Years ago, I started paying attention to extant railroad structures, rolling stock, etc. and had begun mapping them on a private Google map. More recently, I completed a draft spreadsheet that had exact [address] locations and other details about them and whether or not I've shot it before. So, today on my way back home from a weekend in Ottumwa, I meandered about the country paying attention to check boxes I hadn't had. I was glad to be able to shoot this coal empty across my entire route, first in Ottumwa and finally here at Glenwood with the first bit of sun I saw today.

The January 20, 2019 Super Wolf Blood Moon rising over the Space Needle in Seattle, WA. January 20, 2019.

I love the challenge of combining astrological events and landscapes. It requires a truckload of planning (and a bit of trigonometry) and it is so, SO rewarding to see it come to life in the field right before your eyes. I also strongly believe that adding the sun, moon, or stars as a compositional element can result in something unique. Everyone here has seen a photo of the Space Needle, but hopefully this version that includes the January 20, 2019 total lunar eclipse is a little different.

I planned the shoot in advance using PhotoPills and Excel to line up the moon with the Space Needle and to confirm the angle of the moon from horizon would put it above the Space Needle if shooting from the ground looking up. For the base image, I shot the Space Needle at a low ISO for a clean foreground. As the moon moved into the Earth's shadow to enter the total eclipse phase while simultaneously aligning with the needle, I shot 5-8 images of the moon in burst mode at 1/2 a second at ISO 3200 (or ISO 6400 - I forget). In post, I stacked the multiple captures of the moon together to reduce high ISO noise and increase detail (this is a common astrophotography process, kind of a manual version of what what the new Sony A7R camera bodies do when they go into the super resolution pixel shift mode).

If interested, I have a tutorial on how to plan shots like these here: Blood Moon tutorial.

I've also made the spreadsheet I use to check angles in the process available here: Google Sheets

well tucked in!

Quite a few honey bees on this buddleja at our gate- all working for nectar only.

For my Honey bees on named flowers set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet when I get around to updating it again at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

The Raveonettes - You Want The Candy

www.youtube.com/watch?v=uA0do9e33Rg

A brave January bee, last week.

I have already posted a bunch of these but this is the last one!

Chaenomeles × superba 'Pink Lady' in Rowallane.

AKA: Japanese quince 'Pink Lady'

Rowallane gardens - the only plant that the bees were working that day.

Yellow pollen loads blurred but visible.

& in my Honey bees on named flowers set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

And a bit of music just if you want:

Amy Rigby - Dancing with Joey Ramone

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqGPTFZ-fxM

One for my Honey bees on named flowers set

nice light yellow pollen load on show

And will also go (eventually!) on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

& some music if you like - no real connection to the photo but feels good to me

Ramones - Blitzkrieg Bop

www.youtube.com/watch?v=iymtpePP8I8

I've been trying to get a picture of a bee on this for ages. So often the ones I am familiar with have flowers that are a bit too high. These ones in Dundee were all at head height or lower. Made for an enjoyable 10 minutes with the camera! Such a beautiful heady scent too - i hadnt realised that before!

Orange pollen load on view.

Will go on spreadsheet!

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

In Botanic Gardens, Belfast

And will eventually go on my much loved, botanically sorted, spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

Beehive grid - hiding behind it (tens of) thousands of human lives, ambitions, disappointments and hopes...

Photography gear - Macro Mondays

203/365 pictures in 2018

The items in the photograph are less that 3" wide. See first comment for the "measurement" photo.

© All Rights Reserved. Please do not use or reproduce this image on Websites/Blog or any other media without my explicit permission.

They came. They saw. They conquered. Back in September of 2010, an abbreviated Cleveland Mafia contingent traveled east for a week of P&W that was stellar to say the least. Weather and operations meshed perfectly for the best out of town slay job that could possibly be accomplished. It began on the night of the 18th with night shots at Worcester and Plainfield and continued for 7 straight days, conveniently ending with Massachusetts Central's NW5 for the icing on the cake.

The lead off single was GP38-2 no. 2008 at the Worcester shop. So much has changed. The big sign on the building is long gone (donated to the P&W Railfan Museum in Webster, MA). The "Owned & Operated" badge above the front truck is probably in Steve Carlson's basement. I'm sure the 2008 is looking ratty and filthy...if its even serviceable. Most importantly, the orange borg has completely annihilated this company as we knew it. Their "management" has beaten the morale, productivity and pride out of the workforce, decimated the motive power fleet, and alienated a good portion of the customer base that took years of hard work to build & maintain. Operations (if you can even call it that with a straight face) went from Swiss watch to Timex and then some. Impressive to pitiful. Congratulations on spending 125 million dollars you will NEVER get back. This RR is proof that safety vests, brake sticks, safety slogans, catch phrases, "safety stops", posters, signs, decals, Excel spreadsheets, and meaningless titles on business cards carried by people with ZERO practical experience don't always miraculously get the job done. Arrogance and ignorance don't help either.

Here's to the good ol days. Flashbulb lighting by the one and only Terrance Chicwak Esq.

Pelican Cove

Rancho Palos Verdes, CA

03-02-2015

Processed: 05/17/25

I've been going through old photo folders in search of cloudscapes to add to a new "skies" folder I can use for sky replacement. I discovered this previously unprocessed image from March of 2015 (a decade ago. sigh). It's been waiting a l-o-n-g time. 😀

I'm also making this post my first announcement that I've booked my next trip, and it'll be coming up fast.

I'm going on my trip to the "American South", Tennessee in particular, from May 29th through June 7th. I'll be flying into Memphis, staying three nights, renting a car, driving to Nashville, where I'll stay another three nights, then driving to Gatlinburg, the gateway to Great Smoky Mountain National Park, where I'll stay a final three days. I'll fly from Knoxville back home on June 7th.

Now I have to devour my guidebook and create my trip calculator spreadsheet, add many potential photo ops to my google maps saved folder, and pack! So I'll be off social media for pretty much the last week of May and the first week of June. Beale Street, Graceland, Grand Old Opry, Music Row, Centennial Park and the Parthenon, Natchez Trace, Chickasaw State Park, Smoky Mountains here I come! (Maybe even Dollywood if I have time.)

There's been lots of extreme weather in the South, including storms, floods and tornadoes, but hopefully I'll miss the inclement weather and if there are storms, (like in Idaho last year at almost this exact time frame) I'll get some great cloudscapes before and afterwards, like the one in this post! (I seem to remember, even though it was 10 years ago, that I took the day off work specifically to go photograph the clouds.)

EDIT: Explored 05/18/25 at 167. Many thanks to everyone who views, faves, follows, and comments on my images! 🙏🙏🙏🙏💖💖💖💖🎁🎁🎁🎁🎉🎉🎉🎉😂😂😂😂😮😮😮😮😁😁😁😁

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Nueva edición de los Retos de la Familia Fotera dedicado al color rojo. Y como hoy es festivo, parece que a nuestra parejita se le han pegado las sábanas.

No dejéis de visitar al resto de participantes y seguir el hashtag #RetoRojo en Twitter

+info: thinkinfreak.com/blog/2013/05/01/retorojo-la-foto/

in a herb garden at Kew

This plant has a much more intense citrus fragrance than the lemon thyme I have grown in pots. Also it has dark green leaves rather than the yellow edges that I am used to.

& some music if you like

Ramones - Time Has Come Today

www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI2bsmZEFpE

One for my Honey bees on named flowers set

And will also go (eventually!) on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

Music for today : Hang you from the heavens by The dead weather

The secret world of the STS

We left our recruits at the barracks where the first priority was to unload the armoured transporters of all equipment and supplies including the slow-cooker. By now the group was starting to gel and various nicknames had come to the fore... we now have Red Cap, Robotog, Spreadsheet, Naga (although other names were mentioned but not for print), Snoozey and I'm here all week! Unfortunately, we can't identify candidate numbers to nicknames for security reasons, but feel free to have a go... texts are £2 plus your standard network rate. You must be 16 years old and over and ask the bill payers permission to enter. T&C apply.

Meanwhile...

Our international candidate had been on the go for some 36+ hours without sleep and the group felt it only right to give him first dibs. C1 opted for the big bed naturally. C7 had previous experience of the white noise generated by C6 and was keen to find the most isolated room in the barracks. The top far room contained twin beds and C7 offered to share with C4. Little did C7 know that C4 was part of white noise interrogation.

Luckily for the group, C2 and C6 delegated themselves for cooking duties which didn't produce any objections from the other recruits surprisingly. C4 and C7 volunteered for washing up duties having just found the dishwasher and C5 offered to start the log fire leaving C1 to unpack and familiarise himself with the surroundings.

The evening meal went down a storm with the recruits (a good curry always does), as did the whiskey sampling for those undergoing the initiation ceremony. Having missed out on the Glen Coe sunrise, Robotog was keen to try the following morning and so our recruits retired to grab a few hours sleep.

No sooner had the last light gone out, the white noise started immediately in the form of heavy snoring from at least three rooms. The only saving grace to this was the intense rain and the howling gale swirling around the barracks like demented demons amplifying the rat-a-tat sound on every window pane in the place. Not much sleep was had by all!

Then in the middle of the night there was a heavy thud, followed by a loud bang. Only a few heard this commotion... namely those kept awake by the snoring. The events of the previous night only came to light over the morning brew. What transpired was that C1 had fallen out of the wrong side of the bed and then decided to make a night call to the bathroom only to slam the door. Being a "foreigner" who drives on the wrong side of the road, the other recruits had to explain to C1 that not only do we drive on the left, we also sleep on the left in this country.

"Well that explains the thud, what about the bang?" asked C3.

"I didn't realise where the wall was" C1 sheepishly replied.

Consequently, the barracks have been forced to put up warning signs next to all doorways explaining that walls may be nearer that originally thought to appease H&S regulations.

About the image...

A rare capture of STS recruits out in the field undergoing training manoeuvres. Practicing soaking techniques during Storm Dennis at Elgol. Here we can see one recruit utilising standard issue tripod, backpack and wellies while a second recruit gets to grips with the short range AK4K handheld video. Note, backup camera and tripod at the ready for rapid response shooting.

For security reasons, no faces or names can be published. Flickr excepts no responsibility if leaked by third parties.

Remember that spreadsheet in 1995?

in Botanic Park, Belfast

They seemed to be working the myosotis for nectar only.

A new one for my Honey bees on named flowers set set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

Come visit Fab Free, the home of the Shop & Hop Spreadsheet! Fab Free is spreading the love with our guide to the Valentine's Day Shop & Hop and I'm here to show you something I bought with a free credit gift while I was there!

Fab Free: fabfree.wordpress.com/2025/02/16/lavender-hill/

"Lavender Hill" by The Kinks

I want to walk eternity

In through the land of make believe

And watch the clouds roll over me

And let the sun shine down on me

The only place that I wanna be

Lavender Hill for me

Wish I could live on sugar and milk

Then I could live on Lavender Hill

Then I could raise my head to the sky

And let the sun saturate me with love

Come visit Fab Free, the home of the infamous Shop & Hop Spreadsheet! We are back with a brand new one, for this Valentine's Day, and I've got so many free gifts to show you!

Fab Free: fabfree.wordpress.com/2025/02/01/anybody-seen-my-baby/

"Anybody Seen My Baby?" by The Rolling Stones

Salty tears

It's three in the afternoon

Has she disappeared

Is she really gone for good

Anybody seen my baby

Anybody seen her around

If I just close my eyes

I reach out and touch the prize

Anybody seen her around

Not sure of the cultvar or species

Yellow pollen loads clearly shown on a nice dark bee

At Rowallane Gardens on Thursday. I had the day off but needed to book this visit a week before as part of the crowd control Covid arrangements that the National Trust have had to put in place. Nice to see Rowallane again after a gap. In normal times i'd be here once a week.

for my Honey bees on named flowers set!

...And also for adding eventually to the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

Camera Obscura - I don't do crowds

www.youtube.com/watch?v=atfXY362SyE

Helleborus x hybridus (Ashwood Garden Hybrids) 'Ashwood Fascination'

Another from Rowallane gardens yesterday - in the walled garden. Of the several different helebores in flower, this was by far the most popular one with the bees today. So worth taking note of if you are looking for a helebore that is good for bees. And it is a great looking flower and plant too.

For my Honey bees on named flowers set set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

For my Honey bees on named flowers set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

Plant label said Cistus cymosus but looking on the web I think this is an older synonym for Cistus parviflorus

At Kew

Orange pollen load to be seen

for my Honey bees on named flowers set

And will also go (eventually!) on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

Mr Spreadsheet,

Do you recognise this man? He is world famous for his use of spreadsheets and devising Itineraries, he can create a spreadsheet for anything you desire from your weekly household budget to the number of rivets per girder in the Forth Road Bridge, including where they were sourced and cost per thousand.

You see that number, 3003, well to this gentleman it’s not just a simple number on a Metrolink Tram, it is symmetrical, it has 4 digits (even number), it has 2 sets of 2 numbers (two 3’s and two 0’s), although the number 3003 is in actual fact an odd number by the time he is finished with it in a spreadsheet it would end up even, trust me. It is also a palindrome (reads the same backwards as it does forwards), there is no end to what he can do with this number; in fact any number. What this man can do with numbers and symmetry is just beyond belief.

So if you do recognise him could you please inform his family where you saw him,’Deansgate-Castlefield’ Tram Station. Oh and in case you are wondering who the TOG is, it’s Mr. Andy Rouse, my partner in crime for the day.

Ivy here just starting to take off properly. Great to see the bees working it so hard. I hope they get the weather to make good use of it this year

Clear view of yellow pollen load

For my Honey bees on named flowers set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

“ The world is wide, and I will not waste my life in friction when it could be turned into momentum. "

Frances Willard

Taken by Hoàng Tư Nguyên

Ảnh film, màu nguyên thủy

Đôi giày xinh spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dHIxQ0...

a big flowered cherry

At Rowallane gardens

Yellow-orange pollen load clearly on view.

For my Honey bees on named flowers set set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

At the end of the Seventies, the only professional microcomputer was the Apple II. Connected to a dot-matrix printer and equipped with a spreadsheet, a word processor and a draft database, it allowed freelancers to carry out the basic tasks of what was already called office automation.

For more, see :

flic.kr/p/35jca8

* * *

A la fin des années soixante-dix, le seul micro ordinateur à vocation professionnelle était l’Apple II. Connecté à une imprimante matricielle et doté d’un tableur, d’un traitement de texte et d’une ébauche de base de données, il permettait aux travailleurs indépendants d’assurer les tâches basiques de ce qui s’appelait déjà la bureautique .

Voir :

flic.kr/p/35jca8

© 2022 George McVitie. All rights reserved.

A Quick Trip to see the Hudswell Clarke Event at the Aln Valley Railway near Alnwick to see 2 Hudswell Clarke Locos working.

As Usual, the Main Aim was to get as many Steam Train Journeys to add to my Steam Powered Journeys Spreadsheet which is my modern "Trainspotting" record.

Here, Richboro No 9 is ready to join in the fun when Fox No 20 returns from hauling the first train of the day.

For more Info about Richboro No 9 ...>>>

preservedbritishsteamlocomotives.com/hudswell-clarke-work...

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Bueno, en el último minuto jejeje.

Este mes la fantástica Familia Fotera ha lanzado el reto Sombra, y me ha costado encontrar una idea, que aunque ya se que no es original, al menos me ha servido para llegar jejeje.

Para ver las aportaciones de los compañeros, pincha aquí

aaaaa y participa el mes que vieneeee.

and its orangey pollen load

I watched this girl for ages on Sunday working the oregano flowers. I have quire a lot of oregano in pots. You really have to have quite a lot of something in flower in pots before the honey bees will start to work it at all. They just dont bother with things that are not substantive.

for my Honey bees on named flowers set!

...And also for adding eventually to the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W... (please do consider checking it out if you have time!)

Blondie - Sunday Girl

www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VWalYqwKIA

another one!

same pot, same patio.

For my Honey bees on named flowers set set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

And some music if you like:

The Wurzels - Golden Brown

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kMZz9Bx5gc

brought to you by Nightingale at Gooseberry - Second Life's Premier Event Destination

TAXI TO SCENE OF THE MONTH

Spring is in the Air

Want a lovely setting for your next event or occasion?

Offering Celebration/Occasion Management, Design, Exterior Landscape & Décor, Holiday Event Management, Interior Landscape & Décor, and Full-Service Wedding Management

Contact Mara Nightingale to book today. Commercial and residential clients welcome

For a complete list of events and services click below.

Nightingale Events & Services

TAXI TO SHOWROOM

Nightingale Showroom

TAXI TO SCENE OF THE MONTH

Spring is in the Air

TAXI TO OFFICE

Nightingale Office

© 2021 George McVitie. All rights reserved.

This week-end involved 2 Heritage Railways with the Main Aim was to get as many Steam Train Journeys to add to my Steam Powered Journeys Spreadsheet which is my modern "Trainspotting" record.

Here, after arriving at Holt Station on the front of the Class 9F Double-Header, I got a photo of Loco 92203 - "Black Prince", a Riddles designed, Swindon Works built - BR Class 9F - 2-10-0

and WD 90775 "The Royal Norfolk Regiment" posing for Photos

before 90775 joined 8572 to form another Double Header.

I was VERY PLEASED to get this photo as I thought it would be unusual.

There were 6 Locomotives in Steam for the Gala Event Sunday.

For More Info about 92203 - "Black Prince", see ....

www.nnrailway.co.uk/portfolio-items/br-9f-92203-black-pri...

For More Info about WD 90775 "The Royal Norfolk Regiment", see ...

www.nnrailway.co.uk/portfolio-items/wd-90775-the-royal-no...

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To Join the In-World Group: Apply Here

Questions? Please Ask!

with a good view of the yellow pollen loads

a new one for my Honey bees on named flowers set

And also on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

This Eucalyptus was planted as seedling that I was given in 2004. Then killed back to the ground in the bad winter of 2010 then surprisingly regenerated from the ground as 2 stems and now part of a crowded hedge. This plant is about 3 or 4 metres in height now. I think last year was the first that it produced flowers. I am really loving it this year! no idea what the species is.

edit - probably Eucalyptus pauciflora

Camera Obscura - The Sweetest Thing

www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzWlg3JFFTU

A lone tree on Bishop Hill in the last light of day.

By the way, I'm inordinately pleased at winning the Edinburgh Photographic Society Print Competition this year. Woohoo!

The Annual Sand-Based Shareholder Conference Party™

Suits, sunshine & spreadsheets (optional).

Join us Friday, August 15 at 2PM SLT at Le Chateau Vice Beach for the most unproductive meeting of the fiscal year with DJ Miwa, DJ Lili & DJ Vic spinning summer grooves for executives who forgot their pants.

👔 Dresscode:

Blazers & Bikinis. Ties & Tan Lines.

Business on top, beach on the bottom - or vice versa.

Faxed with urgency by LC Corporation.

Where every deal ends with a mojito.

Your Taxi : maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Islas%20Ballestas/130/89/23

© 2022 George McVitie. All rights reserved.

A weekend away started at the Great Central Railway at Loughborough with a visit to their Autumn Steam Gala.

As Usual, the Main Aim was to get as many Steam Train Journeys to add to my Steam Powered Journeys Spreadsheet which is my modern "Trainspotting" record.

Here, a Crewe Works built LMS double header is just setting off after coming out of the sheds.

41312 is an Ivatt designed 2MT 2-6-2T Loco and 48305 which is a Stanier designed 2-8-0 loco.

For more Info about Loco 41312 ...>>>

preservedbritishsteamlocomotives.com/41312-2/

For More info about Loco 48305...>>>

preservedbritishsteamlocomotives.com/48305-lms-8303-br-48...

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Somewhere in the middle of Wednesday morning I peered through a mild headache at the list of half term jobs I'd jotted down in my notebook. I was feeling tired and bored to the end of my wits with the banality of work and endless deadlines. November is possibly the most intense few weeks of the entire year for me, and though it's the last time I have to go through it before half a lifetime of spreadsheets comes to an end, I'm not looking the slightest bit forward to it. Seriously, if you're considering accountancy for a living, I urge you to think again. If you're thinking of taking your accountancy skills into the world of education - just don't do it. Or at least don't stay forever like I have. Maybe I'm just suffering from burnout after more than thirty years of endless nine to five, but it is exceptionally tedious almost all of the time. I tried to talk my son into doing something more interesting for a living, but he ignored my advice and followed me into this world. I tried anyway.

What cheered me though was that there were ticks beside most of the items on this list. I read the entries one more time and noted that the scariest items were all marked as either complete or as far underway as possible. "At least when term resumes I've got a head start," I reasoned to myself, and with that came a rare moment of spontaneity. "Can you manage if I take a couple of days off?" I asked Katie, my wonderful deputy. "Of course. You need a rest." After all she has to look at me every day so she can tell better than just about everyone else when I need a break.

And so here I am, sitting at home with a small vat of coffee after a delightful Thursday adventure with Lee, which included an all day breakfast with what must surely be the best view from a supermarket cafe in Britain (Sainsbury's in Penzance if you need to ask) and a wander to a predictably people packed Land's End to make some test shots for Longships lighthouse, to which we'll return in more suitable conditions later in the winter. We certainly won't be returning while they try to charge us seven quid to park for an hour there anyway. We drove back down a road for half a mile and parked along a side road before walking back.

We'd planned to finish here at Sennen Cove in the knowledge that the high tide would bring some drama to the breakwater. It's always worth an outing when the sea is in a bad mood. What we weren't prepared for as we drove down the big hill into the cove was the sight of three figures leaping from the breakwater into the protected harbour area as a huge wave hit it. Surely we'd imagined it. Who'd do a crazy thing like that a day after a storm that had brought thirty foot high waves to the Cornish coast?

We hadn't imagined it. Four local lads, none of them older than about fifteen, spent the next hour clambering onto the narrow wall and leaping into the water beneath them at the moment each roller hit the breakwater in front of a large number of onlookers. It struck me that if any of them somehow ended up on the western side of the breakwater they'd be in terrible trouble, possibly with fatal results, but this thought didn't appear to have occurred to them. Maybe I'm just getting old - I suspect they do this a lot at high tide and they probably wait for days like this. I won't be trying it myself in any case.

Later on, when to my relief I'd counted all four of them leaving the scene and heading for home they were replaced by an enormous seal at the water's edge drawn here by a lone angler bracing his rod against the ever energetic flow beneath him. If there were any fish to be had, my money was on the seal. The light faded, the onlookers moved on, and with more than enough raw files to try and choose one from our work was done. It had been so much more fun than eight hours of staring at a computer in confusion. I've decided that once the worst of the next few weeks is done I'm going to have another long weekend too.

Happy Friday everyone - enjoy your weekends.

Back to spreadsheets, emails and chat messages.

Must be Monday... time for a refill.

Hope everyone is doing well.

Click "L" to view on black.

at Kew Gardens - Herb garden

....will go on the spreadsheet:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

Lobelia bedding plant in pots on patio today - blue Monday

Hard to get a good picture as the bee kept moving! A single bee working the 3 pots - for nectar only.

For my Honey bees on named flowers set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

New Order - Blue Monday

www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYH8DsU2WCk

Bom dia meninas, depois desse niver de blog com cara nova as coisas voltaram ao seus lugares. Queria falar para as meninas que vieram aqui me ver que amo vocês e fiquei muito feliz, e para as que deixaram os recados, um muito obrigada, e para que estão no sorteio um tapinha com murinho kkkk. Seja bem vindas as novas meninas tambem, e que venha mais porque tem para todo mundo kKKKkkkkk.

Vamos ao andreia? ... Não tem o que reclamar desse esmalte, ele é hipoalérgico, fácil de passar, seca rápido, tem um pincel perfeito e com duas camadas ele já fica da cor do vidrinho...

Link para o sorteio. FORMULARIO

Como vai acontecer? como sempre! kkkk zueira kkkk

1- Tem que seguir o blog, se não seguir não vai rolar.

2- Seguir o Twitter e o Facebook. Ah! redes sociais.

Bjoos lindas.

Scilla bifolia -alpine squill.

Very attractive mass plantings in flower at Rowallane at present.

This seems to be an extremely attractive flower for the bees. Loads of them frantically collecting pollen. Interestingly the pollen loads look pure black looking at with naked eye but dark violet with the camera. (clearly seen in this picture)

A new one for my Honey bees on named flowers set set

And will also go on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

Creeping thistle is certainly not a loved plant of farmers but the bees do like it. I like it to - a big patch of it on a still afternoon makes for a beautiful scent.

one for my spreadsheet:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

Today (aptly) the WAH theme is computers. I am currently using up my annual leave by pulling together information on cornish chapels and churches (current and historic) to help me in the quest to photo them all (I am now collaborating with some national projects to do this, which is very exciting).

However, today, for some reason, I lost the entire spreadsheet for Kerrier district (2 days work). Not sure why, but it is not retrievable so I have had to start all over again!! Good thing it's a 'hobby' and i find it interesting!

this also explains my fairly minimal presence on Flickr - once the spreadsheets are done, I will be back properly!!

Providence & Worcester 2215 leads Connecticut Southern train CSO-4 south on the Springfield Line at Hayden Station Road in Windsor. 2215 is one of the two "Super 7s" that were on the P&W roster. 2216 has already been shipped off to Ohio. I'd be willing to guess 2215 will be shortly behind. I guess it must make sense on the G&W spreadsheet.

at Kew

Orange pollen load on view.

for my Honey bees on named flowers set

And will also go (eventually!) on the botanically sorted spreadsheet at:

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-_uJANb_oKgIZLEvm0mFjYq3W...

& some music if you like:

The Damned - New Rose

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThcXEqxI_IQ