16. the story thingy

so – last week I forgot to mention the next challenge…..it was to ‘tell a story from a different perspective’…..so without further ado…..
toni: am here in brussels, editing photos taken in a leuven bar yesterday. used my vintage ricoh gr compact and have twiddled with pix on the BF's ancient lap-top and cutting-edge tv screen... all is streeeeeetched beyond comprehension, so am hopeful they look ok in 'real life'... the stories the pictures tell... i don't know... but they felt like stories to me...


meanwhile…..
had I followed advice given by mon fils (yes, it seems we are in the UK as you are in Belgium.....ironic, non?) I should have been lurking in toasty-warm bookshops; and on reflection it might have saved my trigger-finger from going completely numb…..
however, cccold frosty early morning walks by the river in Abingdon have their moments, especially when a very cute squirrel pokes his nose through the railings on the bridge…..

to watch (as I like to think) jealously as the ducks on the bank below are being fed.
 
and then, on the way back from Waitrose (have been having far too much fun there!)…..a man in red walks past a charity shop window…..

after which a late afternoon ray of sunshine beams through one of St Helen’s windows.

toni: cloudy churchy heavens are beautiful... as is hand-knit nativity... am sliding into sunday eve in a haze of red wine and neuhaus chocs... not quite waitrose [but did a festive shop at hema yesterday, which is a low-rent equivalent]...
jenny: found the knitted nativity in the Salvation Army charity shop window - it's open Monday - am SERIOUSLY considering asking if it's for sale.....even though it would surely mean d.i.v.o.r.c.e.
toni: Buy! Buy! Buy!
i don't have iporn book here, so choose number 12 for next week ... hope all is good - belgium v festive and snowy and twinkle-y...
jenny: no i-porn book here either but we will be back 'home' on Tuesday evening (although we leave again on Thursday at the crack of before dawn for the looong drive to.....Girona.....and lunch again at El Celler de Can Roca…..hoping v much that number 12 lends itself to arty farty restaurant pics.....)

15. pastures new

toni: helloooooooooooooo... here is the picture taken at my 'unknown place'... the visit was triggered by a text from a friend, who had gone to buy an xmas garland base, from a barn that sells locally grown flowers and trees... on the banks of a reservoir near where i live... perfect! i trotted along yesterday to buy my crimbo tree, in the excitement forgetting both camera and cheque book. the owners were unperturbed, and told me to simply go back some time soon and settle up... 

sooo... went back today...and mentioned our blog... and they told me to wander wherever... and take pictures wherever too... she had 'stuff' everywhere... so here is a pic of that stuff, lovely, old, vintage-y, heirloom-y stuff...

jenny: helloooo to you toooo!

haven't quite got to your pic yet.....but wanted to reply right away

earlier in the week we had gone for a walk (somewhere we often go - just down the hill from here - and over the border in Switzerland) with a view to stepping off our usual path; ended up tramping alongside a building site.....the light was fab and I got some half-decent pics.....

then, on Saturday we went off to lunch (again somewhere we often go) - and I snapped a couple of views out of the car window of places we have passed before but not actually been to = more pics!

but - but - but

the lovely waiter, on seeing my camera plonked on the table in amongst the salt and pepper and the wine glasses (and remembering how the anglaise is a bit weird always seems to be pointing her camera at things) told us about a fête d'hiver that afternoon in a nearby town.....so after swilling down the last of the wine, off we went; managed to park and waddled (big lunch!) towards the town centre - and WOW!  he came up trumps!  to cut a LONG story short, I came home with 785 photos (yup!) on my mem card.....spent the entire evening faffing about as well as lots of this morning.  I still have more than 200 - all of somewhere new!!!

but now I have the IMPOSSIBLE task of choosing.....and I am trying not to peek at your photo before I do!  tum-tee-tum Swiss building site?  misty mountains? French winter festival?

OK - now I HAVE to peep at yours.....

and sigh.....I love the soft, warm colours of the flowerpots; the fact
that they are scratched and faded and worn.....they remind me of a record (ha -
remember those?) we had when I was small; ‘twas the
Tale of Peter Rabbit; when Mr McGregor (sp?) took a flowerpot which he attempted 'to pop upon the top of Peter' (and I
quote!) and there was the hollow grating noise of pots being turned over - this
photo so evokes the memory of that!

toni: ah... just the 200 to edit down then.?.!!!!!!!!!!!!!...sounds bliss... i had a choice of precisely seven drizzly shots... i look forward to seeing a collage of collages of your light-filled hiver [our roolz! remember?]

jenny: (don’t need to be told twice!)

1) a little taste of 'hiver', Oyonnax style!

(toni: oh wow! bubblicious!!! my face expressed, 'wow' at these pix...)

2) peering through the fence towards a Swiss building site.....

(toni: oooooooh... oooooooh... ooooooooooooooooooooooh!)

3) on the way to lunch.....finally the rain stopped

(toni: and 'ahhhhhhhhhh' at this one...)

14. creeping about

J: I meant to get up early this morning and go creeping off somewhere - but it was a crap morning.  So I made porridge (with golden syrup AND cream) instead.  I crept up on a leaf yesterday.  It didn't notice me.

T: I'm 'oop north' with no internet, waiting to embark on a 'vintage sewing' workshop all day tomorrow. Hoping to make appliquéed blanket. We'll see. So, am planning to creep up on some running stitch there (would be a nice juxtaposition, non?!). I tried to creep up on the sunlit river near my house this morning... but that ran off too...

J: struggling to think of something to creep up unsuspected upon.....and so feeling rather relieved we abandoned the idea of Sunday posting.....CRAP (so, even worse than before) outside (wind howling between gaps in blinds - which mostly remain firmly down) so very disinclined to venture out to do my creeping; what about you – hope running stitch not too fast for you!

T: i managed to creep up on a stationary bundle of vintage fabric yesterday... caught it in the act of being still... no running stitch to escape under the guise of. not sure at all how close to fitting brief it is, but will have to do - took camera out this morning on looooooooooooooong dog walk... but nothing, nadir, worth creeping up on. all drizzle and grey northern skies [no hint of desolate beauty, even].

J: and this is Christmas doing the creeping.....this could be it unless I get a strong grip of myself and GO OUT

(T: ok... you are now in possession of my [really not very close at all] contribution to this week's blog...meanwhile, am in love with your 7177... could actually be a card in its own right... i like the 'hint' of 'chris' [deep breath, take it slowly... as the full word approaches...]... mas)

T: this week's challenge is 24 - go somewhere you've never been... d'you reckon we can do this? [i'm thinking never been, but not at all far away..!]

13. memoirs of a geisha

so this week’s remit was to ‘experience a scene through a screen or faded glass’ - and this is how it happened…..

it’s Saturday (what do you mean, last minute?) and we're just off out for lunch, hoping for murky distorting windows.....or muslin drapes.....not to mention a hefty verre de vin.  thinks; do wine glasses (faded or otherwise) count?

and on Sunday: lunch delivered full tummy but not much else, although there was a bamboo blind in the garden with which I amused myself for a while

however, am currently trying to find a way of weaving concept of 'screen' into dewy grassy pics I just took…..

and of toni’s offering…..

I love it - the crop is perfect - and it has your trademark murky grey.....

in response: so pleased you noticed the crop - this, tis true, took longer to 'sort' than taking the picture itself... always knew i could count on my crapola south-facing, single-glazed windows to provide a suitably smeary look...

my automatic number-generator has gorn orf for a week, so off the top of my head let’s go for number 55, and it’s creep in close

(PS am rather liking the idea of uploading a collage; it makes choosing so much less stressful!)

12. smiles all round?

not the best of weeks, this…..

(it began for me on wednesday with): oh dear - have 'stolen' photo of sobbing child - but my conscience (yup; I have one!) will not let me use it seeing as I poked my camera in her face at her most vulnerable.....

(then toni on thursday): i was thinking less 'tears' as opposite of smile and more 'belligerent, frowning, stroppy, teen' - MUCH more photo opportunity if i pursue this tack...ok! snap! snap! BF 'sorted' lightroom for me at weekend, which means i can now locate NONE of my pictures  (and on sunday): I have a picture…..but simply can not get it from camera to computer... Bah. Am hoping to get usb cable from chum tomorrow, and will try this way. So sorry. I lured youngest daughter into looking brooding for me... and caught her like that... only to leave the room and hear her SCREAM on account of a painted, ornamental horse-shoe falling off the shelf and flat on her head. As with you, it felt too merciless, shoving my camera into her tear-strewn, distressed, mascara-smeared face (but only just... I <did> try to start to piece a request for a photo together in my head...) so I guess this makes me very much NOT a proper photographer... and capa et al, need not worry...
Hope you have A Shot

(and in reply): phew?  have definitely abandoned idea of sobbing student; she looked so very distraught poor thing - and very accusing - as did her friend (of whom I have a great pic!) - therefore have had to resort to a glum looking dog not being taken for a walk - unless  unless  unless.....I try and do something in the classroom tomorrow - maybe we can look at different emotions.....(this methinks would fit in rather neatly with current unit of inquiry which is on conflict resolution); am therefore VERY happy to postpone upload and blog post until tomorrow evening; have a GOOD evening - unlucky horseshoes notwithstanding.  ouch!!

(toni): I also had Baleful Dog Shot! Great unexploitative minds work alike! And thanks for the extension, miss. X

(jenny): well - a whole extra day made NO difference, in spite of a classroom full of children (it was me with the opposite of a smile on my face for most of the day.....) so I guess it's back to glum mutts for me.....

Oh and PS

(toni): paris was fab - and day after i submitted 'minimal' horizon, took utterly lovely minimally horizony shot, at the estuary near le crotoy, in the somme. will forward when uploaded. [is an image  i had already formed in my head, but couldn't locate pre-deadline; like when i go shopping and declare, 'i need a cropped, fitted lilac cardi with real pearl buttons.. and my friend begins to weep, knowing the relentless futility of the pursuit...] 

11. peering into a fog

moi: visibility here is, well at least better than it was yesterday!  still cold and FOGGY so horizon v close and indistinct; am therefore in consultation with conscience over a more creative interpretation of brief!  with fingers crossed for a glimpse of sun tomorrow maybe…..or the next day…..

as for you - am envious of your Parisian skylines.....

elle: well paris did not deliver at all on horizon front - though did manage to shoot 'known landmark in interesting way', in that top two thirds of eiffel tower non-existent due to lack of visibility in blasted fog!

had just the loveliest break, and am back in etaples now for today and tomorrow; so we hot-footed it down to the beach earlier today...was beautiful light

 

moi: was VERY beautiful light!  *sigh*

next week (and I am smiling as I write this!) we have to capture the opposite of a smile! 

bonne chance à tous!

10. up close - and interesting

well, it’s been a bit of a week, one way and another; so nothing short of a miracle that there are photos to post…..

this from toni…..

which is ‘allium giganteum - gone to seed on my mum's bathroom window sill. complete with time-serving cobwebs. amen...’

and me?  am I allowed more than one?  (again?) I am having SUCH a hard time choosing; this…..

(which is not my car!)

this?

or this?

what the heck…..they are there now!

and for next week we are about minimising the horizon…..whatever that might mean!  I guess we are in for lots of sky