Saturday: Found this pretty little clump under a tree on my road.
Sunday: This looks like it's in black and white. It isn't. I'm getting so hungry for sunshine.
Monday: Nothing says suburbia like a gulag-style frosting of barbed wire.
Tuesday: Peacocks. A terrible photo, I know, but I had an essay due in on Wednesday and was still desperately trying to write the thing, so just snapped from where I was sitting.
Wednesday: I took this on the way in to hand in my essay. I was feeling incredibly frustrated and upset that it wasn't up to the standard I would have liked, which is probably why this somewhat depressing image caught my eye.
Thursday: I love the contrast of old and new buildings in London.
Friday: Another depressing day, another depressing photo. Actually I'm amazed I remembered to take anything on Friday, since it really did suck beyond the telling of it.
Saturday: Study in yellow. I love the 'vivid colour' setting on my camera. It really does bring things up brightly.
Sunday: The first few crocuses starting to peek out. I was driven back from Bath today and, while gazing out of the window in a hungover blur, I couldn't help noticing that it's starting to be Spring. There are already lambs in the fields, and the patches of woodland and roadside scrub are showing a purple and green haze of new leaf. Everything's beginning to look sodden and lush rather than frozen. I can't wait for Spring!
Sunday, 28 February 2010
Wednesday, 24 February 2010
comfort and joy
I strongly recommend looking away now if you are of a delicate constitution. This is going to be a rant of a feminine nature.
Basically, I've been trying to find ways of cutting back on the amount of money I spend, and one of the things I've been doing is trying to get out of the habit of buying branded products just because I'm used to them. In many areas this has worked out fine, but then I went and bought own-brand tampons. "How different can they be?" I thought. Very, as it turns out. Surely this is a product which ought to be designed to cause the minimum amount of fuss and the maximum of comfort. It seems however that this is one area where it's worth spendng a bit of extra cash as, unfortunately, a certain supermarket apparently thinks that what women really want is to be stabbed in the lady garden with a pointy piece of cardboard several times a day.
Basically, I've been trying to find ways of cutting back on the amount of money I spend, and one of the things I've been doing is trying to get out of the habit of buying branded products just because I'm used to them. In many areas this has worked out fine, but then I went and bought own-brand tampons. "How different can they be?" I thought. Very, as it turns out. Surely this is a product which ought to be designed to cause the minimum amount of fuss and the maximum of comfort. It seems however that this is one area where it's worth spendng a bit of extra cash as, unfortunately, a certain supermarket apparently thinks that what women really want is to be stabbed in the lady garden with a pointy piece of cardboard several times a day.
Sunday, 21 February 2010
Things that make me want to hit people with a haddock
Meeting up with people who then proceed to spend the whole evening on the phone or texting people. Fair enough if it's an emergency, or something you need to deal with urgently, but it rarely is. If you don't want to talk to me then don't make arrangements to go out. If you do want to talk to me then learn some manners, and don't leave me sitting there twiddling my thumbs while you converse with someone who is evidently far more interesting than I am.
Friday, 19 February 2010
Daily photos 10-13
Oops, I did it again. Or rather didn't do it again. Once again we have a weekly round-up of daily photos. Maybe I should just make that the plan. Although if I did I'd probably end up with a monthly round-up of weekly round-ups of daily photos.
Sunday: There will inevitably be a fair few cat photos over the course of this project...
Monday: ...Two on consecutive days is a bit lame though. Oh well, look at Bob. He's the king of the castle.
Tuesday: Still-life in Condiments
Wednesday: This building is in construction near my work, and I have very little faith in it. I'm frequently convinced that it will collapse on the library, or that a butter-fingered builder will drop a hammer on my head from a vast height.
Thursday: Bollards. Shiny.
Friday: I love these. I'm seriously tempted to remove them under cover of night and relocate them to my home. I'm not sure how I'd get them onto the tube, but such trivial details can be worked out nearer the time.
Sunday: There will inevitably be a fair few cat photos over the course of this project...
Monday: ...Two on consecutive days is a bit lame though. Oh well, look at Bob. He's the king of the castle.
Tuesday: Still-life in Condiments
Wednesday: This building is in construction near my work, and I have very little faith in it. I'm frequently convinced that it will collapse on the library, or that a butter-fingered builder will drop a hammer on my head from a vast height.
Thursday: Bollards. Shiny.
Friday: I love these. I'm seriously tempted to remove them under cover of night and relocate them to my home. I'm not sure how I'd get them onto the tube, but such trivial details can be worked out nearer the time.
Saturday, 13 February 2010
Books - The Enchantress of Florence
Given that The Enchantress of Florence was written by the winner of the Best of the Booker prize, it seemed a fairly safe bet that it would be a good read, and even with such high expectations it did not disappoint. Rushdie weaves this mesmerising tale of magic and seduction with such elegant and evocative turn of phrase that every word is a delight. He flits between a Russian dolls' nest of stories within stories, interlinking them with casual skill, and cleverly drawing the parallels and mirror images which thread throughout the book. Sensuality is the dominant theme here, from the lustful and power-hungry characters, to the almost physical induction of the sights, sounds and smells of India and Florence. I think it's safe to say that, however many books I get through, this will remain one of the highlights of my reading year.
Daily photos 4 -9
Thus far I've done well with the plan to take a photo every day. Unfortunately I've done less well with the plan to actually get around to posting them. Oh well...the road to hell and all that. Prepare for a bumper crop of this week's photos.
Monday: An accidental photo of the inside of my bag. I was going to delete it but was quite impressed with the clarity of the shot. Apologies for the unintentional advertising.
Tuesday: My hand clutching tightly onto a vodka and soda. This was mostly an attempt to try out the sepia effect on the camera. It's one of those wonderful things that makes non-creative types like myself feel all arty and cool, whilst giving actual creative types a valuable opportunity to sneer at us mere mortals for thinking a sepia effect makes a photo arty and cool.
Wednesday: A glorious day of vintage shopping, art gallery visitation and comedy show attendance, all mixed up with drinking. What could be better? One of my morning purchases was this fabulous pair - Alphonse and Bernardo - who pretty much begged to come home with me. Yes, yes, I know, it's all very un-pc, but I never claimed to be a good person. Or if I did I was probably drunk. And wrong.
Thursday: Yeah, that's a piece of tin foil. When I got home from work I was exhausted and in pain from a nasty fall the previous night. Inspiration was not forthcoming so I photographed the foil I'd just unwrapped my dinner from. I should probably claim it's some post-modernist commentary on the beauty of the banal or something, but frankly I can't be arsed.
Friday: Tweetie lives in my sitting room. He tawt he taw a putty tat. Or two.
Saturday: I'm watching yoooooou!
Monday: An accidental photo of the inside of my bag. I was going to delete it but was quite impressed with the clarity of the shot. Apologies for the unintentional advertising.
Tuesday: My hand clutching tightly onto a vodka and soda. This was mostly an attempt to try out the sepia effect on the camera. It's one of those wonderful things that makes non-creative types like myself feel all arty and cool, whilst giving actual creative types a valuable opportunity to sneer at us mere mortals for thinking a sepia effect makes a photo arty and cool.
Wednesday: A glorious day of vintage shopping, art gallery visitation and comedy show attendance, all mixed up with drinking. What could be better? One of my morning purchases was this fabulous pair - Alphonse and Bernardo - who pretty much begged to come home with me. Yes, yes, I know, it's all very un-pc, but I never claimed to be a good person. Or if I did I was probably drunk. And wrong.
Thursday: Yeah, that's a piece of tin foil. When I got home from work I was exhausted and in pain from a nasty fall the previous night. Inspiration was not forthcoming so I photographed the foil I'd just unwrapped my dinner from. I should probably claim it's some post-modernist commentary on the beauty of the banal or something, but frankly I can't be arsed.
Friday: Tweetie lives in my sitting room. He tawt he taw a putty tat. Or two.
Saturday: I'm watching yoooooou!
Sunday, 7 February 2010
Daily photo 3 - Mini-Meg
On a lazy, hungover Sunday, Mini-Meg likes nothing better than to cosy up on the sofa with a spot of knitting. Personally I suspect that the scarf she's working on may be a little big for her, but she won't be told. Sometimes she can be so stubborn.,
Saturday, 6 February 2010
Literary criticism
You know you've been studying English Literature for too long when you catch yourself analysing the overt gender stereotyping in 'The Wheels on the Bus'.
Friday, 5 February 2010
Daily photo 1 - Buck
This is Buck, the roe deer specimen who hangs in my kitchen/dining room, and has the honour of being the first thing my gaze landed on this morning as I looked around me for a subject. I have a fascnination for all things taxidermy, which my current budget is sadly unable to satisfy, so when I spotted this little guy on sale on ebay for just a few pounds, I jumped at the chance to give him a loving home.
Thursday, 4 February 2010
Photo-a-thon
Well, no luck so far in coming up with a new writing idea. However, my new camera arrived today, so tomorrow will see the beginning of my daily photo project. This is going to be an interesting challenge for me, as I usually take photos of people. I imagine most of my friends won't want their images splashed around on here (although I may be proved wrong), so I'll need to move out of my comfort zone and find other interesting, non-privacy invading, subjects. One year in photos, starting...now.
Monday, 1 February 2010
Carry on smiling?
When I set myself the target of posting one thing every day that makes me smile, I knew I was going to find it hard. In fact, I'm really impressed that I've done as well as I have. I know I haven't been perfect, but there are some days that are just blah. And then there are the days when life knocks you down and, just to be sure, kicks you repeatedly until you stay down. Even on those days I usually managed to find something, even if it meant going looking for it online. The month I'd aimed for is over now, so I'm pondering whether to continue with it or to start a new project. I've just ordered a new camera (Burning Man killed my old one) so I'm planning to tackle one of my '101 things to do before I die' items and take a photo every day for a year, but I'd like a writing project as well. I could try posting one thing every day that makes me want to smack someone around the head with a haddock, but however would I keep it down to just one?
Any ideas?
Any ideas?
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