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I do like variety in my photo stream so I thought putting a fourth picture of a shroom would be really pushing it.
So, I have gone back to Rathlin Island because I really do love it here and I still have some interesting shots to share.
I love this shot of Church Bay in the last of the glorious sunset.
Its the end of day, all the chores have been done, the ferry is tied up, the other boats are all secure and its like the island is being tucked up for bed.
One of the few things I truly miss because of my illnesses is that I can't hike like I used to. The hikes on Rathlin are spectacular and because the island is only 7 miles long easily done in a day.
I need one of the all terrain vehicles that one of the Islanders had "concocted" (no MOT or car taxes on the island) as I could just see myself whizzing around on one!
Mr Killlllllleeeeen I need an ATV!!
The Cosmos are still flowering in my garden. Thank you Louise for sending me the seeds.
We had a bit of a disaster this afternoon - Peter cut his thumb (not concentrating) and we had to call our friend who is a doctor. He came and put four stitches in his thumb. I hope it teaches him to be more careful in the future (but I am not holding my breath).
Its that time of year again to wish my darling daughter a happy, happy birthday.
I don't think though that I have been totally forgiven by her for giving birth a month early thereby making her a Christmas Baby.
My Jester ornament is now well and truly vintage and out of all the ornaments that decorate my 49 trees, he remains my favourite.
When Rhianon was old enough to start helping decorate the tree (back then I had the conventional one tree), the Jester was her favourite ornament too and we would take it in turns to put Jester in a spot which would show him off.
Even though there is 12,000 miles between us and I haven't seen her in the last 4 years, I pretend on the years it is her turn, that she actually places the ornament.
I know, I know, I am a bit of a sad case!
For all those Christmas Babies out there, I wish you all a Happy Birthday.
This is my photo for the 52 in 2014 group - #3. Rain. After all our Summer heat we have had some showers in the last two weeks - much welcomed.This is taken from my front verandah during a heavy shower of rain.
This is my photo for the challenge 52 in 2014 - #9 Halloween. I took this photo at a market which is held weekly in Maryborough in Queensland which is only 20 or so minutes from Hervey Bay. It is life-size as well which I am sure could be frightening to the littlies.
We arrived home late this afternoon. We had a good trip with beautiful weather, although it apparently wasn't very good at home with lots of rain and storms. We did a lot of driving covering over 3,000 klms in the two weeks we were away.
Rievaulx Abbey is a former Cistercian abbey headed by the Abbot of Rievaulx. It is located in Rievaulx (pronounced /riːˈvoʊ/ ree-VOH), near Helmsley in North Yorkshire, England.
It was one of the wealthiest abbeys in England and was dissolved by Henry VIII of England in 1538. Its ruins are a tourist attraction.
Rievaulx Abbey was founded in 1132 by twelve monks from Clairvaux Abbey as a mission for the colonisation of the north of England and Scotland. It was the first Cistercian abbey in the north. With time it became one of the great Cistercian abbeys of Yorkshire, second only to Fountains Abbey in fame.[citation needed]
The remote location was ideal for the Cistercians, whose desire was to follow a strict life of prayer and self-sufficiency with little contact with the outside world. The patron, Walter Espec, settled another Cistercian community, founding Wardon Abbey in Bedfordshire on unprofitable wasteland on one of his inherited estates.
The abbey was dissolved by King Henry VIII in 1538. At that time there were said to be 72 buildings occupied by an abbot and 21 monks, attended by 102 servants, with an income of £351 a year. It also had a prototype blast furnace at Laskill, producing cast iron as efficiently as a modern blast furnace; according to Gerry McDonnell (archeometallurgist of the University of Bradford), the closure of Rievaulx delayed the Industrial Revolution for two and a half centuries.
Henry ordered the buildings to be rendered uninhabitable and stripped of valuables such as lead. The abbey site was granted to the Earl of Rutland, one of Henry's advisers, until it passed to the Duncombe family.
In the 1750s Thomas Duncombe III beautified the estate by building the terrace with two Grecian-style temples; these temples, now called Rievaulx Terrace & Temples, are in the care of the National Trust. The ruins of the abbey are in the care of English Heritage.
When awarded a life peerage in 1983, former Prime Minister Harold Wilson, a Yorkshireman, adopted the title Baron Wilson of Rievaulx.
It is only 12 days now until we leave for the UK. This is my new camera bag with the camera gear I will be taking with me. I am taking my 5D MK II, Canon 28-300 L series lens, Canon 17-35 L series lens, Tamron 90 mm macro lens, memory cards, charger, USB sticks etc and it still weighs under the 7 kg allowance that most airlines allow. This trip is not a worry though as we are travelling British Air and they allow 23 kg carry on luggage which is a bonus. I bought an ultra light weight bag - 1.4 kg and took it to Clark Rubber where they cut some foam to fit the gear I will be taking. I think it turned out very well and I am so happy with it.
I spoke to my brother this afternoon and he said he is doing fine - just a little tired. The operation went well.
Autumn has finally arrived and the heat has gone. Our weather is rapidly cooling down during the night, but so far our days have been a pleasant 20-23C and sunny. The leaves around the neighbourhood are finally beginning to change.
Still busy with Peter's Dad and planning for our next big adventure. We leave mid August for an 8 day tour of France, including Normandy. We then fly to the UK and spend around 6 weeks driving around - I am so excited.
Here I was, all excited when we were following the deer as its very unusual to come across shrooms that are out in the open, instead of me getting dirty climbing up forest slopes.
I like to try and identify everything that I photograph (and ok Mr.Killen the White stags are actually White Bucks) so I popped over to the British Fungi and Lichen Group to learn that these are called Honey Fungus.
What a nice name I thought as their colour is like honey, so then I googled them.
What nasty, rotten little blighters they are!!
They are a parasitic fungi which attack trees and plants, killing them and are incredibly difficult to eradicate short of a nuclear bomb!
The only saving grace for the parkland that the deers are in is that I found this lot on an oak tree which seem to be particularly resistant.
They also could be of the genus which are fairly benign and are needed for the recycling of dead wood.
Hard to know as all of the genus's look alike to me!
Anyway Rich (my pal Surfin Chef www.flickr.com/photos/richardmurphy/10213079693/) I somehow think you won't be doing a medley of these!!!
Yes, I know I disappeared after posting the last photo but Narcolepsy and I are not the best of mates at the moment!!
The only problem of spending a Summer photographing sunrises, is that one accumulates a lot of photos of sunrises.
I have always liked to vary my photos and at the risk of being boring, I may add a couple more because sunrises ALWAYS vary and I do have some lovely shots.
When I took this last Friday, the sun was a boiling red ball and I have always wondered when photographing a red sun it doesn't come out that way but the surroundings do.
Maybe some lurking astrophysicist can tell me why!!
Oh, I know, Raj from The Big Bang Theory could tell me!!
Anyway, this particular shot is of the sun coming up behind the Skerries Islands off Portrush, home to what seems like thousands of seabirds (and on the rocks next to me).
The Skerries, because of their shelter was often home to Pirates, particularly one called Tavish Dhu and there is a whisper that he is actually buried on one of the islands, along with three bullock skins of silver.
Needless to say, neither grave nor silver have been found!!
Another shot that made the BBC Northern Ireland Weather Report.
EXPLORED NO. 186
It is the morning of the 24th December, 2014 here in Australia and tonight Santa will visit the homes of many little children. Merry Christmas everyone.
I bought this little decoration during a trip to Helsinki.
I had to make a collage of these three photos. The little baboons were playing on the side of the road and if you look closely at the first photo, it looks like one of them is laughing. In the second photo I love the hand around the other baboon's neck. They are so human like.
I was lucky to be able to get some photos of this pretty Pied Kingfisher when we stopped at a hide near one of the waterholes in Pilanesberg.
I couldn't resist taking this photo when we visited Edinburgh Castle. Peter and my brother Bluey love collecting hats. Peter even bought a "Hey Jimmy" hat during one of our trips and still puts it on to surprise the grandchildren at times. I took a photo of him in it and it made Explore so I told him he is now famous. I had to lighten this photo a lot as my settings were wrong (happens quite a lot when I try to rush a photo LOL), but I just had to keep it.
www.flickr.com/photos/83646071@N00/4069674617/in/album-72...
Blue's funeral was a lovely, simple affair, which is what he would have wanted.
It's really my lucky day! Discovered an interesting vantage point. The whole floor is awaiting renovation, so I had it all to myself. Why lucky? When I left my home it seems like a cloudy day but when I arrived at the venue, a miracle happened. The dark clouds started to roll up and allow blue sky to show from beneath with sunlight pouring in to fill the scene. Something every photographer would hope for. Also, there was someone from the building management who came in later and I thought that will be the end of the shoot. But surprisingly he gave me the green light to continue as it will be my last chance to shoot before they handover the property to the new tenant. The new company will be renovating & occupying the whole floor as from tomorrow. I have covered different views which I will post later.
pp: Bump up colors with "topazlab" and correct buildings distortion caused by wide lens with "warping" tool. Planted new clouds to the left as the original seems untidy.
View the Slideshow on Singapore
Watch video on The Making of Marina Bay Sands
This is my photo for the 52 in 2015 challenge - #40 - text or words. This is one of Peter's old books with his grandmother's magnifying glass.
My brother has been transferred to a hospital closer to his home and we are travelling up to see him tomorrow. He is doing okay, but feeling quite depressed that this has happened once again. We have been told it will be a long road ahead for him.
A Muscovy Duck that we spotted at the river the other week. They have a face that only a mother could love LOL. I love the pose on this one - it looks like it has two sets of eyes.
Stay safe all the people of Queensland who are waiting for Cyclone Marcia to hit. I spoke to my son and his family last night and he said they are all battened down, have tied all the outdoor furniture down and waiting for it to hit. At the moment it is classed as category 5 with winds up to 300 klms per hour. He is further down the coast on the Fraser Coast, but will still feel the brunt of it when it hits.
I read about this beautiful castle when we were staying in the Little Gate House in Fordingbridge. It was very overcast when we first arrived, but then the sun came out for some photos. I have added a few photos into the first comment box, if they are not visible go back to the first comment and have a look.
The striking and picturesque moated castle of Nunney was built in the 1370s by Sir John de la Mere, a local knight who was beginning to enjoy royal favour. Extensively modernised in the late 16th century, the castle was held for the King during the Civil War, but quickly fell to Parliamentarian cannon in 1645: not until Christmas Day 1910, however, did the gun-damaged portion of the wall finally collapse.
On our tour of France we visited the American Cemetery and Visitor Centre.
Immaculately kept, this 172-acre cemetery overlooks Omaha Beach, the very place where many of the 9387 soldiers buried here were killed in action. A chapel, memorial and 'Garden of the Missing' honour the memory of these brave men whilst the visitor centre proposes a film depicting the final days and weeks of their lives, told through authentic letters sent to their families back home.
I took many photos of this emotional place, and have added 7 photos in the first comment box.
I have decided to join Nina on her challenge to add a flower photo a day for 365 days.
www.flickr.com/photos/21560098@N06/
I am also going to use this photo for my 52 weeks of photos challenge, the theme for this week is movement
I have been trying to add photos for a while now and they would not upload to Flickr until this one. This was taken a while back at Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo in Queensland.
This is a sneak peek of what my unfinished quilts will look like when sewn together. The fairy quilt is almost finished - just a couple more borders and then it will be sent off to be professionally quilted. It is a present for my littlest granddaughter's 3rd birthday. I have made one for each of my grandchildren - you can find the others in this set:
Farleigh Hungerford Castle, sometimes called Farleigh Castle or Farley Castle, is a medieval castle in Farleigh Hungerford, Somerset, England.
Farleigh Hungerford Castle, sometimes called Farleigh Castle or Farley Castle, is a medieval castle in Farleigh Hungerford, Somerset, England. The castle was built in two phases: the inner court was constructed between 1377 and 1383 by Sir Thomas Hungerford, who made his fortune working as a steward to John of Gaunt. The castle was built to a quadrangular design, already slightly old-fashioned, on the site of an existing manor house overlooking the River Frome. A park was attached to the castle, requiring the destruction of a local village. His son, Sir Walter Hungerford, a successful knight and courtier to Henry V, became rich during the Hundred Years War with France and extended the castle with an additional, outer court, enclosing the parish church in the process. By Walter's death in 1397, the substantial castle was richly appointed and its chapel decorated with murals.
The castle largely remained in the hands of the Hungerford family over the next two centuries, despite periods during the War of the Roses in which it was held by the Crown following the attainder and execution of members of the family. At the outbreak of the English Civil War in 1642, the castle, modernized to the latest Tudor and Stuart fashions, was held by Sir Edward Hungerford. Edward declared his support for Parliament, becoming a leader of the Roundheads in Wiltshire. Farleigh Hungerford was seized by Royalist forces in 1643, but recaptured by Parliament without a fight near the end of the conflict in 1645. As a result it escaped slighting following the war, unlike many other castles in the south-west of England.
The last member of the Hungerford family to hold the castle, Sir Edward Hungerford, inherited it in 1657, but his gambling and expensive living forced him to sell the property in 1686. By the 18th century the castle was no longer lived in by its owners and fell into disrepair; in 1730 it was bought by the Houlton family, when much of it was broken up for salvage. Antiquarian and tourist interest in the now ruined castle increased through the 18th and 19th centuries. The castle chapel was repaired in 1779 and became a museum of curiosities, complete with the murals rediscovered on its walls in 1844 and a number of rare lead anthropomorphic coffins from the mid-17th century. In the 1915 Farleigh Hungerford Castle was sold to the Office of Works and a controversial restoration programme began. It is now owned by English Heritage, who operate it as a tourist attraction, and the castle is a Grade I listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
I found these in my archives, taken with my Canon 7D and the Canon 180 mm 3.5 macro lens. I think so far I prefer the 7D for fast moving objects against the 5D Mk III. I haven't really had it out when there are birds flying around, so I will reserve judgement until then. Maybe I need to play around with the settings - Peter's friend is going to help me when we next visit as he has one and is a professional photographer, so he will have more of an idea what works and what doesn't. I have to get it right before we go to South Africa in August.
The leaves are beginning to change now, but I don't think I will get to see them in their full glory before we fly home, due the the warm weather that we have been experiencing up until the last few days.
We have five more nights in England before we fly to Hong Kong for three nights and then home.
As we we were driving back to our cottage from Wimborne St. Giles, we were stopped by Police who told us that there were people on the road. When we came around the bend we were greeted by this scene. I found out the next day that it was the wedding between Lady Eloise Anson (daughter of the late Lord Litchfield) to Louis Weymouth.
I have decided to join Nina on her challenge to add a flower photo a day for 365 days.
www.flickr.com/photos/21560098@N06/
This plant is growing in my garden.
These were taken from the front verandah of our B&B in Bet-sy-coed, Wales. It was very overcast for our time in Wales, which some people may say is usual.
I have been sitting here going through my photos and found these little bears - my last four creations. Three have found homes with my Flickr friends and the little hairy one has been earmarked by my granddaughter for her birthday next week. She was born on Friday,13th December, 2002 and this year, her birthday also falls on Friday the 13th.
Jardin des Tuileries, is a public garden located between the Louvre Museum and the Place de la Concorde in Paris. In the 19th and 20th century, it was the place where Parisians celebrated, met, promenaded, and relaxed and they still do to this day.
I was nominated by Angela to do the B&W challenge for 5 days - this is #2. This was not too difficult as he is a white dog LOL - my daughter's Whippet, Shiloh. Shiloh now has a little brother - Jet. Jet is a livewire and gives Shiloh a hard time, but Shiloh can relax when Jet tires himself out.
Shiloh was a little lost after losing his friend, Jasper the Papillon, so Jet has now joined the family.
I have joined a group to add a photo a week - this week's theme is "experimental". I have been reading about zooming whilst using a low shutter speed and this is what I came up with. It is our regular Magpie visitor sitting on a pot plant in our garden. This is a lot more difficult than I imagined and only these two photos were okay out of about ten that I took.
I have decided to join Nina on her challenge to add a flower photo a day for 365 days.
www.flickr.com/photos/21560098@N06/
This is a beautiful rose growing in my neighbour's garden. The first photo was taken on Saturday and the second taken today.
Today it is three weeks until we leave on our next adventure. We will be doing an 8 day bus tour of France, flying to London, hiring a car and driving around the UK taking in the wonderful sights of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
These are some scenes from our week in Pooley Bridge, Ulswater in the Lakes District from our trip in 2011.
My hand is still giving me grief. I now have a lump on the side of my wrist and it is becoming sorer each day. I see the specialist next Tuesday but time is running out now. I will probably have to wear the splint that I had made for the trip to South Africa.
I have decided to join Nina on her challenge of take a flower photo for 365 days. This is not cropped and is SOOC only resized in Photoshop. Would you believe that my 50D began working again today, but it is still not working properly - I have to press very hard on the shutter release and press in the right spot for it to work. I will put it in to Canon next week for a service and see what they come up with.
I have decided to join Nina on her challenge to add a flower photo a day for 365 days.
www.flickr.com/photos/21560098@N06/
I have been out all day visiting Peter's Dad in hospital and now my daughters have invited me to see Les Miserables with them - catch you later.
Peter's Dad is coming along nicely and they are hoping to move him to a rehabilitation centre next week where it is expected he will further recover until they feel he is able to go home.
I have decided to join Nina on her challenge to take a flower photo a day for 365 days.
www.flickr.com/photos/21560098@N06/
These are some real oldies taken with the Canon 400D, 75-300 lens and the Kenko macro tubes.
My hand seems to be slowly improving. Each week the pain eases a little, but until I recover from the trauma of the operation, I won't know whether it has fixed the problem - I hope so.
Peter bought me a beautiful bouquet of Irises and yellow roses. It has been quite a while since I had flowers and my daughters said "what has he done" LOL.
My brother and his wife are visiting and I haven't spent much time on Flickr tonight - catch you tomorrow.
I have decided to join Nina on her challenge to add a flower photo a day for 365 days.
www.flickr.com/photos/21560098@N06/
This is a bumble bee and flower that I took at the Butterfly House in Stratford upon Avon during our trip in 2011.
It is less than 9 weeks now until we leave on another big adventure travelling to rural France, Scotland, England and Northern Ireland.