25.1.18.

I take down the dark icon and put up a smiling version of myself, but the weight I carry in my heart still threatens to overwhelm me. I am lightened only by the beautiful response of my friends. All those on this page, you are my true friends who walk beside me each and every day and I am very grateful ... <3

This is for you ... this is YOUR SONG

www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTa8U0Wa0q8

Copyright © protected images please do not reproduce without permission

" I can control my destiny, but not my fate. Destiny means there are opportunities to turn right or left, but fate is a one-way street. I believe we all have the choice as to whether we fulfil our destiny, but our fate is sealed" - Paulo Coelho

Soundtrack : www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxWK3qACDGk&ebc=ANyPxKr3BZYrX...

IF IT'S LOVE by TRAIN

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9puxoJ1f6YU&app=desktop

ITHACA by C. P. CAVAFY

Recitation by Sean Connery

Music by Vangelis

(A gift from my friend Poppy Kalant - thank you <3 )

There was a fork in the road I took

I thought I was travelling straight

Do I go left or do I go right?

It's a choice I have to make

Walking by the ocean

or walking down the street

there's no such thing as chance encounter

If it's written in the stars we'll meet

Last night we threw away the rules

we had to shoot the breeze

I said will you marry me

You said get off your knees! ; 0))

- AP - Copyright remains with the author

Actually what he said was ... ; 0)

'copyright image please do not reproduce without permission'

AP-BID - Boeing B-777-340ER - PIA - Pakistan International

at Toronto Lester B. Pearson Airport (YYZ)

c/n 33.780 - built in 2008

Substitution for the usual B-777-200LR

AP-BGY - Boeing B-777-240/LR - PIA - Pakistan International Airlines

at Toronto Lester B. Pearson Airport (YYZ)

c/n 33.781 - built in 2005

75 Years Pakistan-sticker

PIA 777-300ER 25/11/17 LHR

With the pull set over, AP 201 shoves into the paper shed to spot five boxcars.

Dublin Airport, Ireland OCT 10th 2016

Ex Shaheen Air A330-300

AP-BKM

"1st of January

Said you starting over

Your heart's been in remission

Making a new beginning ..."

- Jah Cure, Unconditional Love

Soundtrack : www.youtube.com/watch?v=38A1NZEHpxY

UNCONDITIONAL LOVE - JAH CURE

UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

As the arms of the trees outstretch to reach the sun

So can we rise up and touch the stars

As the sun falls to meet another day in a far off land

So may we fall down and rise to begin again anew

Love is not lost when truth is known

It is strengthened and clarifies our vision

The veils may fall from our eyes

but what we see is still heaven with a brighter light

The sun may nestle in the clouds

as we may soften the fall of those we love

but we will help them stay afloat

and buoy them up with love and understanding

The sun does not ask for anything

but gives us warmth and light

Ask for nothing in return

but offer unconditional love

- AP - copyright remains the property of the author

'copyright image please do not reproduce without permission'

PIA B743 at a very wintry MAN

wiston house

Very close up shot of PIA B743 AP-BFY in May 2004.

LHR, September 1986.

I shoot everyday with a decent camera. The morning after Hurricane Sandy I came across this about a mile from my house. I shot it with my iPhone and sent it to the local newspaper. The AP got word of the image and contacted me about buying it. I sold my first photo to the AP and it was a camera phone shot? Go Figure.

Pakistan Intl Airlines. Boeing 747-240B. Loved the tail schemes. Taken MAN 22/03/06

"Shaheen 901" taxiing past the Runway Viewing Park at MAN.

my illustration "zeppel[ap]in" in the zeppelin museum, in the permanent collection!

Departing 24L at MAN.

Thank you for your love, your friendship and wonderful support. Happy New Year to you all <3

p.s. THANK YOU FOR 3 MILLION VIEWS!!!!! XO

“Depth of friendship does not depend on length of acquaintance.”

- Rabindranath Tagore

Soundtrack : www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEkIou3WFnM

YOU'VE GOT A FRIEND – JAMES TAYLOR

Somewhere under the rainbow

a seagull full of hope

flies low across a violet sky

telling me that I can cope

so many signs we see if only

we care to open our eyes and look

the tender pages of our stories

rest gently between a velvet-covered book

bookmarked by a wish; a dream

on a snow white angel's wing and prayer

we are capable of so many things

if only we be brave and dare

so many times I tumble down

so many times get up

the little precious many things

I find to fill my golden cup

I raise it now and wish you well

blow you a New Year's kiss

ne'er let Auld Lang Syne be e'er forgot

a cup of kindness is full of bliss

if love is a many splendoured thing

and music be the food of love

then I have eaten a banquet here

a feast lain down from Heaven above

and as the New Year begins again

I'll keep you always in my heart

and if sometimes it seems I'm scarce

remember these words of René Descartes

“He lives well who is well hidden”

as I seek the truth of my life in silent ways

with clear mind comes a revelation

that will buoy me up on stormy waves

when grey clouds loom; obscure my vision

I know the moon and sun still shine

and you will know too that I am here

just call my name; send me a sign.

- AP - Copyright © remains with and is the intellectual property of the author

Copyright © protected image please do not reproduce without permission

“The camel is a symbol of stamina, patience, endurance, and reaching long-term goals. ... Dreaming of a camel represents the need to work very hard and persistently to overcome obstacles to reach your goal.” - sleep culture

“There is no straw heavy enough to break a camel's back.

He is invincible. He is the ship of the desert that will not let you down.” - AP

Soundtrack : www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tkUY_GAJh0

DESERT DREAM – OMAR AKRAM

I am a Bactrian Camel

oh yes, I'll have you know

my weight is borne equally

on my third and fourth toes

I am an even-toed ungulate

or so the story goes

I am far superior to

the one-humped dromedary

I'm from ancient Bactria;

I'm kind and soft and hairy

my fur is like a teddy bear,

but don't cuddle me; be wary!

I am silky soft like my ancestors

who travelled the Silk Road

climbing up high mountains;

cold; carrying their heavy load

or moving across inhospitable deserts;

screeching in camel code

I am feeling very lazy today

relaxing in the rain

it's stopped a little while;

these tourists are such a pain

leaning out their windows

taking my portrait again and again

I am sighing with contentment

as they pass me by

there is no resentment;

I pretend to them I'm shy

showing them the back of me;

well that's as much as I can try

I doze; I dream; I long to be

in the silence of the night

but oh those shrieking jackanapes

now hidden from my sight

I fall asleep at last and wait

for the new dawn to break light.

- AP - Copyright © remains with and is the intellectual property of the author

Copyright © protected image please do not reproduce without permission

Thanks for visiting. I am very grateful for the very kind comments and faves.

Since returning home I am experiencing a lot of computer and internet connection problems. It is very frustrating. I comment a few pictures and then have to reboot or constantly refresh the page and then the comment does not always print. I do not know if it is problems with Flickr or my internet or with my computer or a combination of all three, but I do apologise sincerely and will try to catch up as and when I can. Thank you for your patience with me <3

This is the nearest visual and audible representation I can produce, with my fairly limited technical know-how, to show how I feel the world and the daily struggle within myself to survive in a world that is both beautiful and at the same time profound; the confusion I feel when I struggle to understand where I fit into the world and if I ever really will.

This cover of a beautiful song, Just When I Needed You Most, I had never heard before when it was suggested to me, by my friend, Dave, who truly understands what it is to be me. Thanks Mate! : 0)

“I didn't want to wake up. I was having a much better time asleep. And that's really sad. It was almost like a reverse nightmare, like when you wake up from a nightmare you're so relieved. I woke up into a nightmare.”

― Ned Vizzini, It's Kind of a Funny Story

LET ME ...

LET ME give you a piece of my mind

meander through my neural pathways

LET ME offer you the peace I find

when the outer turmoil fades away

and I can hear my thoughts aloud

a million things that I must do to

drown out the infernal madding crowd

and let the signs and creative process through

LET my eyes glaze over like ice upon a lake

LET the snows and mists descend

don't come near or I will break

my tears a waterfall, my friend

LET ME stand quietly by the door

gazing through the fugue of time

parallel lines bend; fall to the floor

and suffocate me in this paradigm

this is a typical day for ME

and it continues; invades my dreams and then

the darkness falls like a dying tree

crashing through my world again

some days in a lucid moment I

see clearest after the rain has stopped and

pale yellow sunshine dapples softly as a sigh

while the sweet breeze of change whispers and ...

… gently reaches out to touch my hand.

LET ME be free to be who I am

because that is enough struggle for ME

I cannot be someone stuck in a traffic jam

what does that taste like; it feels like I am all at sea

LET ME taste the sweets of living

without the bitter fruits of despair

Friday's child is loving and giving

if you love me LET ME be there

when I can find the time is right

for ME to be the best I can

time for me is different and flight

or fight reminds me of the Bogeyman

that feeling as a helpless child

wide-eyed and trying to figure so many things out

things beyond me; beyond all reason and filed

under the heading of 'What was that all about!'

I think the best of everyone, you see

though I am in constant doubt

about what on earth is the point of ME

I feel too much; my thoughts are endless

the world and it's problems magnify

and I am left bereft and breathless

knowing there is too much to rectify

so I see a bird and I fly away

I see the sky and cloud-watch and dream

the fog becomes thicker and I run away

caught in the headlights powered only by my own steam

but what if the steam dissipates

and I am left drained and bewildered, like you

I will still see the world as a beautiful place

even when the chaos continues and my head is all askew.

- AP - Copyright © remains with and is the intellectual property of the author

Copyright © protected images please do not reproduce without permission

Thanks for visiting. I am very grateful for the very kind comments and faves.

Enjoy a very happy weekend, dear friends <3

“Poetry

melts my bones.

enters my blood

and changes

its composition.”

― Sanober Khan

I arise

I creak a little

the bed creaks even more

what is the hour

I have no idea

I pad out bare feet

the wooden floorboards creak

open the bathroom door

the face in the mirror shrieks

I remember the face

from the night before

it is the same, I think

and yet

perhaps it is just a little bit more

the mirror finds me out

it tries to scream

it tries to shout

wordlessly my lips move in mime

am I here or

have I travelled back in time

the light seeks me out

surrounds me in it's lemon glow

the wooden, painted shade

I bought myself

a token of a love cut short

and never once allowed to grow

I am inspired by all I see

the little beads of perspiration

placed there by the dull and soundless wall

of the midday sun

pouring hot through mottled glass

casting patterns that will never last

the different coloured bottles shine

on the windowsill, like sea glass found

along the shingled beach the line

of debris gathered in the bay and ground

down to a whisper of it's former self

now little nuggets rest upon my shelf

echoing the bottles opposite

the jewels of the sea

and the spills of him mingled with the spills of me

we do not drink but pour

the contents dampen; soak into the sand

we sat there side by side yet so alone

so close; so intimate; hand in hand

where did those days go as they disappeared

the night rose up and choked and cloaked us against our will

the moon shone briefly; disappeared behind a cloud

now I am here and you are there and still

the intermittent seagulls cry and fly

their calls pierce through my morning reverie

the mirror clamours for attention and I sigh

as I meet the eyes; the same eyes filled with mystery

and darkened with deep-seated misery

if I cannot unravel the past or let it slip

like tangled knitting lain out upon my lap; knotted in my grip

then how can I step forward into the new

with sheer abandonment and give myself to you

I will find a way through endless poetry

let words flow like my love I give to you

between the lines the space is clear and pure and sweet

where we can find the peace; be lulled; subdued and fall asleep

where words are not enough and only feelings count

between the parallel lines of existence hear me out

please do not ever doubt

I WILL get off this roundabout

I love you

you love me

you taught me how to love myself

you showed me how to live; be free

to leave behind the past; the memories

and only keep the good ones that shaped my loving heart

the ones that seep into my bones

that flow now in my blood

that light my soul and eyes with all

this goodness and this cherished and immortal love; I fall

for you my love; for you

and only you can render me anew.

- AP - Copyright © remains with and is the intellectual property of the author

Copyright © protected images please do not reproduce without permission

The clip of the pigeons is mine and I have overlaid it with my brief edit from Brief Encounter. I hope you enjoy my cover of Three Steps to Heaven, with the additions of subtle undertones of my wind chimes and me bashing the tune out on my old and faithful and very forgiving guitar!

AP-BGY - Boeing B-777-240/LR - PIA - Pakistan International Airlines

at Toronto Lester B. Pearson Airport (YYZ)

c/n 33.781 - built in 2005

Visit this location at Asphyxiation Point - Urban Roleplay SIM in Second Life

PIA Pakistan International Airlines. Boeing 747-367. Taken MAN 08/02/05

PIA Retro Jet!

Mazda Roadpacer AP (1975) at the Mazda Classic - Automobil Museum Frey in Augsburg, Germany.

The Roadpacer was Mazda's unique attempt to enter the Japanese market of luxury sedans, rivaling the Toyota Century or Nissan President. The car was not developed by Mazda but an Australian Holden Premier with a Mazda 13B Wankel engine: engineless Holdens were shipped to Japan, where they were fitted with engines and transmissions and recieved luxurious equipment. However, sales were slow and only around 800 units sold, few of which remain today.

Mazda Roadpacer AP (1975-1977)

1.308 litre two-disc Wankel engine

100 kW

Vmax: 166 km/h

if used on tumblr or any other site please use credit!

Material Circulante: CPA 4004

Hora: 14:17

Data: 11-11-2021

Local: Salreu (PK 285 - Linha do Norte)

Serviço: AP 132 (Braga --» Lisboa - Santa Apolónia)

Será q eu tbm posso, êsse é o meu brinquedinho, e aproveito prá mostrar minha "cara". Tenha tds os amigos um exelente domingo. abçs.

PIA B743 AP-BFW about to depart runway 2 at MAN in March 2004 ahead of looming storm clouds !