Celebrating 70 Years A SoFoBoMo book by Sue Hutton
July 1st - August 1st 2018 the month in which I celebrated my 70th birthday
The photos and accompanying text in this book are intended to be viewed as spreads, which can be accessed by setting the view to ‘two pages’ in your PDF reader of choice.
Purple Pom Poms
Or rather, Echinops Bannaticus 'Taplow Blue' thistle, seen at Little Garendon late this afternoon, the second of the two Shepshed Open Gardens I managed to visit this weekend. Would have liked to have visited more but energy escapes me, particularly in this heat. Prepared a green salad in leisurely style this morning for Len and me to take to Joy's for Sunday lunch. What a superb spread! Joy had worked really hard at it. She started us all of with a G&T before we moved on to the prosecco that Len and I had brought. Sadly, the prosecco did wear me out. No stamina you see. Was grateful for the veil of cloud today that took the edge of the heat. Little Garendon sits on the edge of Charnwood Forest, well, within the borders, so I think it may escape the incursions of developers who have been plastering the south and west of Shepshed with new building. Ugly the houses look too. Being a little higher up, the garden has wide open vistas up to the ridge on which Mount St Bernard's Abbey sits, and a breeze blows along the Black Brook that runs in a channel 300m from the garden boundary. My album of photos of Shepshed Open Gardens is on Facebook.
A Birthday Gift to Len
After a itful night, I woke just after 5 am. As is my custom these hot days, I went to the conservatory to open the doors to let some cool air in before the sun gets up. Surprise and great pleasure to ind this female Common Hawker dragonly resting on the window blind just inside one of the doors. I rushed to get a camera to take shots while I could. I needn't have worried. It takes some time for a dragonly to warm up on a cool morning. Then I went for the tripod as I realised I could use a slower shutter speed. Gaining in conidence, I inally chose a macro lens, to ill the frame with the insect. I hope Len's really pleased with the photo too. It's his birthday today. I've been treated to some smashing photos on his birthday in the past. I closed the conservatory door a little in case an inquisitive corvid should also spy this prize for its breakfast.
Powder Paint Workshop
Pleasant temperature irst thing and a breeze that seemed to strengthen during the day. As a result it wasn't quite as hot as it might have been. My 12 weekly injection at the surgery where the nurse, Mr King, and I discussed the lack of coordination between hospital and GP surgery on matters such as pain management following surgery. Mr King explained that the GPs consider that the hospital has taken that all into consideration and that it's up to the patient to make waves. No such niceties such as the GP phoning to ind out if everything's alright. This makes me very cross. Seems as if nothing has changed much in the animosity between family practitioners and hospitals in the NHS. *grinding of teeth* A quick trip to Staunton Harold nurseries to buy hostas and ferns for the pond, ready for Harry to plant tomorrow. Then this evening to Nottingham for another workshop at Michael Lau Photography, with two models, Keira and James, in a paint throwing workshop. I could have been in a better mood but was molliied as the evening wore on. People had the England vs Columbia match on their phones. Almost unbelievable that it went right to the wire. Was glad Jamie Vardy got a lookin this time. Photo taken in natural light, not studio light, of Keira being photographed by Jo. Photo on right of our other model, James Green.
Dragonly Nymph Case
Harry came to work on the pond this afternoon, weeding out the ground round the back and planting hostas and ferns bought at Staunton Harold yesterday. I'd bought what I thought was a little fern with a lovely shaped leaf. It turns out it's a tree fern! It's gone right in the corner at the back. We shall have to see if it survives. This was one of two nymph cases Harry found during the clean up, still clinging to a stalk of cow parsley. Exciting for me as I'd never seen one before. And he found a live one in the pond so more dragonlies should emerge. I need to sit at the bottom of the garden more. I hadn't seen them 'hatching,' so to speak. A quiet day but perhaps that was OK. I still had a nap after 2pm. Must take Basil out to the woods for a run now.
The Pond
I fess up. I was sitting in an easy chair by the pond with my Canon camera and decided to do some experiments in multi exposure. Certainly diferent. You should, with imagination, make out a water lily bud at the centre. The extra is another I took this morning. The relections of the conservatory frames in the shed window were quite striking.
A Rose
30 degrees C hot today. So grateful for air conditioning in the car while riding about. Into Loughborough to shopsit for Aziz. Treated myself to a gluten free toastie and pot of tea at Tyler's afterwards. Home and feet up. Took this photo this morning earlyish. Macro lens and a double exposure to enhance the softness.
When you forget to blip
I'd just sat down to eat dinner when I remembered I had to take a blip. The light was fading. I could only resort to the honeysuckle. Lively chat at cofee morning. Meeting of the Documentary subgroup of the RPS in the East Midlands this afternoon. Only ive of us there but we all had something to show. I showed photos I've taken in and of Loughborough since 2012. Someone remarked that I had made it look quite a pleasant place. I must go out and ind some not so nice scenes then.
Gorged on Nectar
Can it get any hotter? No rain on the horizon. It's certainly sapped my will today. Really nice to see George, Kat and William at lunch time. We found some shade in the garden and ate sausages in bread buns, followed by ice cream. Will likes ice cream. George brought Will’s little paddling pool in which he enjoyed splashing around. Getting out of the pool and getting back in seemed to be a major source of fun. Then it was late afternoon, the heat of the day. We retired inside. I took this photo this morning. The bee seemed to be stuck on the heart of the water lily. I could only imagine that there was a major return on the nectar.
Swallow Tail Moth
I instagrammed this moth a couple of days ago. It was resting on the curtain. It's evidently been hiding in our living room since then and has even settled on me. Its wings are in poor condition so it moves only feebly. This gave me the opportunity to shift it to the shooting table where I was able to capture this macro of its head. It's gone somewhere else now. Must look. Today threatens to be a repeat of yesterday's heat although some cloud cover is predicted to lower temperatures a little. We'll see. Am popping over to Gill's to sit in her cool garden and chat.
Ready to Pop
Allium seeds in the garden this morning. Not totally sharp because a slight breeze moved the plant. Singing, then to see Kat and Will. Will still unwell from weekend but pleased to see him in nothing but nappy in the heat. Home to ind that someone from Bosnia Herzegovina has hacked my Netlix account.
Winter in Summer
On the way back from Birmingham, Len and I stopped at the Marks and Spencer food hall at Ashby de la Zouch to pick up a snack for the evening while watching the footy, and also to enjoy a cup of tea. The a/c was deliciously cold. Outside in the car park, the young trees that were planted to provide shade appeared to be in great distress as a result of the hot, dry weather. I don't know if the trees are still alive but the leaves have shrivelled and died. It might as well be winter.
First Pink Waterlily
This is the irst pink waterlily in my pond. I used a narrow aperture so maybe it looks a bit too clearly deined. A wonderful colour. As I write, Len has gone to fetch Basil from Stacey, his groomer, and Basil and I are to travel to Nottingham tonight for a photographic workshop featuring contemporary dance. I'd ordered some net curtains as a backdrop but there was a mixup over delivery to the studio, so they haven't arrived. Photo on right of Scarlett Foxett, one of our models.
Dead or Alive?
When I saw the tail of this peeping out from the bottom of a leaf at the pond yesterday, I wondered if it was actually a dragonly about to emerge from its case, but no, it was simply a nymph case, or an exuvia as Geof tells me. On examination, I could see the thorax was broken which was where the dragonly would have emerged. The white strings are, apparently, the remains of the respiratory system of the nymph. Excitement therefore over. Maybe one day I'll spot a dragonly emerging. Len actually saw one the other day drying its wings on a plant next to the pond. I, of course, was out. Main event of today was having a tooth out. Had to have four injections instead of two because I'm such a baby. I could still feel the tooth coming out. I wish there hadn't been so much illing in it as I got the impression that the root was still healthy. I really do look like a crone now. Alasdair and Chris are back from Bahrain and popped in to see us.
Flags of the Nations
On sale in Loughborough Market this morning, whither I had gone to have my hair cut. Humid day so though we've known higher temperatures, it's felt more oppressive. Other than popping in to see Aziz, I didn't do much. Bus home to Shepshed with Basil and then couch potatoing while watching Wimbledon and England vs Belgium in the World Cup. Why on earth didn't they sub Jamie Vardy for Harry Kane? At least Vardy would have made an efort. He's been overlooked badly in this tournament.
Fotofest Central I celebrated my 70th birthday by attending Fotofest Central, an event sponsored by Fotospeed with some high power photography speakers, such as Morag Paterson and her husband/photographic partner Ted Leeming (pictured). Mark Littlejohn, Tom Way and Charlie Waite were the others. A point to remember from Tom Way and Charlie Waite: the smallest detail can 'make' or 'break' a photograph. Charlie sometimes prints two copies of a photo making the smallest of changes in one of them, then asks someone to say which photo they prefer. Invariably the photo chosen is the one he thinks is better. I liked the way the light fell on Leeming and Paterson in the big tent set up for the venue, which was being held on the sidelines of the annual Patchings Arts Festival, just north of Nottingham. An incredibly hot day but there was a very welcome breeze which blew open the side panels at one point in the afternoon. It got hot in the tent but we could dip outside between talks to get a breather and look at the stalls set up by various vendors with generous discounts on their products.
I thought ÂŁ300 of a Sigma wide angle lens was quite good but couldn't aford it. In the end, I settled for a pack of Fotospeed Gloss Art Fibre paper. I like the warmer colour of the paper. The event and festival were very well organised. I can thoroughly recommend them. And the pavilion was open this year for refreshments which saved the long trek down to the cafe and a probable wait in a queue. And, best of all, I met Sue, who had been on the Venice trip with me last year. We had a very enjoyable day together. Journey home delayed by steam tractors departing the Rempstone Steam and Country Show. Must go and peel garlic and ginger for prawns tonight.
I Thirst
Incredibly oppressive today. Cloud started building by mid morning. We hoped for rain. Facebook friends in the north told us it had started raining there. Eventually enough fell just after six pm to wet the ground, and no more. At least it felt fresher. This poor small tortoiseshell butterly has been hanging around the pond for the last few days, settling on the bird bath at one point. His/her wings look a bit ragged. Must have been thirsty.
Kal Boy
A social day today. First the Open Church cofee morning followed by a trip over the Forest to see Sue in Markield. Basil and Kal greeted each other as is their wont, then found their own dossing places. I took this while Kal was looking up from his armchair. Blissfully cooler today, thanks to cloud cover, although it had threatened to be warm again from irst thing this morning. Actually did a bit of housework. Cleaned up my shower, which badly needed it.
White Gourd
I'd intended to take a photo of the pond this afternoon, but I left it too late. The cloudy weather encouraged the lowers to fold up their petals. So I took some photos of this white gourd instead. I think it's magniicent, but I wonder if it's edible. I bought a job lot at Oakley Grange Farm last week with still life in mind, only to ind that I probably needed more, and in a wider range of sizes. Expect more gourds in days to come. My very irst time in a gym this morning, with all those contraptions you see as you walk past. I have to admit that I enjoyed it. My big stumbling block was the bike. There's evidently still inlammation in the knee because I couldn't turn the pedals all the way round, and when my personal trainer (yes, I get a personal trainer) tried to force the issue, my knee objected violently. But it recovered very quickly, so the problem can't be too bad. Looking forward to next week.
A Touch of the Med
Arriving home after a huge shop at Morrisons for my party on Sunday, the evening light lit up the trug full of gourds. Such warm colours. Roasted Mediterranean veggies on the menu. Didn't come to until 9 am this morning. Needed that sleep.
Basil on his Morning Walk
Sticky and sultry this morning. I actually stirred myself to take Basil for a walk at 9 am. Something I haven't done in ages. We trekked down the 'green' pathway that lies between Trueway Drive and Fairway Road. I liked the way this plant hung over the path. Basil decided he should be in the photo as well, which is perhaps a good thing. Shop sat for Aziz then went to Sainsburys to get the things I'd forgotten at Morrisons yesterday. Collected a bottle of Tynt Meadow trappist ale for Len from Oakley Grange on the way home. They charge 20p more per bottle than other outlets, I discovered. Then bought another bottle to cheer up Colin who has had a rough week.
Red and Yellow
Still working on still lifes of vegetables from Oakley Grange Farm. Today it's red and yellow tomatoes except for the yellow gourd at the back. Busy today. Cooked the bacon joint, made a huge pavlova cake and prepped veggies for salads to make tomorrow. George, Kat and William arrived in the afternoon. William now seemingly peacefully asleep after going to see friends. Like all babies, he loves company and is very sociable. George and Kat out to see friends at a barbecue. I must turn this machine of as George and Kat will be sleeping in this room later on. And garlic and ginger needs to be prepared for the prawns.
The Party's Over
I'd invited friends round this afternoon to celebrate my 70th birthday, which was actually last Sunday. I'dbeen crazily busy all weekend shopping and prepping food. Though hot, a cloudy sky provided a welcome sunscreen in addition to the gazebo, the shade from over the fence and the umbrella. Kat and George came to stay to help Len and me get ready. Len was really worried about making Pimms with prosecco, so I rose to the occasion. Tall glass jug, cucumber, lemon and orange ready sliced with mint picked from the garden. Lots of ice cubes in the jug, pour in the PImms to about a ifth full. A generous dash of gin, ill the rest of the way with chilled prosecco then top up with lemonade. It was a dangerous drink. You could feel it being refreshing but my, the alcohol content was something else. Necessary to have two glasses of water before going home. Photo taken from a bedroom windowsill over which the jasmine is climbing, out over the patio with a view on to the seating in the garden. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. I was concerned that people wouldn't eat, but they did. All that salad preparation wasn't for nothing.
Broad Bodied Chaser
Basil's quarterly worming today. The vet nurses have got it down to a ine art. One holds him, while the other puts the tablets at the back of his throat, holds his muzzle and pipettes some water into the side of his mouth to make him swallow. If only he would cooperate. If only the tablets tasted really nice. We then went to Charnwood Water. Though the heat was stiling, it was cooler by the water. I took only my small camera thinking I wouldn't have much chance to see anything. How wrong could I be? Baby coots, this dragonly, and a pair of common blue damsellies pairing. They seemed a lot smaller than those I have seen in the past. Thank goodness for a/c in the car. Home to doss. Len had put on the TV. Oh mortiication to watch daytime TV, but it was an episode of The Sweeney with favourite telly cops Dennis Waterman and John Thaw. AND this episode featured Morecambe and Wise. Eric Morecambe never could stop a wisecrack. Refreshing to see them. This was the irst time I've ever seen The Sweeney. Len watered the plants in the evening and alerted me to a frog in one of the lower troughs. Hope we can get to sleep tonight in the heat.
Gimme My Dummy
After a lovely birthday lunch with Judy - we celebrate our birthdays close together - I called in on Kat and William, who were having a ine old time playing together.
Cornlowers at Meadow Cafe
Cox' Meadow, Cheltenham. Whither we had gone for Len to have an MRI scan. He'd located the Meadow Cafe just around the corner from where he had to be. Basil and I walked round and were made very welcome by Jo (Josephine!) Baker and her two helpers. A strip of cornlowers washed the meadow in blue just outside, as you can see. This photo taken with a soft focus lens. Here's a double exposure. Pop in and support Jo and her team. They have bagels! I phoned my Uncle Dave who came post haste with his wife Mary to say Hello. An extremely pleasant afternoon chatting and sitting in the shade outside on the terrace, and every now and then, a hint of a breeze. We journeyed via the A46. A much more congenial route than the M42/M5, discovering The Stag at Redhill en route, a 16th century coaching inn. Much recommended and like the Meadow Cafe, dog friendly. Nevertheless, the heat won. Home to consume large quantities of water and rest in a darkened room. Coda: Today marks ive years of blipping.
Sweet Pea Posy
We bought a sweet pea tower a month or so ago. The plants have grown like Topsy since then. I'm picking the lowers as they emerge as I believe that's supposed to be the best way to encourage the plants to produce more blooms. I used my soft focus lens baby. Sweltering, sultry, steaming, you choose the word for today's heat. Two weather apps predicted thundery downpours from 1 o clock onwards, but it hasn't happened. I did go to the gym for my second session. It's air conditioned in the gym. Most comfortable place I've been in all day. Len will open windows at home, which he shouldn't. My knee began to feel the beneit almost straightaway of using the Leg Curl and Leg Extension machines. I'm tempted to start gym twice a week. A white agapanthus has begun blooming in the border. I spotted it this morning while drinking my tea. It's shrunk since last year but it is there, when I thought I might have lost it.
An Inspiration for one of Tolkien's Two Towers?
Actually the Edgbaston Waterworks Tower, a Grade II listed building visible from the Birmingham Oratory where J R R Tolkien spent much time as a youth. He was a ward of one of the priests resident there after his mother died. In fact, I learnt today that much of the surroundings in the Birmingham that Tolkien knew could have been the source of his inspiration in writing Lord of the Rings. The shape of the folly reminds me of the illustration of one of the towers on an early edition of Book 2 of LOTR. It was a revelation to learn too that Tolkien was a devout, practising Catholic. Of LOTR he wrote, 'The Lord of the Rings is of course a fundamentally religious and Catholic work; unconsciously so at irst, but consciously in the revision. — J.R.R. Tolkien to Robert Murray, S.J' There is some disagreement about how this has been efected. I always thought that the story was based on Nordic fantasy and that the Hobbits were an allegory of the resistance of the British to the power of Nazi Germany. Read this article for an analysis of the Catholic and Christian overtones of the books, and realise that Frodo was NOT successful in destroying the ring of power, it was only providence that enabled Gollum to bite of Frodo's inger with the ring, lose his balance and fall into the ires of Mount Doom (Hell). Faith and Fantasy: Tolkien the Catholic, The Lord of the Rings, and Peter Jackson’s Film Trilogy, http://decentilms.com/articles/faithandfantasy The other tower is Perrott's Folly, which was not visible from my vantage point. Len and I had had to return to Birmingham for his follow up medical appointment. Oppressively humid, we were grateful for air conditioning in the car and at the oices, AND at the M&S foodhall in Ashby de la Zouch where we stopped of on our return to buy some microwave dinners. Colin very kindly looked after Basil for the day. It feels cooler this evening but only because cloud covers the sky, concealing the blood moon eclipse. The weather apps keep saying that it will rain within the next hour, but it never does. Earlier this morning, I inally saw a Common Hawker lying above and around the pond. It had the coloration of a female but the end of the body was blue, like the male. Can dragonlies be gynandromorphic? I fetched my camera but it didn't hover, so I couldn't catch a photo. I wondered if it was looking for a spot to lay eggs. After ten minutes, it lew up into the trees and didn't return. This evening, a small blue butterly came into the garden. It too returned to the relative safety of the 'woodland.'
Little and Large
The weather inally broke here at 6.30 this morning with three sharp showers. It's been cloudy and breezy all day but only a hint of rain on the wind. In the jitty at the end of the close on the way to cofee morning, I came across some unusual vegetable/tree debris looking like red tumbleweed. I thought it would make a nice background for a photo, as you can see. I’ve been reliably advised that the red tumbleweed is actually the inlorescence of the shrub Cotinus, or Smoke Tree. The gourds are still going strong although the white gourd has succumbed to the knife. It's very tasty and soaks up the juices that it's cooked in. The skin is tender too so there's no need to peel. Two more gourds must face their fate tomorrow, but not these as they're such a jolly colour. Spent all afternoon putting a photobook together for the SoFoBoMo (Solo Photo Book Month) challenge which the RPS Digital Imaging Group was promoting. Even though I'm using the photos and text from Blip, it's taking rather longer than I expected. There has to be a minimum of 35 photos, and 31 photos taken on the correct day of the month. I haven't taken as many acceptable photos in the month as I thought I had, but I have enough. The big failing in my view is on how to advise participants to make a pdf book. It's really not that straightforward. I've had to resort to Blurb.
Rain!
Blessed rain. It's been falling most of the day and has triggered the lood alarms twice. So photos of raindrops seem to be the order of the day. A raindrop lodged in the fork between two tendrils of dill in the herb patch rendering a refracted image of the brick wall behind. Extra is of raindrops on a sweet pea. Stacey cancelled the Fun Dog Show at Quorn because of the weather. It was in aid of College Garth Rescue Kennels where I had found Basil six years ago. I hope she's able to re-organise it. I did wonder if she knew Dogs' Trust were holding their own show today as well. Their shows, being rather bigger, carry on regardless. Basil and I came away like drowned rats when we went the other year. At least the weather has enabled me to catch up on some admin, notably a letter to Euro Car Parks about a parking ine which I utterly refute. I mean, if you pay the required fee, why should you get a ine as well?
The Long Border
Felt at a loose end today. Nothing in the calendar and Gill wasn't picking up her phone when I tried to get in touch, so no going out to play there. Len sped of to go swimming. So Basil and I went to Whatton Gardens which are always very peaceful. I took my 5dmkiii thinking to experiment with some multi exposure in camera. I wasn't necessarily successful but I always learn something. Just before we left, we turned the corner round the wall to view the long border which had been full of old English geraniums in June. Now it has summer blooms, and there was Lady Crawshaw weeding out the dead growth from earlier in the summer. We chatted for a while. She tells me she never does a 'Chelsea Crop' on her geraniums because they're always still lowering at the time (at the end of May), although she has a couple of tall lowering plants that lop over and she crops them. Basil and I had been to the big pond. We must have stayed there for an hour. I was fascinated watching a dragonly forge a path to and fro. I spotted three species today including the Migrant Hawker in the extra. Three moulted mallards were sheltering under a willow. Overcast this evening. Len has disappeared yet again, to play tennis this time. I have at least made the curry and fancy an early night.
Sheer Frustration
I heard it begin to rain in the small hours. By the time I adjourned to my other sleeping place, in the lounge at 0630, it was raining heavily. I rather wished the rainy weather had continued but the forecast is for temperatures in Spain and Portugal much more typical of the Sahara Desert to spread northward rapidly. By Friday, we could be seeing 30 degrees C plus yet again. Take advantage of the one cool night ahead. I had hoped to hone my multi exposure in camera skills today. Instead, it was a total disaster. To mitigate my disappointment, I took Basil into Loughborough to see Aziz. He's always good for a hug. He bought me a latte and we sat outside Subway while I drank it. Subway is next to the Berber Shop. I remarked to the young man who brought us chairs that I was waiting for Subway to serve gluten free food. It turns out that he is coeliac like me. Fancy working for a sandwich store and not being able to eat the goods. We agreed that a salad bowl is not altogether a substitute, but that's what he has to eat. No wonder he looks so healthy. I had to resort to grab shots of the marketplace. You can see that this chap on his tricycle caught me taking his photo. I have put a multi exposure in as an extra, taken at the cofee morning in St Botolph's, but it's a far cry from what I had envisaged. Studying Valda Bailey and Doug Chinnery's work makes me suspect that it's best to look for textured surfaces and coloured shapes rather than anything identiiable.
Cottage Garden Flowers in Queen's Park
I went to the gym, an hour late. Was told to come back another day. Not surprising really. What is surprising and seems like a bit of a scam is that the car park fee is more than the cost of the gym session. If you arrive for an hour's session you have to pay for two hours taking into account waiting for the queue at reception, getting ready for the gym, and changing afterwards. Since I had paid for the car park, I crossed the road into Queen's Park with my camera, heading straight for the cottage garden bed. That must have been inspired by Harry Crook, who sadly died two weeks ago. The colours are wonderful. Cosmos of all hues, borage, cornlowers and daisies. An excellent opportunity for a multi exposure collage in camera using bright blend. It's been processed subsequently to bring down the highlights and alter the white balance, which was a bit too warm for my liking. Then time for a cup of tea at the cafe. On the way back, I found echinacea, butterlies and bees and some exquisite agapanthus, which you can ind on lickr. An appointment with the dental hygienist looms within half an hour. I'm not looking forward to it, but then we travel to Leicester to see William, Kat and George. This is the inal day of my SoFoBoMo project. Link coming later.
My buddy Basil with model Scarlett Foxett
I entered a challenge in the RPS Digital Imaging Group to make a photobook for one month in the summer of 2018, under the auspices of SoFoBoMo, Solo Photo Book Month, requiring a photo a day for 31 days, with text, and a minimum of 35 photos. The entries are taken from my photo blog on Blipfoto on which I post one photo a day. I chose July 2018, a month of prolonged high temperatures and no rainfall! July 2018 also saw my 70th birthday, which had happened ten days after the creation of the National Health Service.