Yellow

Like most things I haven't taken part in the Lucky 7's photo challenge for ages, keep looking at it but get no where need taking part.  Saw the challenge for this week and today's prompt and knew I had a photo from Thurs to fit it, then see Kathi has posted the same lol, great minds eh?

I didn't know what it was called til I read Kathi's post - so Laburnum for yellow and blue sky in case I slip up tomorrow.

Linking up with Lucky 7's in 2014

A productive weekend.

Saturday was a very successful day in the sense that I washed my car, dug up the sweetcorn from my raised bed and managed a 3.5 mile walk and a quick cuppa with Yvonne, all the things I wanted to achieve so very happy.

 My car before and after - the mud is due to the farmers dropping large amounts of mud on the road and not cleaning it up, then the rain comes down and the roads are like mud baths making them very dangerous at the moment.

 

 

 

 My raised bed before and after - the sweetcorn was from a packet named baby sweetcorn, mine was not baby!!!

 

Sprouts and leeks left in - need to decide what to put in next.

Last link of the week to Lucky Snapping.  As most of you know I turned 50 in May and decided that I would do something every month for a year to celebrate the year.  Not always something big but just something that I have either been putting off or would normally say no to.  So May saw me completing the London Moonwalk, June Mick and I went to France to visit family war graves, July, Mick and I spent a couple of days walking along the west coast down Lands End way,  August we went to the Bristol Balloon Fiesta, September I had a weekend away with Yvonne, crafting, October Mick and I went to Westonbirt Arboretum, November I am going to stay with Bernadette and have a shopping spree and go to see the Wildlife Photographer of the year exhibition, December I am going to finally treat myself to a pedicure and manicure, January - not sure yet, February I am hoping Mick and I will get our act together and go to Iceland for a few days to see the Northern Lights but not sure if I have convinced him on that one yet!! March - not sure, April going to see Fiddler on the Roof with Paul Michael Glaser (from Starsky and Hutch days) and that will bring me back to May.

 

 

 

Projects

As a child I use to love it when the teacher said we were going to be doing a 'project' on whatever subject it happened to be.  To me I could immerse myself into the subject, research it, draw pictures for it, collect things for it and then create the finished project and present it to the teacher really pleased with myself and the teacher never minded how big it was.  When my girls were at school and were given their first 'project' to do I was really excited about helping them, just to be disappointed to discover that they were only required to do a few pages of A4 paper with limited number of words and no real research needed :(  what was being asked of them was more like an essay in my books!!!  How times have changed.

 

I still love the idea of projects and now I am transferring this to my photography.  I look at and read about all the different photography projects that people do and would really like to settle to one myself that I can become totally hooked on and work on over a period of time, one that I can fit into my life and will keep me inspired.  I have started several - POTD, playgrounds, monthly views.  I have completed two monthly views, tried the photo a day twice an failed twice, the playground project is still running but I haven't done much to that this year due to the good weather (I need dull overcast weather for the shots!!) For college I am doing the car show rooms, which I am enjoying but not in love with though falling in love with some rather nice cars - Mick isn't too keen on this project lol

I keep looking at different photo meme's online but then forget about them or maybe they just aren't inspiring me enough. 

 

At camera club on Thurs a lady came along to show us some of her projects that she is doing/has done. One of them was on fences, she kept to the same format using her compact camera and took photos of all the different fences she came across whilst out and about. Fences does seem to be a popular subject matter as a lady at college is doing that as well.  Not only was I amazed at the amount of fences around but all the different types.  As a society we do seem to like to enclose ourselves into confined spaces and shut others out.

 

So what photo projects do you do if any or what meme's do you take part in?  Please show me or tell me about your projects or share a link or two to different photo meme's as I would like to plan a new project for the winter months or start to take part in a meme or two. 

Fianlly one last link with Lucky Snapping for this week, my short term plans for the weekend, clean my FILTHY car, dig up my baby sweetcorn that never became baby just grew into huge maize, go for a walk, drop competition entries off to judge in Liskeard and go and see sister in law in Looe. 

 

Lucky snapping

Still pondering on the future and what would I like to be doing or do next year!!  Well, as I said yesterday I do like to plan things and have something to look forward, which has it disadvantages as it means I am always looking forward in time and not necessarily enjoying the here and now!! So I have to try and keep a happy balance on that score.

I would like to do some more travelling next year, doesn't have to be for long stays, a long weekend would do and to do some of the trips on the motorbike and camp. Mick is going to Switzerland again in Sept and Spain in May with the boys, so hopefully he and I will get some trips in as well.

One from last night, I popped over to the Mercedes garage to take some more pics for my college project. The only thing I have done to this is to crop the bottom to remove the drain.  May look to converting to b&w tomorrow.

 

 Linking with Lucky Snapping

The future

Viv over on Lucky Snapping shared this poem with us and challenged us accordingly

 

Warning - When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple

By Jenny Joseph

When I am an old woman, I shall wear purple

with a red hat that doesn't go, and doesn't suit me.

And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves

and satin candles, and say we've no money for butter.

I shall sit down on the pavement when I am tired

and gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells

and run my stick along the public railings

and make up for the sobriety of my youth.

I shall go out in my slippers in the rain 

and pick the flowers in other people's gardens

and learn to spit.

 You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat

and eat three pounds of sausages at a go

or only bread and pickles for a week

and hoard pens and pencils and beer nuts and things in boxes.

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry

and pay our rent and not swear in the street

and set a good example for the children.

We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practice a little now?

So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised

When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.

 

The poem gave me the idea to challenge you to think about what you would like to do or where you would like to be in the future. 

What do you think?

It doesn’t have to be when you are old, just in your future, maybe even tomorrow or next week.

a dream holiday, a different house, new car, anything really. 

Perhaps also you could take photos this week of works in progress, Family, crafts, something in the home or at work. Whatever you think fits the bill.

 

If I am honest I try not to think too much about the distant future, I find those thoughts scary, this fear is probably caused by what I see at work. I just pray that my family and I are bless with good health, can't ask for my marbles to stay in tact as they are already packing their bags and giving up on me!!!

 

That said I do like love to plan things and have something to always look forward to, doesn't have to be a big event just something. So for the rest of this week I can see myself spending time with friends, meeting a new little person for the first time (might even get to take some photos of her!!), celebrating a friends birthday, a surprise, becoming a great auntie for the first time!!! Making the decision as to whether I need a new printer or can I make do with this one and catching up with my sil.  All that will run alongside the usual weekly stuff of work, cc, etc etc.  

 

A memory of sunny days gone by

 - entertaining the crowds at the St Austell Feast Festival in July.

 

 

Next year I would like to be doing some more community event photography and aggravate the local newspaper photography/editor even more than I did this year.  He is such a sexist, arrogant man that he just begs to be annoyed and irritated lol.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Irresistible

Anne has asked to blog about what we regard as  irresistible and possible add a photo of food and a recipe.  Well anyone who knows me knows I love food but don't do recipes as that involves cooking and I really am NOT a good cook.  Though I do owe a very good collection of cookery books!!! 

 

"This is such a positive word as it only has to do with the nicest things.

You don't say bad weather is irresistible or catching the flu is irresistible, but a beautiful smile can be irresistible, a cake can be irresistible ( tell me about it ), that little dress or top in your corner shop is definitely irresistible.

So this month, we celebrate the arrival of Autumn and if you don't like it too much like me, we just think about the nicest things so we can go through.
So, what is irresistible for you ?
As of our photo challenge, let it be a bit more " challenging " this week : Let's take a photo of things we can eat, starting with any of the letters of the week days : M, T, W, F, S and if you want to (no pressure), you even can upload the recipe."

The first thing that springs to mind for me is 'tomatoes'  there is a permanent bowl sat on the worktop which always has tomatoes in it and as I walk by one always jumps out of the bowl and into my mouth!!  I just can't stop them, they do the same whilst I prepare a meal (I do do that every day because that is what you do - not because I enjoy it!)

 

 

 

Some home grown tomatoes from awhile back, I didn't do very well with them this year :(.

 

Visited Debbie does Handmade today.

 

Linking up with Lucky Snapping reflect and BlogtoberFest

 

Lucky Snapping catch up

7th August,

I went over to Charlestown Regatta in the evening with the intention of trying to take photos of Ben (from this post) dancing.  It turned out that I knew a few of the girls who were dancing with him from my netball coaching days.  So I had plenty of bodies to photograph.  It was a great learning kerb, low light and very fast moving dancers, I was exhausted just watching them, even the little ones were fantastic.  So here are a couple from the event.

This is Chelsea and I have to say she has a lovely voice and did a great job of singing in between dances.

 

 

 The senior group (Ben on the left, only boy, surprise surprise!! )

8th August
We headed off to Bristol to the Balloon Fiesta, on route we passed these

not what you normally expect to see on the A30!!

 

9th August

 

We had a walk around the balloon site which turned out to be just one big fun fair, which was a bit disappointing to be honest. So we then walked into Clifton and met up with Bernadette and her boyfriend and had some lunch which was lovely.  These Gromit models are dotted around the place in Bristol, there are 80 altogether and at some point they will be auctioned off for charity.  Apparently the Japanese are showing a lot of interest in them at the moment!! Bernadette was not impressed that I took a photo.  Maps have been produced and people are having days out going in search of finding them all!!! Hmm, must admit they are cute and all decorated differently. Abit of fun.

 

 

 

10th August

 

A day indoors for me as the walking from thurs evening and Friday did not go down well with my leg. So spent the day editing photos. So here are two from the night glow at the Balloon fiesta. It was packed and apparently Thurs was the quiet night lol.

 

 

 

11th August

 

A spot of gardening today.  Can't remember if I told you that Mick finally gave in and built me a raised bed in the garden so I could grow some veg.  Well I got a little carried away with what I put in.  I honestly did not expect everything to take - it doesn't normally!! Anyway I bought a packet of baby sweetcorn and they have sort of grown and have taken over to say the least!!  There are sweet peas behind the sweetcorn! Think I shall give them a miss next year. lol

 

 

 Linking up with Lucky Snapping

Daily Peeks -4

Spent a lovely day yesterday with friends and their puppy Cassi, (you have seen her before) naturally more photos of her had to be taken, she has grown so much but still as lively. 

 

Only one photo for yesterday. 
Linking with Lucky Snapping

Daily Peeks - Day 3

Day 3

 

Feeling a bit lost after the buzz of the 'Bread Riots' and no 'bodies' to photograph I put out a request on facebook  for willing models for me to practise on, (still can't believe that I did such a thing - so unlike me!!).  One of the chaps I know from camera club volunteered his son.  So this afternoon they appeared, I was expecting an 11yr old, instead a 17yr old walked in!!!  Which, possibly turned out better as he wasn't at all shy and a real poser.  Here are a couple of him. 

(not happy with the background on this - but still like it.)

He was really good with me and didn't mind me sticking my camera in his face, we just stayed in the back garden but have requested he let me do another shoot with him in an urban environment as I think he would be great there.  Can't decide which out of these three I like best, in fact can't decide out of all of them which I like best.  He teachers dance to youngsters and did do some moves for me.  He also bored quite quick and decided he was hungry as he hadn't eaten all day, but I am really grateful for his time.
Linked with Lucky Snapping

Lucky Snapping - daily peeks!!

This week Kathi is encouraging us to post a daily photo - surprise surprise I am already behind and it is only Wed lol.

 

I have this idea for a photograph that I want to try and create, so Monday evening  I popped out into the garden to have a play with the camera.  As you can see if involves a slow shutter speed and taken in the hours of darkness - right up my street!!  Think I went out a bit too late so will try again tonight if the rain stops and then take the idea to the intended location :) on the right night.  First time I have felt happy about doing a self portrait lol.

 

Saw the doctor today and he kindly informed me that my distance walking days are over due to the leg injury I developed in Feb.  So he suggested I took up swimming instead of walking!! Hey ho - they did warn me that in Feb but would I listen no - so I am back on this rest activity again, not an activity I have ever really participated in so the Yoga dvd's have been out today ha ha!!

Birthdays

Over on Lucky Snapping April challenged us to write about Birthday's.  Well I thought a lot about this one especially as I have a big one coming up in a few days time, but didn't really want to bore you with all that again - well not too much anyway!! lol

So I was struggling with what to write until last night and now I just have to tell you.  Mick and I went out for a meal at the Hawkins Arms again and we went with our friends Barbara and Nick, it was an early Birthday meal for me, with not being around for the actual day.  Anyway, the evening is going well and someone Mick works with (Steve) turned up with his wife and brother and said hello, I had never met him before and off he goes.  Half way through the meal the landlord appears with a bottle of champagne and four glasses, asking if I was celebrating a birthday, so I explained it was next week and he said well this is for you, from the gentleman sat around the corner (Mick's work colleague!!) well I was speechless (so was Mick!!) (and yes Yvonne I cried but just a little!) I was so taken aback, never had anything like that happen to me, especially from someone I didn't know!! Anyway, as usual the food was fantastic and we had no room for dessert so just settled for a cup of tea.  Then the lights went out and I moan "great a power cut"!!!!  then the landlady appears carrying a plate with a dessert on it and a candle and Happy Birthday written in chocolate on the plate from them and the chef.  Well yet again I was speechless and somewhat overwhelmed by it all. 

It really started my birthday celebrations off a treat.

 

Nick trying to get out of the photo.

Me feeling rather overwhelmed by the whole evening.

 My birthday dessert :) yummy treacle tart.

Lucky Snapping catch up

Oh dear I seem to be way behind on everything this week - obviously does not do to go away, well not as far as blogging is concerned!! 

Anyway this photo is from last week, my view from my kitchen window, the wind has battered my poor daffs to pieces. I took this on Monday, they were standing when we got home on Sunday!!

This week on Lucky Snapping we are talking about things that make us laugh.  Well I think I can happily say I am one of those people who finds herself  laughing a lot, especially at myself and I am an uncontrollable giggler!!  So when I read this prompt on Monday I thought of lots of different situations to tell you about, but could not believe that I actually found myself dreaming about it as well, so I shall tell you about Monday night first. I went to sleep easily but at some point I had started to dream that I was on a trampoline and two other people were on it bouncing up and down as you do on trampolines but I was curled up in a ball.  Thus resulting in me having no control over where I was bouncing.  I am sure you all know the situation I am describing.  So in the dream I am laughing away as are the other two people, but the funny thing is that I must have curled myself up into a ball in bed and then woke myself up laughing and coughing - which then woke Mick up!!!  Surprisingly he didn't see the funny side of it all, unfortunately by this point I was giggling away and had to get up and go downstairs to calm myself down before returning to bed and back to sleep.  In the morning Mick asked me what had I been doing, his face was a picture when I explained it to him - it was just sheer disbelief and bewilderment - mind you now I come to think of it he has had that expression since our wedding day!! Strange but never mind :) 

Look Closely - The Beautiful may be Small

Linking in with Lucky Snapping and Lynne's quote

 

 

Wednesday morning brought a frost with it so I ventured out to see what I could see. Couldn't believe there were some daisies still in the lawn.

One of two hydranga's springing into life rapidly.

There was a mention of squirrel proof bird feeders on someone's blog the other day, so thought I would show you ours, which to date has proved to be squirrel proof. 

 

Playing with some tulips my mother and father in law bought me on Tuesday. The stemens reminded me of meerkats!!

 

 

I shan't get to post anything tomorrow as I shall be at the NEC all day, so hope everyone has a good weekend. 

"Look Closely - The beautiful may be small"

Well  a funny old week for me, I have been resting as I have been told and I am going stir crazy!!!!  Saw the  physio tues evening, very positive thankfully.  He lasered my shin tendon, taped me up in some very sexy black tape which has to stay on for six days, gave me some exercises and told me to use a bucket of iced water to put my leg in for one minute then dry then repeat two more times (3 mins in total)  three times a day!!!  Said taped shin - said it was sexy - thank goodness it isn't the summer!!!

Some sick sense of humour if you ask me!!  Still I have done it, does it feel better?, once the blood thaws out and starts flowing again I suppose it does, I'm sure it is working wonders internally, mentally and externally not so sure.  Anyway he says I can do a simple walk at the weekend ie to the shops and back but no hills!!! Hmm I live on a hill and the shop is at the bottom, it needs to be on the flat so I guess walking around the NEC on Sunday (which is on the flat) will have to class as my simple walk :) 


Now for Lucky Snapping this week we have a quote to inspire us to take some photos.  The quote being

“ Look closely. The beautiful may be small” ~ Immanuel Kant

 

 

we had a frost this morning so I ventured out to see what I could find  and this is what I came up with.

 

the blueberry bush in the greenhouse at the mo, should have got closer to the blossom but had the wrong lens on, plus not too good at squating right now,

Blueberry bush again

 

My favourite like the droplets along the top of the flower

Will post some more tomorrow.

Lucky Snapping 2013, wk 4

Not had a good week this last week, so way behind with this week's challenge over on Lucky Snapping 2013.  Haven't taken any new photos, but here are some old ones, hopefully they have not all been seen before.  Here is the challenge from Janice

All the colours...

...of the RAINBOW

I've been thinking about the prompts I could give you. I was reading my book the other night and in it there is a character who is very fond of using Mnemonics to remember different facts, it struck me that this would be ideal for a photo prompt. One of the best known of these is Richard of York gave Battle in Vain which is used to help remember the colours of the spectrum as seen in a rainbow. There are seven colours, one for each day!

red
orange
yellow
green
blue
indigo
violet

 and here are my images (sorry Kathi, lots of flowers!!)

 

Red

 

 

Orange

Yellow

 

 Green

 

Blue

 

Indigo

Violet

Lucky Snapping last part.

So onto the last part of the quotation (first one is here, second one here) and the quote is

“There are 3 things that a child can teach an adult
To be happy for no reason
To be always be busy doing something
And to know how to demand – with all one’s might- what one wants” ~ Paulo Coelho

My questions to you
What makes you happy? Are you ever happy for no reason? Why?
What are you busy doing this week?
What do you want, wish for? Are you good at demanding what you want like children do?"
(What do you want/wish for?)  I really can't think of anything that I really want apart from my family to stay healthy and happy in their lives and for the girls to live their lives to the full and achieve what they want to. I would like to be more self disciplined.

(Am I good at demanding what I would like) - simple NO I am dreadful, I always back down to let others have their way!

Yesterday we should have gone to Warwickshire for Amanda's course interview but it was cancelled due to the weather so we are waiting for another date.  So I enjoyed a 10 mile walk in the sun (yes we had sun) and it was positively warm.  Then I spent the evening knitting.  Today it is a short walk and then work this afternoon. 


Thanks Lynne for this challenge I have really enjoyed thinking about your questions.

A random photo taken in France a couple of years ago.  Makes me hope for sunny days this year.

Luky Snapping Part 2 of Quotation

So onto the second part of the quotation (first one is here) and here is the quotation

“There are 3 things that a child can teach an adult
To be happy for no reason
To be always be busy doing something
And to know how to demand – with all one’s might- what one wants” ~ Paulo Coelho

My questions to you
What makes you happy? Are you ever happy for no reason? Why?
What are you busy doing this week?
What do you want, wish for? Are you good at demanding what you want like children do?"

(Am I ever happy for no reason? Why?) Oh yes, I often find myself smiling, or walking with an extra spring in my step for no particualr reason and when I ask myself why? I can only put it down to the feeling of being alive and healthy so I always say a little "thank you" to whoever is responsible for that in this universe we live in. 

I am generally a very positive person (though I do have down days but more up) and I think that helps me with my no reason happy moments, there is always a good side to everything and I am a firm believer that all things happen for a reason, it may not be obvious at the time but at some point you will realise that what happened was for the best and good comes out of it.

(What are you busy doing this week?)

Well it has been the usual busy week for me though very good, Mon and Tues morning was work, Monday afternoon I did a lovely 8 mile walk then spent the evening knitting and watching Lewis.  Tues afternoon I err spent the time on the computer!!! OOPs, then in the evening it was out to the Camera Club committee meeting, which I am part of for my sins, (one day I will learn to say "NO"), unfortunately it did go on and on and around 9.30pm I started to loose the will to live lol. 

Wednesday I indulged myself in a reflexology treatment (high time my feet had abit of pampering as they are working so hard) it was bliss.  Then after that I actually did the dusting and hoovering (I apologise to those who know me for the shock I have just given them - not a regular past time of mine!!)  Wednesday evening was an experience.  A friend asked if I would like to go to Falmouth uni with her to hear a talk by the photographer Peter Fraser and it was free!!  I had seen some of his work and thought why not, nothing to loose I may like it I may not!  It was so interesting, listening to his explainations of work and how he goes about choosing a theme for a project and then how he brings the idea altogether to create a body of work which then becomes a book. I was very inspired to say the least. Then on the way home we stopped at the Norway Inn for scampi and chips - delicious.

Thursday another friend and I went to Plymouth for a shopping spree to get my outfit for the Moonwalk in May (yes I know a long way to go for a bra but believe it or not no where in Truro have a plain blue bra that I can decorate!!) admittedly a couple of jumpers and a pair of boots (yes another pair Yvonne!!!) jumped into my shopping bag as well - hey ho, these things happen.  Plus it was a very good excuse to have a catch up which was well overdue!!  Then home and out for camera club, judging of the most recent competition but unfortunately the judges failed to appear - (down moment for me as I am competition secretary who organises the judges!!!) still we improvised and a good evening was had - thankgoodness.

As for today I was planning on a walk this morning, but it is pouring and blowing a baby hooley so I am chickening out and will do some pilates instead, then it is work this afternoon til 10pm tonight.

 

 

One of my favourite spots down here, The Dodman, we often take a walk there, I love just sitting on the top looking out to sea, a place that I really do manage to just switch off and relax.  Might not be the place to sit today more likely to be blown over the edge!!

Lucky Snapping 2013 - Part 1

This week it is Lynne's turn to give us a challenge and this is what she has set.

"I am going to give you a quotation and during the week you have free choice to journal, take photos daily or whenever you want to in the week.
Link your photos and journaling to the theme of the quotation

A bit about the man Paulo Coelho, whom I have taken the quotation from this week.
Wikipedia: Paulo Coelho was born in Brazil in Aug 1947. He is a Brazilian lyricist and novelist. He has become one of the most widely read authors in the world today. He is the recipient of numerous prestigious international awards, amongst them the Crystal Award by the World Economic Forum and France's Légion d'honneur
Coelho also writes up to three blog posts a week at his blog www.paulocoelhoblog.com
Here is the quotation
“There are 3 things that a child can teach an adult
To be happy for no reason
To be always be busy doing something
And to know how to demand – with all one’s might- what one wants” ~ Paulo Coelho

My questions to you
What makes you happy? Are you ever happy for no reason? Why?
What are you busy doing this week?
What do you want, wish for? Are you good at demanding what you want like children do?"

Initially I was going to do this as just one post but decided to do it bit by bit.

Well I knew the answer to the first part of this (What makes you happy?) Heaps of things make me happy, the sun shining, the birds singing, a smile from a stranger, a hug from a friend or loved one, an unexpected compliment, listening to music, even chatting to cyber friends on fb and here (did I really confess to being a fb chatter!!!! eek!) Very often it is just stopping and looking around me and realising how lucky I am to have the family I have, a hubby who loves me and puts up with me and all my faults and two beautiful daughters who have been an absolute pleasure in my life since the day they were born and to live where I do. So I guess you could say it is the little BIG things in life that make me happy.

My pair, a couple of years ago at Perranporth, I was trying to take sunset shots, they got bored and decided to assist!!!