My Thoughts My Hopes My Aspirations 2015

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Especially for you for today is Earth Day

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Especially for you for today is Earth Day

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I have got to start watching the Game of Thrones

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I agree : there are many 'belles bêtes' in that saga

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Jane Austen's real Mr Darcy unmasked by historian
A new book will reveal the true identity of the man who inspired Austen's Pride and Prejudice heartthrob

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/book ... orian.html

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Could be

John Parker (1772–1840), 2nd Lord Boringdon, 1st Earl of Morley
by Thomas Phillips

National Trust

Date painted: 1804
Oil on canvas, 139.5 x 112 cm
Collection: National Trust

Where to see this painting?

National Trust, Saltram
Plympton, Plymouth, Devon, England, PL7 1UH

If you are planning a visit to see this painting, check with the collection first.

Paintings can be moved at short notice.

More on this painting

National Trust: John Parker (1772–1840), 2nd Lord Boringdon, 1st Earl of Morley

Accession number:
872274

Acquisition method:
gift, as part of the endowment, from the 6th Earl of Morley, 1957

http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/yourpaintings ... orle101528

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Wikipedia

John Parker, 1st Earl of Morley (1772-1840), engraving by William Say





John Parker, 1st Earl of Morley:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Parke ... _of_Morley

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Mail Online

Is this the real Mr Darcy? Letters 'prove' that tall, dark and brooding aristocrat whose wife's adultery scandalised polite society was the inspiration for Jane Austen's hero
By Chris Pleasance

Dr Susan Law believes John Parker, 1st Earl of Morley, was real Mr Darcy
Like Mr Darcy, Earl was 'tall dark and brooding' and had troubled love life
Letters show Austen stayed at his house while writing Pride and Prejudice
She was a close friend of the Earl's second wife, who was also a writer

It is a truth universally acknowledged that every woman is in search of her own Mr Darcy, but one author claims to have unearthed the original man who inspired Jane Austen's romantic hero.

Dr Susan Law says she has uncovered documents and letters which prove that the character of Fitzwilliam Darcy was inspired by John Parker, the 1st Earl of Morley.

Like Mr Darcy, Parker was 'tall, dark and brooding' and also became embroiled in a sex scandal after it was discovered that his first wife had been unfaithful to him.



Dr Law says the new evidence shows that that Austen stayed at the Earl's country home Saltram House in Plymouth, Devon, in the early 1800s when Pride and Prejudice was written.

A series of letters also show that Austen was also good friends with Parker's second wife, Frances Talbot, who was herself a known author, and that the two often exchanged writing.

In fact, shortly after Pride and Prejudice first appeared anonymously, Dr Law says it was believed that Frances was the author, as the character of Mr Darcy fit her husband's profile so closely.

Dr Law, 52, an author and historian from Knielworth, Warwickshire, said: 'The physical similarities in them are obvious but there is also so much evidence to suggest the Earl was Mr Darcy.

'When Jane Austin published her two novels Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility, she did so anonymously.



'The Earl's second wife Francis, who was well known in literally circles, was widely thought to be the author of those novels.

'The Earl was tall, dark, handsome and slightly brooding. There is a picture of him in 1805 image in his militia uniform and another in the library. He looks very intense.'

The Earl himself became mired in scandal after it was revealed that he had fathered three illegitimate children with his married mistress, leading his first wife, Lady Augusta Fane, to elope with a family friend before the two divorced in 1809.

It was already thought that the Earl's messy love-life likely provided the inspiration for Mansfield Park, but Dr Law now believes he likely inspired Mr Darcy as well.



Dr Law says she spent five years travelling the country unearthing old newspaper cuttings, diary entries, letters and other documents to prove Parker was Austen's inspiration.

She added: 'We don't have the concrete evidence but I have discovered there were a lot of rumours about at the time and it is a convincing argument.

'There is a massive intriguing web around it. It is clear that Jane Austen had very close links with the family. She sent Francis one of the first editions of Emma - when she only had 12 printed.

'Jane Austin's brother Henry was also a university friend of the Earl of Morley. They were contemporaries and he then become a banker to his regiment and later the domestic chaplain to the Earl of Morley's family.



'We know how close Jane Austen and Francis were. She never came out and said 'your husband was Mr Darcy' - so we can not say that 100 per cent.

'It can be very frustrating and it is like trying to piece together a jigsaw. It has been fascinating and I have been longing to find that cast iron bit of evidence.

'But after spending so long on it, I am pretty convinced.'

Follow this Link for the OTHER CONTENDERS FOR THE TITLE OF THE 'REAL MR DARCY'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... -hero.html

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Link to Full Really Funny List:

http://i.imgur.com/4lCxGCe.jpg

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Not wrong concerning the French part

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The birth of a new baby is a reason for celebration in any family. Relatives come from far and wide to come meet the new little member of their family. Before the baby can lift their head on their own or speak, they are surrounded by an entire army of loving, protective people who are overjoyed at their mere existence. Coming together for the birth of a baby is an age-old tradition for humans, but as this video shows, it is too for elephants.

The daughter of the matriarch of the OA elephant family in Amboseli National Park has just given birth. Once the matriarch notices her daughter approaching the herd with her new little one, she rushes over to greet them. We imagine she’s saying something like, “He has your ears!” and is already making plans to spoil the stuffing out of her new grandchild.

It’s not long before the rest of the herd comes running over to see the new baby as well. Such a beautiful tradition! Good luck, little elephant!

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Wild and Woolly, An Elephant and his Sheep (Full documentary)

The saddest film I have ever watched

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