as the leading headmaster of Shaolin Temple Europe Tien Sy Vuong (Shi Heng Yi) was born in Germany to Asian parents Shi’s parents hail from Vietnam but for many years his parents fled as ‘boat people’ and arrived on the borders of Germany for greener pastures his mother was pregnant and had his elder brother in her womb Shi’s elder brother is four years elder to him Shi watched many martial arts movies and at a young age He watched The 36th Chamber of Shaolin film and other films on the Shaolin Temple his father was also interested in the martial arts so Shi got enrolled by his father into the nearby Shaolin Temple Europe in Kaiserslautern he started practising kung fu and fell in love with it and it also included mental and physical training and behaviour development he also got attracted towards Qi Gong and Shaolin Rou Quan Shi not only learnt martial arts but also the theories behind them Shi’s school used to get closed in the afternoon at around 1 pm or 3 pm and the abbot of the monastery used to pick him up from the school and reach the Shaolin Temple where he used to start his training from 4 pm and he used to train until 10 pm Wednesdays and Fridays and likewise trained in kung fu from the age of 4 to 12 he was not interested in learning the background of kung fu but at 12 Shi became a disciple of Shaolin masters namely These Shaolin masters arrived in Germany from Songshan Shaolin Temple in China His parents expected him to excel in studies and wanted him to grow up to become either a doctor Even though Shi did a couple of university degrees including an MBA and a few diplomas The reason for his dissatisfaction was that education taught him a multitude of things but not about himself self-discovery and monastic practices from a young age from the Shaolin Temple Shi’s parents wanted him to get a regular job but as he was attracted towards the monastic life he decided to continue living it and learn more about himself but his father encouraged him not to do so Shi decided to teach the Shaolin approach to others as he believed that this approach helped him in effectively balancing his life “base your life on something that you like to do and that you are able to do.” Shaolin Temple Europe is a Buddhist monastery and this organisation was established in 1996 Shi wanted to establish the Shaolin Temple in Otterberg and found an area to establish the temple a bank granted him credit and he established Shaolin Temple Europe in Otterberg Shi financially struggled to make the temple profitable but thanks to the growing popularity of the monastery he is serving as the Leading Headmaster of the Shaolin Temple Europe in Otterberg An interesting fact- This Shaolin Temple is housed in a wooden building built prior to the 1940s He belongs to the 35th Generation of Shaolin masters and follows Buddhism Shi mainly teaches mental and spiritual development and his aim is to spread the ancient knowledge inherited from more than 1500 years to the modern world Shi also provides online training through his website and YouTube channel he has 402K subscribers on his YouTube channel He delivered a couple of TEDx Talks, the first one in January 2020 in Sofia, Bulgaria, ‘Master Shi Heng Yi – 5 hindrances to self-mastery’ In November 2022, he delivered his second TEDx Talk, ‘Test your might! • Shaolin Spirit’ Shi is a polyglot as he knows many languages namely Shaolin Temple postulates five hindrances which has the potential to prevent you from reaching your goals and they are as follows- All these states negatively affect your thoughts and will affect your ability to make right decisions how are you inspired by the life story of Shi Heng Yi Share with me in the comment section below Featured image credit- Shaolin Temple Europe/Wikimedia Commons Please do subscribe to Youth Motivator YouTube channel and enjoy the success stories of your favourite YouTubers I have received some motivation to do my best to spend my first hour or so after I get up NOT checking messages… I also heard Shi Heng Yi once say I derive comfort when he speaks of being “alone” even when physically with others Today is my first day that I have ever listened anyone with his calm voice I felt today I am completely connected with someone and learned about own awareness He’s brought so much change in my life and has taught me how to be mentally and physically balanced I woke up one morning and one of Shi Heng Yi’s videos was playing on YouTube then I listen to the words… Now I practice qi qong I’m 61 and I’m finally feeling purposeful I have also seen many videos of his that were very effective One of the good channels to promote your goals and statements on YouTube is Vaster Universe Ich bin völlig beeindruckt von den Weisheiten des Meisters und verehre seine Lehre sehr [English translation- I am completely impressed by master’s wisdom Thanks… This man probably is the most powerful master of the western world at the moment May his wisdom penetrate the hearts and minds of the westerners… I really enjoy his Qi Gong videos on YouTube I’ve practiced a few sessions myself and always feel energized and inspired Hi readers, thanks for all your love and support! Now, Youth Motivator is active on YouTube. Please do subscribe and enjoy the success stories of your favourite YouTubers. YouTube Please do subscribe to Youth Motivator Read more… Pierre T. Lambert is a photographer, filmmaker and a popular YouTuber. He has 708K subscribers on his YouTube channel, Pierre T. Lambert. Introduction- Pierre T. Lambert was born on 12 October 1987 near Paris, France; he Read more… Conner McBee is a popular American travel YouTuber. He has 379K subscribers on his YouTube channel, Small Brained American. Introduction- Conner McBee was born in 1993. He hails from Dacula, Georgia, United States. Conner has Read more… My YouTube channel