The University Of The West Indies, where my mother works, and where we spent a shitload of time as kids, is built on the ruins of a sugar plantation. They made, at the time, no effort to protect the ruins from the kids, nor the kids from the ruins. So we spent a lot of time playing around the defunct aqueduct and and stone cellars of a still house now open to the sky, and other remnants of 18th century buildings.

But Jamaica's best abandonment is hands down Port Royal -- one of the world's best, IMO.

It's not as if others haven't used my photos for their LJ icons uncredited [glares at Hec].

Heh. I only steal from the really good photographers.

Betsy, that abandoned asylum site is great.

the defunct aqueduct

That is such a good name for (a) an album by The Decembrists or (b) a book by Edward Gorey.

Damn, connie beat me to it.

When people ask us where we got such a great picture, we can be sure to credit Tom. t whistles innocently

I vote Gorey! Make it so!

Which reminds me -- I was listening to some of my much loved 80s songs. Which were surprisingly bleak. It's perfectly possible that I was filtering my favourites through my Cold War nightmares as a teen, and it's not like I don't like some cheery ones too.

But if I were to sift through top 40 now (or much of the post '80s), I can't imagine having that much depressed (barely angry) about the world (NSM love, more the state of the world) music.

I just bought the DVD set for Live Aid, and I was reminded of the same thing, ita. I'm wondering where are the protest songs of the Iraq War, and forced to admit that I don't know of many outside of Eminem's song.

I just bought the DVD set for Live Aid

There's a what for the who?

Damn, I wish B&N would approve us for affiliatey goodness.

Four disc set, but the Philadelphia half suffers from the American producers destroying their original masters, as per Geldof's wishes at the time (the BBC ignored him, thankfully). They were only able to recreate the Philly set through a fortuitous discovery of a box of "B cuts," alternate angles that were never used in the broadcast, that the editors used to splice together most of the show, although the quality definitely suffers in comparison to the Wembley concert. There is some cool stuff that was never shown (Run DMC, Ashford and Simpson dueting with Teddy Pendergrass), and some things that aren't included (Led Zep didn't approve the DVD use, but did donate a big chunk o' cash to the foundation instead, and half of the Who songs weren't available, as well as about 80 other songs that were shown in 1985 but not included on the set, according to some disgruntled Amazon reviewers). It's really affordable, too--I paid full price at Borders ($40), but Amazon does have it for $30.

Which reminds me -- I was listening to some of my much loved 80s songs. Which were surprisingly bleak. It's perfectly possible that I was filtering my favourites through my Cold War nightmares as a teen, and it's not like I don't like some cheery ones too.

Kathy -- Green days' latest songs are protest songs---not about the war exactly but current situations. And System of a Down's new one BYOB is definitly a protest against the war.