A time for reflection ……..

The season is changing. Thank heavens the rain has eased – to be replaced by crisp frosty mornings and the snap of fallen leaves. Wonderful blue skies filled with the bleat of passing geese and the promise of a waxwing or two preening on the mountain ash down the lane. Things are getting serious for the wildlife. Our resident red squirrel has gone invisible but the evidence of his presence is unmistakeable in the hazlelnuts sawn through with relish. Like the animals we are all gathering round the warmth, as winter winds up the ante.

A quick walk down to the foreshore at Bassenthwaite Lake reveals a lovely reflection.

 

The Question ………..

Sometimes life mirrors the weather. Unsettled with a depression coming in, water, water everywhere spilling over into our roads, fields, gardens and homes. Then a day’s respite. a glowing sun set in the chill of a northerly wind. Before the rain comes again, in torrents unseen and unheralded. Breaking our dykes, reminding us that we live in an elemental world, governed by natural forces we may feint to control, but at end of the day, do their own thing. So we watch with as much patience as we can muster,  shaking in our vulnerable humanity.

Raising the question – who’s really in charge; us or mother nature?

Seeing things anew ………

The Solway today was quite a dramatic place to be. The recent stormy weather had abated a little but the signs of instability could be seen in the cloud formations. Over Scotland it was clearly still raining but the clear blue skies to the west heralded more promise. A flock of c90 lapwing passed overhead as the oystercatchers and curlew hugged the shoreline in their irrepressible way. Our two Estrela dogs were keeping our eyes and hands busy. Meanwhile I had a new lens to try out – a Yashica ML 35mm. This is, in fact, an old lens that had been used, as originally intended on film cameras. These days I mainly shoot with film but the Yashica had been rebuilt and converted for use on Canon digital SLR. The man responsible for this clever tweak is Eddie Houston aka The Lens Doctor. Eddie specialises in giving wonderful old lenses (often optically superior to their modern counterparts) a new lease of life. Its basically recycling – and hats off to  Eddie for doing such a terriffic job. The lenses he sells have all been restored to a professional quality, fitted with a converter and chip to offer compatibility with Canons and offer great value.

The shot above is a bit blurry – but I love the richness of the colours and the contrast between sky and land.

Birthdays and radio ………….

They come and go do birthdays. One day you’re so old, the next you’re not. Yesterday my birthday came and went. Filled with love, presents, great food, company and Glenmorangie. Excellent!

I was lucky to share my birthday with the BBC, celebrating 90 years of public broadcasting. To mark this auspicious event they broadcast a special ‘soundscape’ produced by Damon Albam broadcast simultaneously at 17.33 by all BBC radio channels. The piece, entitled “Radio Reunited” mapped out the history of BBC radio since 1922 in an abstract composition designed to emphasise the unique bond between the BBC and the great British public.  How ironic that this comes at a time when the Beeb is under sustaned attack. Make no mistake, the BBC is the greatest broadcasting institution in the world, but it is run in an antiquated way by a inflated structure. It’s easy to see how errors could be made. A paternalistic culture protects the status quo and deters challenge. Having tasted this as a brief employee of dear ole auntie during the 1970’s, I still feel enormous affection for her. Like that other great British institution, the NHS, it faces a great veiled threat as the  puppetmakers strive to strip our national assets from the people’s ownership into the hands of the privateers circling round our island like greedy blood crazed sharks.

So let’s all support the BBC and celebrate our wonderful radio. I spent much of my early childhood entranched by our magic valve driven box and my teenage years listening to sport or John Peel on my tranny. These days we have at least ten radios in the house, including an old Roberts transistor, a couple of PURE digital radios, some acquired from the local auction and ones with wheels. Every day, without exception the BBC enriches our lives immeasurably.
Treat yourself – tune in and turn on.

 

Outside In

The National Outside In exhibition in London has opened to rave reviews. This show features the work of artists working at the fringes of society. I’m honoured to have one of my pictures entitled “Submarine” in the digital gallery (not today’s effort pictured above). Have a look at some of the tremendous and powerful work on display there.