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We set a new record high yesterday and with it a major storm came barreling through in the evening. Lots of downed trees with a good amount of rain (which we actually needed) back home but not a drop of rain out here by the prairie.
This is actually a journal which was given to me by a very dear friend. I'm crazy about it and couldn't wait to play around on Sliders Sunday with just the outside!
Hope everyone had a wonderful day
and will continue enjoying the upcoming week!
*Trust the abstract* . . . THINGS HAPPEN THERE . . . aledzian
Actually the Science Pyramid at Denver Botanical Gardens
BURKETTDESIGN, Inc., Architect, completed 2014
Actually wondering whether I'm getting a tiny degree of back focusing with this primary. Just seems a little soft.
Actually I wanted to photograph a beautiful sunset this evening. But when I arrived at a good spot the last sunset light I was able to capture is what you can see here.
I mounted my camera on the tripod - took 3 shots - and the beautiful red sky turned blue ;) Next time I'll have to be earlier.
Greetings from Germany!
Actually, I was following a beautiful bird. He had such wonderful rust-colored feathers on his back and amber eyes.
To get a reasonably nice picture, I had to walk through some marshy terrain and ruined my shoes. But it was worth it, because I not only got the bird, but also a heart of gold. I'll post the bird tomorrow.
Thanks for viewing, comments and faves, much appreciated! :)
Happy Saturday everyone!
Actually, they’re my favorite decorative pins, but I imagine that in the tiny hands of woodland sprites, they’d make beautiful scepters for the smallest of royal families.
I wish I could claim that it was my idea to photograph the pins this way, but I was inspired by this lovely image www.flickr.com/photos/hummmlan/3441956984/in/faves-409804...
A heartfelt thanks to Bsandtana for the lovely testimony. Be sure to visit her magical stream filled with florals and interesting insects!
Textures by www.flickr.com/photos/my_key_in_the_pocket/3881005524/in/... and
Actually a different image.
I have limited post-processing options now and they are less than satisfactory. Still, I'm compelled to post.
Actually the birds flying over the pass are NOT photoshopped. I didn't know they were there until I uploaded.
Ok, actually...one of the shots from Scotland I´m not happy with. Because here i lost the race with the sun. If you had to run all the way to the top, it first looks easier as it is. The sun settled before I reached the top. In the midth of the way I had some accident too, so I lost it anyway.
So, Old Man - I´m having an unpayed bill with you. We will be back soon!
Because of the extremely different light situations (dark in front and the sun in the back) all pics from hand are under- or overexposed. But they are all I have. I tried my best and had no time for everything else.
Used Tools:
Sony A7II
(Dirty) Sony SEL1635z
Visit me on:
Instagram // 500px // Facebook // iStock by Getty // My Website
Thank you all so much for your comments & faves.
Actually broke out the 18-200 for the first time with a selfie. Converted this to B/W and used the TRA "Beer goggles" for the blur.
Explored Highest #134
Actually just a few days afterwards... since an unedited version was encored quite a bit I have hurried up and by popular acclaim upload this version, which I'm sure I don't thing has anything too special about it. But hope you like seeing the comparisons, and I'm so busy it will take a little bit to get to the close ups, please be patient.
Actually, I'm not nearly as frazzled as this suggests. Things are going very smoothly, and I'm on number 5 of 8.
Late night last night, but tonight I should be able to get some sleep while the computer does the hard work.
Huzzah!
seen here...
www.100negocios.com/trabajo-desde-casa-por-internet-tips/...
and here...
www.dumblittleman.com/2011/05/how-to-effectively-measure-...
and here... digital-era.org/blog/?p=3901
and here... blogs.payscale.com/salary_report_kris_cowan/2012/07/tips-...
and here... blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2013/04/12/ncbi-rofl...
and here... www.businessinsider.com/syndromes-drive-coders-crazy-2014-3
Actually taken 06/12/2016. Nikon D600. Contrast masking in Lightroom.
This was in the show "From Dusk Til Dawn" at PhotoPlace gallery in MIddlebury Vt, during November-ish of 2016.
(I never actually got to see the show - it's 6+ hour drive from here, but the catalog is available from the gallery. Besides yours truly, there's a guy in Summit who had some neat stuff, plus others)
I just can't get enough of this wonderful cathedral La Seu of Palma de Mallorca. It is an awsome architectural monument.
This shot is actually taken a day after the previous shot. I just want to spice up the stream with a little bit of color right now ;-) There is more out of the city the next days, mixed with some street shots as well.
So, my colleague was takening a picture of the cathredral with his iPhone. I thought it would be a great shot of its screen with the blurry but smooth bokeh lights in the background.
Have a great day, everybody!
We actually didn't venture too far down this path... being eaten alive by mosquitos, but I did like the play of light and shadow.
Actually, it's good fishing in the Wisconsin river so this juvenile great blue heron was having a good day while I paddled by. The fires in Minnesota & Ontario made the air smell like a giant campfire and the light really strange.
Spearfish Falls was actually one of the most popular tourist stops in the northern Black Hills around the beginning of the 19th century when a Burlington Railroad line took passengers directly over it, parts of which can still be found on the trail today. The trail to this 47 ft waterfall starts at the parking lot for the Latchstring Restaurant and is roughly 3/4 in length. Note that while the path to the left is easy, the one to the right of the restaurant is more difficult but does include a sweet traverse over an old metal walking bridge. Interestingly enough, in 1917, this waterfall was actually turned off for awhile as water was diverted from Spearfish Creek to a nearby hydroelectric plant that helped power operations at Homestake Gold Mine until November 17, 2003. For this reason, Spearfish Falls is one of the lesser-known waterfalls that often gets passed by even today.
Source: www.blackhillsbadlands.com/places/spearfish-falls
If you don’t have much time to hike while you are visiting Spearfish Canyon, I would encourage you to put this one high on your list. The trail is rated as moderate. The total hike is 1.5 miles. I love hiking this any time of year. The trail is pretty easy to find. The path is right behind the Latchstring Inn. The trail has been reworked recently. It is no longer a loop trail, the only access point is just north of the restaurant. The path is nice and wide and should be manageable by most people that can walk moderate inclines. Just take your time and soak in the beauty of the canyon floor. The waterfall is so beautiful, you’ll want to hangout and enjoy it for awhile. This is just one of the waterfalls of Spearfish Canyon worth visiting. There is plenty of hiking in the area. Just on the other side of the road is Roughlock Falls Nature Trail. While I like hiking this area all year long, it is definitely one of my favorite fall hikes in the Black Hills. And, if you are staying in Spearfish, be sure to checkout the Lookout Mountain Hiking trails if you want a longer hike.
Source: enjoyingsouthdakota.com/spearfish-canyon/spearfish-falls-...
Actually this Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep ram was just scratching his behind on a conveniently located Juniper.
Actually, everyone should at least have access to clean drinking water. Unfortunately we are still a long way from that!
Anyway, have a happy Macro Monday and a great week!
There is quite the view, looking North from the 100th floor of One World Trade Center!
The Empire State Building is 2.84 miles away in this shot. Still, the city doesn't seem so big when you actually walk around it.
Actually many rivers run through it as it gets a lot of run off from the mountains behind it.
As I not a Welsh speaker it took me many attempts to even try to pronounce the town the river runs through: Dolgellau
I actually finished this build around the beginning of June, but haven't gotten around to posting it until now. This was just a build for fun to mess around with the dark blue/white colorscheme and to finally do something for Kaliphlin over in Guilds of Historica again. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, though unfortunately the pictures are rather poor.
Located on the Eastern outskirts of Katoren, this monastery survived the Kaliphlin civil war better than most. A natural spring was the reason for the monastery's location, and the spring continues to provide fresh water for all the inhabitants, as well as make the surrounding area very lush compared to much of the Kaliphlin landscape.
See?" he said, with an unholy amount of glee. "I hardly broke any laws at all. I should drive more often."
"No. Trust me, you shouldn't," Eve said. "Think of all the little old people and the children.
- Rachel Caine, Bite Club (The Morganville Vampires, #10)
This one's for my baby who got her driving license yesterday :)))
A rite of passage for us here
Its quite the Big Deal :))
Actually a great driver, she was gunning for 0 mistakes on her test, but ended up with 2 ;))
I think thats pretty kick-ass, if you ask me :)
Even the guy who took her for the drive wrote "Great Drive!!" on her test
That's my over-achiever for ya!
Now she wants to drive to the beach :/ and I said, "NO!!" so someone is not very happy LOL
Have yourselves an awesome day, and don't be shy to say, "No!"
I do it all the time ;)
Thank you for stopping by
ps: this was taken on the last day of my SFO trip.
It was raining cats and dogs.
xxxx
Actually there were wonderfully healthy looking Cormorants down there. But only one in this photograph.
There's a trick I use to check my long exposure quickly. Once the dark ND filters are on the lens I set the ISO to 6400 and make a shot (in this instance the exposure time was half a second). Have a look. Exposure ok? Focus fine? If good, then turn your seconds into minutes; return ISO to base; and let it go. So the next shot, at ISO100, could be 0.5 x 6400/100 (basically just simplify it to 0.5 x 60) = 30s (basically half a second turns into half a minute*).
But sometimes I discover I quite like the shot at ISO6400. Here I caught a nice wave rolling through and half a second worked quite well. That sucks because ISO6400 is noisy, isn't it. Or, maybe it doesn't suck that much these days. The noise isn't as serious as it used to be. And the pic next door was shot at ISO64 and ended up looking ancient since I've added noise in "to taste"!
* assuming your cameras base ISO is 100 or close enough to that. If your base ISO is 200 then, in this example, 0.5s would turn into 15s, not 30s. Or to make it sound so confusing, each second would turn into half a minute.
Sorry to those who are sick of my water drop/flower shots - sort of having fun practising with light and shutter speed and ISO and all that sort of thing! This is actually a photoshop "mistake" when trying to clean up my white background. The other day I had spilt colouring on the canvas and even though I tried washing it off, it still was noticeable! Tried cloning the surrounding white and ended up with the above - oh well!
Dames Cave is a 1.2 mile moderately trafficked out and back trail located near Brooksville, Florida that features a cave and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking, walking, nature trips, and birding and is accessible year-round. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash.
The Dames Cave area is located in the Citrus Tract portion of the Withlacoochee State Forest in Citrus County, Florida and are found on a western portion of the Brooksville Ridge physiographic region. This landscape is dominated by karst landforms including uvalas, dolines, solution valleys, and caves. Geologically, the caves are among the oldest in Florida.
The entrance trail to the Dames Caves is located off S Lecanto Hwy. Quite possibly there will be several cars already parked there, as these will be the only indicators that one of Florida's most unique and oldest cave systems is just a short jaunt off of this straight and narrow farm road. Parking is free, but is at your own risk, mainly because there are no designated parking spots. A short half-mile trail leads off into the Withlacoochee State Forest.
Once again, no trails are marked, but heading directly east will bring you to the opening of one of the most popular caves. Surrounded by several concrete posts and heavy gauge wire, the opening to Vandal Cave appears before your eyes. One of the best spot for pictures, this cave opening is actually an ancient roof collapse. Part of the roof is still connected and creates a land bridge that can be easily walked across by daring individuals. A small side cave allows access into the inner cave system. Once inside you can see why it is called Vandal Cave. Graffiti and other damage can be seen throughout, explaining why this cave system is so hard to find. Other smaller caves branch off from this Vandal Cave and range in a variety of difficulties of exploration from simple head ducking and flashlight exploring to belly-slinking and crawling through tight spots in the mud.
Credit for the data above is given to the following website:
Well actually it’s not a fungus at all, meet Badass* utricularis who is a rather fetching Slime mold.
Slime moulds are a group of single-celled amoeba-like organisms that hunt bacteria and form a commune to reproduce. They then produce plasmodia (the caramel sauce) which can grow to quite a large size. When food supplies become scarce they produce the fruiting bodies that we see here and release spores which hatch into amoeba, starting the cycle all over again.
They are not part of the fungi kingdom but their fruiting bodies might suggest they are related.
If you want to know more, (which of course you do, how could you not be fascinated by this amazing organism), then watch this rather entertaining video.
I’ll be asking questions at the end just to make sure you’re behaving and doing your homework.
* It's actually Badhamia but Badass sounds much better.
Tools: Contax 167MT, Zeiss 50mm f1.4, Kodak Portra 160. Process and scan by Exposure Film Lab. I use Flickr as my cloud storage, so I upload everything here: I have a decade worth of photos, check out my albums! I made a Ko-Fi page because I saw other people doing it. I don't expect anything to actually come of it, but on the off chance that you would be so kind as to treat me to a coffee to help me put more of my money towards film and bribing my models with snacks, it'd be hugely appreciated. Find me on Instagram & please like Millie Clinton Photography on Facebook! These images are protected by copyright, please do not use them for any commercial or non-commercial purposes without permission. For enquiries, contact me on social media.
We may think of the great tit as very much a UK garden bird. However, it is actually the most widespread of all tit species. It is found as far away as Japan, Indonesia and North Africa.
Actually Tuesday and the Ruddy didn't have to pay for parking either.
Ocean City Inlet Beach, Maryland.
Hello BLINKs!! Are you ready for our next SHOW?
We are so happy to invite you all to
Actually Love Date Agency
Saturday16 time 4:00 PM SLT.
🎵 Feel the energy, dance to the
beats, and sing your heart out to all your favorite songs and dancing with us💃
️ Date: Saturday 16
🕐 Time: 4:00 PMsl
📍 Venue: Actually Love Date Agency
Actually an Arapamia or "Pirarachu" fish that hails from the Amazon river basin. These fish can grow to be 10 feet long and weigh over 400lbs. They are very impressive to see up close in an aquarium. This animal was probably 5 feet long.
Enjoy the day!
I've actually been back from Japan since late-November of 2019, but I haven't posted anything to my Flickr account since October. How come? Well... one-month Japan trip, obviously. And spending all of my Flickr time since I got back from Japan plunking away on my much-loved and trusty Jazz Bass. Skills not improving, but it still feels good to play! Downtown Vancouver. February 8, 2020.
...have fascinated me and I am deeply impressed every time I see them somewhere in the forests of Switzerland. I know this picture is not very new anymore but I recently got some input or an idea from someone who shared his beautiful photo from a jay with us here on Flickr. I had completely forgotten that I have various pictures of jays myself, but never published them on my photostream here. This happens to me very often because I spend most of my time in the wild nature and can then take photos of various animals. The time spent out there is the most important thing for me and the wonderful moments of being able to experience it up close and in the middle of the wild. Selecting the many photos later on is always a lot of work for me and I shy away from it whenever possible. In this way, many of my photos stay on the memory card for a long time before I copy them to my computer. A lot of things are forgotten and I only discover the pictures when I really find the time or when I get a thought-provoking idea from someone like now. In this sense, I would like to thank Mike for recently publishing one of his photos of jays. www.flickr.com/photos/191055893@N07/
This was a good opportunity to check myself again to see if I have anything useful about jays - this beautiful and clever bird of the forest.
As you can see, I found what I was looking for, but I had a lot of trouble choosing one photo from the many that I have. On top of that, I have a lot of trouble choosing one of my usually many photos. I really hope that I have chosen the right one for you and that it is beautiful enough to enjoy?
Well, the story behind this photo might also be informative for you. Actually, I was out and about in the forests of Switzerland and my surroundings again, primarily to photograph squirrels, because I now knew very well where you could find them and at what time. But things usually turn out differently than you think and, as is so often the case out there in nature, you experience small or large surprises. Anyway, I saw squirrels and was able to photograph some very nicely, but the real star of the day was definitely the jay. Why? To my great surprise and even greater joy, the jay passed by several times where I was photographing the squirrels, or at least trying to haha..
This jay sat on a branch not very far from me and maybe watched me doing something strange. At least that's how it seemed to me and it didn't fly away straight away but stayed in the tree for a while before moving on. As if that wasn't enough, he kept coming back to me and the whole game started again. I was simply fascinated by this magnificent bird with its beautiful blue feathers on its side. What more could you expect from a day in the wild than such an amazing spectacle that you can then capture with your camera. There was just one thing that annoyed me a little: my wrong settings on my camera. I was probably a bit nervous and set the exposure time much too short because I now had a camera with image stabilization. In that sense, I could have halved the time and the ISO values would not have been so high. I can't change it now and I'm very happy despite everything because the really nice thing about it all was the great experience with the clever jay, which made me lose track of time that day.
The wonders of creation are so diverse that this beauty will never end. Creation is here. It is in you right now, it has always been. The world is a wonder. The world is magic. The world is love. And it is here, now.
- Iroquois Indian
We must protect the forests for our children, grandchildren and children yet to be born. We must protect the forests for those who cannot speak for themselves, like the birds, animals, fish and trees.
- Qwatsinas Edward Moody
Actually I think the title should be 'Behind Eagle Pond' or maybe just 'Snaresbrook', there was a lot less mud at the hollow end
.
Kim actually took a day off from work! We were up early and went out to the Ojito Wilderness near San Ysidro. We were there by 0800 under a low ceiling of cloud and wildfire haze. The haze wasn't as bad there as it was in ABQ.
We had a great time walking around and ran into this fellow on one of the rocks. He had lots to tell us, when he'd stop dancing, but mostly it had to do with events in the Jurassic.
We didn't listen to him when he advised going back to US 550 the way we had come in. After all, his info is a bit dated.
We continued on the dirt road after leaving the parking area. Two hours later after traveling across pretty heavily unmaintained roads, and having to turn back one time not being able to cross the Rio Puerco in our non-amphibious vehicle and finding another road, we made it back to US 550 about half way to Cuba (NM not the island).
Kim thought it was marvelous, being away from work and not having to wear a mask. She wears one all day long in the OR.
Tomorrow we might go up to Fenton Lake and come back by way of Bandelier.
My freckles look like spots. That's kinda gross. & I no longer have a pro account & it's weird because I haven't had to look at ads on flickr for aaages (one whole year, actually), & now there's a limit to only 200 photos on my stream, & only 100MB of photos per month. Oh & I can't see what weird stats I've been getting (I always get weird ones). It's very strange.
I couldn't decide whether to upload or not. But I don't want to fall behind on my diary. I spent like the whole day with Hannah, & we didn't take a single picture - actually, I took a few of my Mom when she was on stage - but otherwise it was a picture free day. & it was a nice day too. =)
This is when Max & I when we were on the terraces yesterday.
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I'm actually really tired & it's only 2.20am, but I will write this entry tomorrow. Before my Mom went to sleep I thanked her for the lovely day, & told her how much I enjoyed it.
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Soooo, it's really irritating when you're waking up & you can hear your Mom coming closer & closer to your room, talking on the phone to someone who is obviously your friend, & is telling them that you have been lying around in bed & should be awake by now. I said I would get up at 10am. I check the clock. It's 9.40am. So I'm not even late. But my Mom is still spouting this bull. She comes in & gives me the phone. It's Hannah, I start talking to her as my Mom exits the room. Except she doesn't. She stands at the door and says very, very loudly "GET UP! GET UP! GET UP!" I only just managed to refrain from telling her to fuck right off, & instead stopped half-way through talking to Hannah & yelled "MOM!" She left then. I was just really irritated because I'd said when I was getting up, & I wasn't late, I was actually awake before that, & yes okay, Hannah called me & if I hadn't been awake it would have been necessary for her to wake me, but I was already awake so there was no need to stand at my door being annoying.
But anyway. Hannah said she'd come by for 11.45pm, & we discussed what we were wearing. I only have one dress I like at the moment (last year I had 4 or 5) so that was pretty much sorted for me. I got dressed at a steady pace & then got some breakfast & read the paper. Well, Jane talked to me a lot too. My Mom had to pop out to try on her outfit for the make over today, but she came back with her friend Maggie in tour. I was eating breakfast at this point, & genuinely thought my Mom was about to ditch her friend with me & make us talk. I pointedly said "I'm eating breakfast" & then my Mom said that no they weren't going to disturb me. So that was okay. Maggie was still in the hall, so my Mom went upstairs quickly to get all her things, & then they chatted in the hall while waiting for my Mom's other guests to arrive. When everyone had arrived my Mom said they were going over there & that I could wait here for Hannah. Hannah then called moments after they left to say she'd was running a bit late & would be there in 5 or 10 mins. She offered to meet me there, but I figured it'd be easier to just meet at my house. I continued to read the paper until she got here, & then we left her car keys at my house & went out. Oh, & she showed me her new tattoo. It's of a snowdrop, & she designed it herself in memory of her grandma. It looks like a henna tattoo. I couldn't get a tattoo - too painful. & I'm just not really a fan of tattoos.
Last year I'm pretty sure we walked round the outside, but this year it was pretty windy so we walked through the school. We saw Hazel outside the reception area - well, the inbetween area between reception & the way out to the terraces, & she told us that for the time being we had to walk the whole way round the tent to enter. She also told us she wanted us to make ourselves known to the photographer, so that they had photos of younger people, & the fact that we were OEs was just an added bonus.
As we got ourselves a glass of free pink champagne I told Hannah that I was drinking more - but only wine. Actually, just Lambrusco, Buck's Fizz, & white wine spritzers. But still. I'm getting past my complete fear of it (thank you very much, American) though I still thinking getting drunk is ridiculous. We moved into the tent, but there were a lot of women crowding up the entrance, making it hard to squeeze through. I thought about checking our table seating on the board in the entrance but my Mom had mentioned we were right by the stage, so I figured we'd find it or she'd show us. && so we squeezed through the crowds & looked around the stalls - I noticed the Age Concern one (my Mom's somehow involved with them) - & we checked out what everyone was wearing & who was here. We saw the photographer, but didn't say anything. Also, last year there were these 2 women who were basically goth twins. Well, they're super tanned (totally over the top) & have suuuch black hair, (always worn really elaborately), way too much make up, & odd dresses. The dresses would probably look nice if they just toned it down a bit. Anyway, we figured out one of the goth women was the mother of a girl in choir who would be singing today. I really dislike the mother because she is very pushy, & was rude towards me because I got the main solo at the Christmas services, not her daughter. But her daughter does have a lovely voice.
While we were looking around we saw the woman I wrote about after this event last year, & Hannah burst out laughing & said she'd been telling someone about it just the other day. It was quite funny, & anyone I've told the story to has agreed with what I was saying. But it's probably best if I don't repeat it. My Mom came over to talk then & said she was worried because they were putting her in skinny white jeans for the make over. I'm sure she'll be fine. Though I usually think of skinny white jeans as a young people thing. Then, my Mom went & introduced us to two of her friends who were running the Age Concern stall, & basically ditched us there. I can't remember the name of one of the women, but the other was Maggie. Her son works in the theatre & TV, & she saw my production last week. So we had a quick talk about the arts, & then she asked me my favourite author. Samuel Richardson was the first person to pop into my head, & I really do love 'Pamela' so I said him. I'm not sure if she actually knew who he was. Kudos if she did. && she said she preferred seeing Arthur Miller plays to Shakespeare. I couldn't entirely agree. I see them as 2 different types of theatre, which yes you can compare, but you could also argue that they're very different. So, um, yeah. I let her move onto Hannah then, & she quizzed her about art, & then said Hannah & I would probably be friends for life. I've never really labelled my friendship with Hannah, so I felt a teeny bit awkward then. We were looking for a way to escape this dwindling conversation, when Maggie said we mustn't let her keep us, so we were just about to say goodbye when she continued talking. Uggh. I hate it when I get caught in conversations, & totally can't get out of them. We started talking about how our feet were hurting, & were going to sit down, when Maggie said her feet were hurting too . . . & the conversation continued. Eventually Hannah just said her feet were really hurting & that she just had to sit down, so we said our goodbyes. I felt rude, but some people I just don't gel with. Maggie seemed nice, but I don't really like to talk about the things I'm interested in. Which sounds silly, but I have my passions, & I usually have friends who are not interested in there areas, or if they are, it's just a minor thing, & there are things they're more interested in. So when someone else comes along & tries to talk to me about these things I'm like "Woah, back off." I don't mean anything by it. I just rarely feel comfortable talking about it. I know. I'm weird.
We saw my Mom then, & she showed us to our table, which really was right by the stage. There were a few of my Mom's friends sitting there already, but I could only remember one of their names. Awkward. They all said hi to me, so I didn't have to remember their names in the end. The woman next to Hannah was quite old, & as we were talking she caught my eye. I felt it would be rude not to say hi, so we both did. And then the woman basically told us her life story. I really had no idea how to react when she told us her husband left us with her 2 year old son for another woman, & then died about three years later after suffering from Parkinsons. Obviously her son has all grown up now (this story came up when she started telling us her son used to go here) so these events happened a while ago, but I still didn't know what to say. The school's music scholars were singing & playing & the sound was blasting from the speakers, which also made it really hard to hear. After we finished our conversation with this woman Hannah said she hadn't known how to react to her story either. So then we just chatted. My Mom got some wine for her table, so I had some. It wasn't to my liking, but I drank it anyway. Must keep up appearances of normality.
Lunch was served, & Maggie was really nice & said because I didn't eat chicken I could have her slice of the asparagus quiche, but I really didn't need it. She was really be nice & insisting I have it, but I was fine. I had another brief conversation with her while Hannah was caught talking to the woman next to her. She asked me if I liked contemporary music. I said yes. I didn't know how to elaborate. I told her I didn't like screamo and country & western. I probably should have asked her what music she liked, but I just found talking to her so awkward. I don't know why. She said her son always told her to tell people who wanted to go into his industry that it was very hard, & that he'd been struggling. She was trying to be kind, but I figured that I was 19, & have been focusing on this for over 10 years, so of course I knew the industry was hard. But I'm being overly critical here. She was probably just looking for common ground. I felt even more awkward when my Mom asked Maggie if she'd told me about her son. She had. We still had very little to talk about.
Hannah & I were originally going to get Eton Mess for pudding, but my Mom chose this vanilla turrine & it looked so good that we went for it too. I thought it would taste better than it did, but the raspberry sauce was lovely. && then the speaker for this year started. She ran 'Save Our Souls', which teaches women how to dress better, & for their shape & colour palette. My Mom is on the Parent's Society, so had been asked to be one of the models, along with another woman. The other woman went first, & was told she was an autumn palette (warm colours). When the palettes were both held against her skin the warm ones obviously looked better. Then my Mom was up on stage. It was harder to tell with her, but I would say the cool palette (spring) was a little more striking against her. I don't think my Mom was pleased, as she wears very warm colours, but she's lucky because they all look good on her really. Maggie said she thought the warm looked best, & I said I thought they both looked good, but the cool possibly just won for me. Then she went back stage to get her new outfit, while the woman talked to us about the clothes best for us. I didn't necessarily agree when she talked about how to dress with big boobs. As someone who probably has some of the biggest natural boobs in the country I had to totally disagree. She said wear long necklaces - they just hang off my boobs like a shelf. She said to wear very deep v-necks - whenever I do people just look at my boobs even more & say I'm trying to raw attention to them. There were a few other things she said which I had to say from experience were totally wrong. Hannah agreed. Then they were ready to show us the clothes. The woman who went before my Mom came out in a green maxi dress, (which was quite nice), a coral pashmina, & a big brown belt just under her chest. Oh, & a long necklace. The dress was nice, but the belt & necklace pushed everything weirdly, & made it quite unflattering. Then my Mom came out. Her legs looked soooo skinny (well, she does have very skinny legs), but she was wearing this polka dot mac which bulked her out & hid her shape. Apparently they'd lost the blazer they'd picked out for her. She looked better without the mac, & had a purple sleeveless top with a blue cardi on. Then the woman fastened the cardi, which was unflattering. But the jeans looked good. & they also found the blazer, which looked nice with the rest of the outfit. I took some photos on her camera for her - shocked at the quality, I must say I've been quite spoiled by my cameras. One of my Mom's friends commented that she'd never realised just how skinny my Mom was. That was nice - I've got to remember to tell her that.
When my Mom came to sit down Maggie told her that she thought both colours looked good on her, & I said I liked everything but the mac & the blue cardi. Hannah said she liked everything, & my Mom said that a far as she was concerned what I'd said was high praise coming from me. =p
The woman finished her talk, & my Mom got some beautiful flowers as a thank you for taking part. They really were lovely. Hannah & I just stayed at the table & chatted, until she said she had to put some more cream on her tattoo. We exited the tent from the far side just as the raffle started, & Hannah took off her heels to walk across the grass. The queue in the bathroom was quite long, but she only needed to wash her hands. We headed back but were a little too nervous to walk through the tent while everyone was focusing on the raffle. We passed the musicians still sitting at a table by the entrance, & when we got back to the table Hannah asked me why they were still here. I replied that they probably had nothing better to do with their time. Mary McCarthy, who was helping out with the raffle right in front of her table, laughed & said she'd heard what I said (thinking I'd meant it about the people running the raffle). I felt mortified, & said I hadn't been talking about her, but I'm not sure if she believed me. She said she didn't mind though. Mary really is very sweet, & I wouldn't say that about her even if I did think the raffle people had nothing better to do with their time. Which isn't true anyway.
After the raffle everyone started dispersing, & Maggie got up to go. I tried to catch her eye to say goodbye, but she didn't look at me. I'm not sure if she was purposefully ignoring me, or just thought I wasn't worth the bother. I felt a twinge of guilt then, but I really hadn't know what to say to her. After she left my Mom asked me how she was, & I admitted that I hadn't really had much to say. My Mom reprimanded me then & said she was grieving for her husband, which made me feel awful, until I asked when it had happened. She said it happened seventeen years ago, which made me feel less bad. My Mom said it shouldn't make any difference that it had happened seventeen years ago, but it does, even if just a little bit. If it had just happened very recently then I would have admired her for being able to come out to an event like this, because I certainly wouldn't be able to. But after seventeen years I probably would have been able to leave the house. So that's the difference.
Hannah & I flipped through the magazine that we'd been given for free (last year we got free hair care) & I pointed out the shots I wanted to do. She said she could do those poses, & we just needed to find the locations & then voila. My Mom came back & said the jeans were only £8, so she'd probably get them, & maybe the tops too. She also very kindly gave us money for afternoon tea - I'm sure it was free last time. Hannah got a piece of chocolate cake, while I went for a piece of Victoria Sponge cake, & we both had tea. Jean was serving, so I said hey. Oh & Hannah called her mum to ask if she had the money to pay for the ticket, but Elaine was at the LS swimming gala, so my Mom said she'd write a check for her now & Hannah would pay her back at the party tonight. I thought that was very nice of her.
We headed back to our table, & I remembered to reply to a text I'd gotten from Vicky about the cast meal. Boffey had a tennis match, so she was asking if we were still having the meal. I said it was up to them. Hazel came over & asked if Hannah's tattoo was real or henna. Hannah think that Hazel's estimation of her has gone down now. After finishing our afternoon tea we headed outside the tent. The weather had been so up and down - cool, windy, hot, humid. We were hot now, & right above the tent there were blue skies & white clouds, but above the benches we were going to sit down on there were grey clouds that looked like they might burst at any moment. Before we got to the benches 2 boys went & sat there, so we just sat on the little steps & took our heels off & talked some more. Alex approached to ask me if we were having the cast dinner & I said it was up to them, so she said we were having it. We then saw Dave AR walking over to talk to the boys on the benches. He's back from UCLA to go to the ball with his girlfriend. He didn't acknowledge us at first, but at one point we both looked up at the same time, so he had to wave & smile (it was more of a grimace). I waved back & told Hannah, so she looked up & waved too. He returned the wave & showed teeth when he smiled. Hannah said he was being weird, & that even though we weren't close, he should still have come over to at least say hey. He left, & it started to spit a little bit, so we headed over to my house.
She wanted to see my new laptop & camera, so I showed them & we went through facebook profiles of people we knew. I think she was a bit pissed off with the girls we used to hang out with at school, so we were looking at what they'd been doing recently. Hugh came in & got cereal & I just thought it was nice how he got on with Hannah. Her mum called & asked Hannah to pick her up for the Leaving Drinks at my house (for the teachers leaving at the end of this year) so I told my Mom we'd be back in 10mins & that I had my phone with me. Hannah had All Time Low's CD playing, & I'm not sure what I think of it. It's the type of music I used to listen to all the time, but over the last year or so - probably more - it's become a bit samey to me. I do like their single 'Lost in Stereo' though.
Hannah changed out of her heels at her house & showed me the photos on her camera from her night out last night. Her mum finished getting ready - after being a bit annoyed at Hannah for the mess she'd left her room in - & we got back to my house. (Max called me on the way home to apologise for not seeing me today. He said he'd been in school for the last four hours, but he'd just been so busy. I thought it was nice of him to actually call & apologise, but it wasn't as if I'd been waiting around for him today. He said he might see me tomorrow, but he probably won't.) But anyway, Hannah & I went out into the garden when we got back, where my Dad told us that actually my Mom was wrong to invite us to this party, as it was a Common Room party, & that we should leave. First I showed Hannah our new patio area, & then we went & got food from Jean. We tried this tomato sticks & cranberry with cheese puffs. They were particularly nice.
We headed in then & wondered what the hell to do. Usually we take photos, or watch movies, or bake. We couldn't exactly bake now. So it was either movies or photos. We headed up to my room (stopping on the way to show Hannah my brother's drawing, before he rushed in & grabbed them & said they weren't good enough to be seen, although Hannah assured him that wasn't true) & lay on my bed for a bit before deciding to go & look at photos taken over the years on my laptop. We decided we'd have to put up some of the really bad ones of people we knew. After we'd finished Hannah wanted to look through the photos on my flickr & decide which ones to sell, so we started doing that until her mum said it was time to go after an hour and a half. I then read until the party finished about an hour later. There were no cranberry puffs left. Great sadness.
I read some more until my parents called me up to watch TV with them all. I had 3 lemon sherbets left from a packet we got back at Christmas, so I gave one to my brother & my Dad. My Mom said she couldn't have them because of her teeth, so I had the last one. My Mom started to fall asleep, & after BB was finished my Dad told Hugh & I to go to bed. My Mom was still partially awake, so I told her how lovely this day had been. I enjoyed my evening, & the routine of spending time with my family. I felt a bit sad that my Dad basically tentatively asked me if I wanted to watch it with them. I don't mean to be stroppy about watching it. Just it's annoying to watch it so late usually, & usually when I won't watch it I've just had a fight with my Mom, so am upset. But really I like spending time with them all. =)