On the road to ruin.

On the road to ruin: Villagers fear their homes will be swept away as coastline is torn up by the sea

It is far more than just the road less travelled - and for very good reason.

The picturesque stretch of coastline at Skipsea, in North Humberside, is being rapidly destroyed by encroaching waters which have left a gaping chasm in the tarmac which runs along the cliff top.

Now villagers living along the same route fear their homes are quite literally on the road to ruin.

Fast lane to destruction: The picturesque stretch of coastline at Skipseam in North Humberside, is being rapidly destroyed by encroaching waters which have left a gaping chasm in the tarmac

The sea has already claimed a number of houses and gardens and locals have been forced to take evasive action.

Pensioner Janet Ellis, 65, said residents felt they had been left at the mercy of the elements by their local council.

'It's coming in a lot quicker over the last few weeks. I think it could be due to the severe winter we've just had,' she said.

'The erosion has taken a great big chunk out of next-door's garden. I've been here for 25 years and there used to be a road and quite a bit of land in front of the houses.

'Now my neighbours are having to pull up their fence and move it closer to the house to keep it from being washed away.'

Mrs Ellis, who said she was the first person to move into homes built along Green Lane, believes Skipsea will go the same way as a number of other villages which have disappeared into the sea over the years.

'I feel like we've just been left forgotten about,' she added.

'We can't use the road and the street lights don't work. We've even got to fetch our own bins down for the binmen, but we still have to pay our tax.'

Going nowhere? Villagers living along Green Lane fear their homes are quite literally on the road to ruin. The sea has already claimed a number of houses and gardens and locals have been forced to take evasive action

Another Green Lane resident, Michelle Bentley, 43, added: 'From my front garden all I can see is the beach - but there used to be a road and a cliff edge in front of my house.

'I've lost about 20ft of my front garden in the last few years. People say the erosion slows down but I haven't seen any evidence of that.

The holiday salesman said parts of what used to be her garden were now beach and she is unable to insure her home.

'The cliff edge has come right into the garden and I can look out of my window and see whether or not it's high tide,' she added.

'It's still coming in quite fast and I would say all the houses will be gone in three to four years.

'I can't get insurance on the property, just its contents. When my house is gone I'm going to have to see if I can get a council house. All of my money has gone into the house.

'There's about 23 houses left, so finding council accommodation for us all will be tricky. I don't think the council are doing enough to help us.'

Holiday sales manager for Skipsea Sands, Fiona Scott, 40, said a farm was pulled down last year because it was perched precariously on the edge of the cliff.

'Half of it had fallen into the sea but the owner didn't want to leave,' she said. 'In the end he was forcibly removed and the road was closed.

'Everyone round here talks about the erosion and signs petitions but I don't know what's being done about it. The council don't seem to care.'

My opinion:

Poor people. I think the council would have to pay a home to those who lost. Of course, poor city also, because they haven't to blame. I do not know, this case is difficult; it is nature who involved and that's why nobody is to blame. Lately, a lot of damage occurs because of the nature, we are destroying the world with the global warming.

A chilling new.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1362147/Skipsea-villagers-fear-homes-swept-away-coastline-eroded-sea.html

Earthquake in New Zealand

New Zealand's prime minister says at least 65 people have died after a 6.3-magnitude earthquake hit Christchurch.

John Key said the toll was expected to rise further, adding: "We may be witnessing New Zealand's darkest day."

The tremor caused widespread damage as it occurred at a shallow depth of 5km (3.1 miles) during lunchtime when Christchurch was at its busiest.

The mayor of New Zealand's second-biggest city says 120 people have been rescued from the ruins.

The country's deadliest natural disaster in 80 years struck at 1251 (2351 GMT on Monday), 10km (6.2 miles) south-east of the city.

Screams from rubble

The damage is said to be far worse than after the 7.1-magnitude quake on 4 September, which left two people seriously injured but no fatalities.

“Start Quote

We've had friends in town call us and say there are just bodies lying around: lots of dead bodies outside shops just lying there just covered in bricks”

End Quote Jaydn Katene Christchurch resident

The epicentre of that quake, which occurred in the middle of the night, was further away from the city and deeper underground, but it still caused an estimated $3bn (£1.9bn) in damage.

TV pictures of the aftermath of Tuesday's disaster showed scores of collapsed buildings in the South Island city of nearly 400,000 people.

Shocked survivors could be seen wandering the rubble-strewn streets, which cracked open as the ground beneath was liquefied by the tremor.

Police said that the dead included people on two buses which were crushed by falling buildings.

Helicopters plucked survivors to safety from rooftops, and dumped water on fires.

Officials said up to 30 people were feared still trapped inside the razed Pyne Gould Guinness building, where screams have been heard from the ruins.

My opinion:

I think these disasters are always bad, of course. Normally we always see on TV that they only occur in poor countries, and we feel sorry for them, we see the catastrophe away from us. We see it as if it were a fiction that takes place far from here.

So I was surprised, like everyone else, when I saw the news of the earthquake in New Zealand. You see people like you, from a developed country, suffering like those of poor countries. And then you stop, think and realize that there is only one world and we all suffer because of the nature alike. It doesn't matter if your city is the most prepared of the world or the most modern and important: we are equal if a disaster like this occur.

I'm sad because of the disasters like this one, because is one thing we cannot control.

This is my opinion of this new.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12533291

Black Swan: Natalie Portman's Oscar Moment?

A review of Black Swan from its premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September:

"Natalie Portman, apparent soon-to-be Oscar winner," the Washington Post headline blared, with only a hint of drollery. "Evidently Natalie Portman already has this year's Academy Award for best actress all sewn up," wrote Jan Chaney in the Post's Celebritology 2.0 column. "At least the media buzz coming out of the Venice Film Festival — where her Black Swan just premiered — is making it sound that way." In fact, most of the early reviews, while enthusiastic about Darren Aronofsky's psychological thriller and Portman's performance as a ballerina who must face down demons when given the lead role in Swan Lake, stopped short of Oscar predictions. The Times of London's Kevin Maher came closest: "Portman is astounding ... Awards are sure to follow."

In the Black Swan script by Andres Heinz and Mark Heyman, Nina (Portman) is a member of the corps at a prime New York ballet company. Thomas Leroy (the excellent Vincent Cassel), the company's Balanchine-like choreographer, is about to stage his own version of Swan Lake, which will emphasize a woman's tragic duality. One dancer is to incarnate both the pure White Swan and her evil, sensual twin, the Black Swan. Nina, sweet and driven, has the technique to play both roles but the temperament for only one. "I just want to be perfect," she says, and Thomas counters, "Perfection is also about letting go."

He gives her the part anyway, believing he can find the Black Swan within her. He goads Nina ("The only person standing in your way is you") and insults her ("You could be brilliant, but you're a coward"). He tries arousing her with a kiss, and if that doesn't work ("That was me seducing you," he says afterward, "when it should have been the other way around". As she probes to both summon her own Black Swan and control it, she begins to suspect that she is cursed, haunted, pursued by someone or something. When she is alone, lights suddenly flick out; menacing figures seep out of the shadows; she emerges from a bathroom stall to see the accusation "WHORE" scrawled on the mirror. Getting a leading role is a freaking nightmare.

In my opinion:

I've seen this film and it is amazing! Certainly it is very psychological, and sometimes, you can think that it is too paranoid, but it is because it is very metaphorical. That's one of these films of "you know it at the end", you know? At the end, you can understand why she goes "crazy" for her character.

I would give the Oscar to Natalie, of course, because I think that she has done a very good work, you can see it in the film: she dances very very very good! Is amazing! She looks like a true ballerina!

I read that Natalie has had to train hard and long to get to this movie. And the result is visible. We need to reward that effort, and the incredible result. Natalie, my Oscar is for you =)

It's amazing the visual beauty of this movie. Little by little, Nina shows her two sides. The battle between these two parts and, of course, the beauty of dance.

Black Swan, a good film for a good actress.

http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,2016150,00.html