My computer has bit the dust...

or at least tasted the dust.

My Camera is not cooperating

Joy...

spelled backwards

But This guy graced us with his presence the other day

and everything seems ok.

and I bought a biiiiig pot.

I'll be back. Promise.

Mama Said....

This Susan Branch print hangs in my bathroom so I read it every morning when I get ready for the day

At one time or another I'm sure all of us have reoccurring thoughts about things we heard our mothers say growing up.  I've got a list of sayings, superstitious thoughts or words of wisdom that I heard growing up but there is one that is always on my mind in the month of May.  

Growing up my mom said her dad (my grandpa) always told her "if it rains on your head in May, you won't have a headache for the rest of the year."   

Me and my grandpa - 1974

 Oddly, making sure to play in the rain has always been a serious objective for me.  Yes, even as an adult I love going outside in the rain in May with no umbrella.  

Are you still listening to mama's words from the past and doing things because "mama said?"

Malmö Turning Torso Building (four)

The Nikkor 35mm f1.8G DX lens is a great mobile light weight solution that is super cheap as well. Being an AFS lens it focuses fast and silently. On a crop sensor camera it gives roughly the same field of view as a 50mm lens would give on an FX camera, and this is often referred to as a "normal" lens. There is a misconception that it gives the same field of view as the human eye, but that is not true, we can see somewhat wider than a 50mm lens. They are, however, relatively distortion free, just like our eyes, so this might be where the rumour originated.

Nikon D90, Nikkor 35mm f1.8G DX, ISO200, Aperture Priority mode, f8, 1/640s, polarising filter, hand held, edited in Corel Paintshop Pro X4.

Wordless Wednesday ~ 30th May 2012

Malmö Turning Torso Building (three)

In the top left hand corner you can see the sun reflected, and at this time of the day it was blinding! But with the circular polarising filter it was a simple matter to reduce the glare to what is now a simple highlight that enhances the photo instead of ruining it. CPL's are the only filters I ever use on a lens by the way... but perhaps that is a debate for another time! ;-)

Nikon D90, Nikkor 35mm f1.8G DX, ISO200, Aperture Priority mode, f8, 1/400s, polarising filter, hand held, edited in Corel Paintshop Pro X4.

Malmö Turning Torso Building (two)

Nikon D90, Nikkor 35mm f1.8G DX, ISO200, Aperture Priority mode, f8, 1/800s, polarising filter, hand held, edited in Corel Paintshop Pro X4.

Malmö Turning Torso Building (one)

The craziest building I've ever seen, I really like it!
- More coming over the next few days.

Nikon D90, Nikkor 35mm f1.8G DX, ISO200, Aperture Priority mode, f5.6, 1/500s, polarising filter, hand held, edited in Corel Paintshop Pro X4.

All Boxed Off

The last week has passed in glorious sunshine, so much to do in the garden and allotment as well as the additional flurry of activity of getting sorted for our annual garden club plant sale, which took place on Saturday. Long time readers may remember this post. Well after temporarily retiring from the plant sale for a couple of years and just helping out on the day, I returned to having my own stall this time with the intention of raising funds for a particular allotment project. There has been much sorting out of plants and boxes over the last few days.

My good intentions of dividing lots of perennials earlier in the spring somehow got lost in the chill wet that was April so I had little to take that was in flower on the day. What was in flower though walked from the table in the first few minutes as it normally does on these occasions. With the allotment theme though I mainly had herbs and vegetables for sale. Lemon verbena or aloysia triphylla, which Cathy at Words And Herbs,  has recently posted about went as soon as it was stroked. Chocolate peppermint with its aroma of 'After Eights' was popular too. I wonder why. I was rather pleased with my selection of basils - cinnamon, lettuce leaf and lemon - something for everybody so I thought until the customer who only wanted Thai basil and no other. Oh well there's no pleasing some folk. So another plant sale done and dusted but I will be reporting for duty again at a local community event in July and am already wondering what I can possibly assemble for that occasion.

Reflection in a Humber hubcap - another one from the 350D

Taken a few years back at the "Cars in the Park" event at Zwartkops Raceway near Pretoria. Always a lot of photo opportunities involving beautiful classic and vintage cars if you are in the area.

A lot more from the same day if you scroll down a bit on this page HERE!

Poems the Earth Writes

Last week it caught my eye when Lorrie at Fabric Paper Thread asked the question What Kind of Tree Would You Be?  I remember thinking hard about this when I was in seventh grade and on a church retreat.   Each of us were given 30 minutes to go to a quiet place to think about the tree that might best represent our spiritual life.  It was a memorable exercise for me and one that I continue to think about from time-to-time.  

 This time of year it's hard not to think about trees.  Each spring when driving around Atlanta I think about the beautiful dogwoods and how they add a lace-like quality to our landscape.  We've even got a festival named to celebrate the dogwood season.  And just after the dogwoods lose their blossoms two beautiful trees make their entrances.  

  I think of the magnolia tree as a "hat lady."   An old-fashioned classic that reminds me so much of the older women in my past - perfectly appointed, delicately scented, perfectly coiffed with a dainty ivory hat.   Yes, the magnolia grandiflora enters the season with noticeable beauty.  This stately tree is one of my favorites.  

 Another tree that I love this time of year is the graceful mimosa tree.  It's so beautiful to see pink dotting the spring scenery.   Sadly this tree is hated by many being labeled invasive by lots of gardeners.   Growing up we had a mimosa tree and I loved the delicate fern-like leaves and those beautiful cotton candy puffs of pink.  Even more wonderful is the fragrance of this beautiful umbrella tree. 

   Hydrangeas are blooming like crazy and believe me, I'm enjoying my fair share of these magnificent showy blooms but as I'm enjoying incredible spring days and the beautiful flowers, I'm taking a little quiet time to enjoy the trees.  

I THINK that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

                                                                                  - Joyce Kilmer

This week I'll be joining The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sunday.

Windmill Supermarket near Hartbeespoort Dam - "Old" digital technology isn't so obsolete after all!

Taken with an "ancient" digital technology Canon 350D and kit lens from early 2005. Still looks good to me!

Best of all is that I still have the camera and it still works like new! While Canon and Nikon don't publicly rate consumer cameras and their shutters very highly, in reality they will outlast any normal use that we can throw at them. While digital cameras are quickly tossed aside by Joe Public when a newer "better" camera is released, the truth is that if you look after them they will last way longer than expected and still take great photographs. Replacing cameras every couple of years is just a marketing ploy to keep selling cameras, and it's been ingrained so deeply into us by all the brainwashing indoctrination advertising that we can justify buying that new shiny doodad thingamabob quite easily. Remember when we only used to replace cameras once they broke completely and the dealer just simply couldn't repair them any more? No? It wasn't so long ago...

Now, how about that new D7000? :-)

Fredensborg Castle, Denmark.

Nikon D90, Nikkor 35mm f1.8G DX, f2.0, 1/15s, hand held, edited in Corel Paintshop Pro X4.

Online Depth of Field Calculator

Most of you have probably seen this handy site before, but for us uninformed few it is still a handy learning tool:

Online Depth of Field Calculator

Just don't get too carried away by all this geeky calculation business, simply learn what you can then get out and shoot photos in real everyday situations. It's still the best way to learn!
(Although it's kinda fun to release the inner geek just a little bit! Haha!)

Inside the Magical Spring Forest!

What is it with this gorgeous green that Scandinavian forests have? I never remember seeing anything like this in Southern Africa...

Tech details are mostly the same as the previous photo, except that the f-stop was changed to f8, and the shutter speed was significantly lower at 1/25s which is to be expected at the smaller aperture of course.

Wordless Wednesday ~ 23rd May 2012

Have spent the last twenty minutes or so trying to think of the name of this unfolding flower which changed its name some time ago - then it suddenly tripped off my tongue - of course it's nectaroscordum siculum bulgaricum!!!

New life in the Magical Spring Forest!

I just love to go walking in the woods of Sweden, they really do have a magical feel about them. I keep expecting to see Pixies, Fairies or Trolls at any moment!

Nikon D90, Nikkor 35mm f1.8 DX, ISO200, 1/60s, f1.8, hand held with the dog pulling on my left arm in a vain attempt to continue "walkies"! (note to self: leave dog at home when taking photos)

Shooters!

I'm sure I posted this a long time ago, but I am revisiting some of my old pics. This one is from a small town in South Africa called Potchefstroom, and once a year they have a big "cultural" festival that has degenerated into an excuse to drink too much alcohol and behave badly.

If I remember correctly, this was shot with a Nikon F65 and 50mm f1.8D combination. A real light weight setup at the time and great for "street" pics! Ilford XP2 Super 400 film, if memory serves...

"Here Comes The Sun"

Rumour ..... has it!

Always my favourite Beatle ~ did you have one?

Polka Magazine - I Want a New Camera

Earlier this week I had the pleasure of attending a lecture given on the topic of photojournalism presented by Dimitri Beck, editor-in-chief at Polka Magazine.

 Polka Magazine is a Paris-based photojournalism magazine.  

During the course of the lecture I began to feel a bit guilty just thinking about how quickly and easily I flip through magazines, particularly news magazines, without giving much thought to the talented person behind the camera lens.   

Dimitri shared a number of photo spreads that have been published recently, going into detail about the photojournalist, how they went about taking their photos and more specifically in some cases, how they pitched their stories to the magazine.

I wasn't in a hurry to buy a camera but after attending this week's lecture I can't stop thinking about getting a new camera.   My camera died about four weeks ago while we were on a weekend excursion.  I rushed to buy an inexpensive camera for the weekend and thought it would be fine for the time being.   Then a couple of weeks ago, Paris Breakfasts 

emailed me about something and offered some great suggestions on getting another camera (now when other bloggers start commenting on how to improve your photos...you know you need some help).   I'm still trying to figure out what would work best for me but no doubt, I've got to get a new camera. 

Does anyone have any comments, suggestions, pros or cons to help me in making a decision?

Today I'm joining The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sunday.  Hope you will stop by and see what other bloggers are up to.

Confessions, car crashes and fierce Mother’s love…

I have a confession, I have often used you, my readers…and this blog

as a catharsis… But I think of you each as friends. Each.

Let me use you one more time please to tell my story.

So I can breathe. So I can stop crying.

This week I drove with my youngest for a University interview and tour

We were driving in her small Mazda…. She dutifully stopped at a stop sign.

She looked both ways,

Then proceeded to drive straight into the path of an oncoming SUV… going 60 mph.

I saw it. Time stopped. I yelled NOOO. Put my hand out…

in the way mothers do.

Heard it. Couldn’t stop it.

Then black.

I awoke to the acrid smell of smoke…looked over to see my baby. My beautiful girl lying slumped…eyes opened. Broken.

Mama hormones and Mama love are the most fierce …most impassioned kind of strength.

I witness this, often, at a birth.

I know this. YOU know this. You Mothers. You sons and daughters.

The car was on fire (or so I thought)… I wailed for my baby to live. held her, shook her,pulled her seatbelt off and mine .

she finally looked at me. My beautiful curly haired morning star

who was only going to be 17 next week.

and whispered faintly

I am ok

With a speed and strength of what I can only imagine as pure adrenaline , I pulled myself out of the turquoise burning coffin, and over to her door. There was no handle…it was not opening. There wasn’t really a door.

I couldn’t see out of one eye….thought maybe I had lost half of my face… I lost a shoe…I saw blood.

I demanded in that way that mothers do my curly haired child to follow me.

she pushed I pulled her over the console.

We chanted the mantra we are ok…we are ok the whole time.

Thank goodness she didn’t have a spine injury. I know not to move accident victims. I know this .

But the ferocity in me demanded it.

Ferocious, that mother love, that has us dispel rules in the name of survival.

Ambulances, and trauma centers, cat scans a few days in a hospital bed... and a few staples in our heads later.

we are ok

we are ok

we are ok.

Officially Open

"A week is a long time in politics" but just two days can be a long time in the garden at this time of year. From the above taken on Tuesday morning for Garden Bloggers Bloom Day ~ to this taken yesterday morning fully open to visitors ~

A Pacific Coast iris - name not known ~ its one drawback is that it has very short lived flowers but to my mind it makes up for it with its colours and markings. I particularly like the tips of the petals which look as if they have been suffused with the faintest flush of school blue ink. Whenever I've had divisions in flower at our garden club plant sale this goes straight away. Delighted to discover one more flower spike yesterday as I thought that this was only the one! Apparently these grow easily from seed so I must have a go - I have noticed that Chiltern Seeds sell a packet of mixed seeds so may well be tempted. As you can see from the photo although still wet it was much warmer and rumour has it the temperatures are going to rise next week!

Delta Airlines and Atlanta's New International Terminal

Today was a big day for my neighborhood and for the city of Atlanta.   Our airport, Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson Airport, opened a new international terminal. 

Our neighborhood is just around the corner from the airport (I know.  It sounds noisy but I promise you, it's not) and we love being near the airport.  My oldest son and DIL are both air traffic controllers so I'm always excited to see the ATC tower. 

 Delta Airlines headquarters is less than a mile from my house so of course we love Delta for all the great things they do for our city and our community. 

My husband and I decided to drive over and see how things look on opening day.   Our family loves to travel and we've had plenty of discussion trying to figure out who'll get to fly out first.  Looks like my oldest son wins.  He flies in from Germany in just a few weeks.  Yay!!  Now I'm wondering which one of us will be next.  

Where are you going this summer?

Harbour in Lomma, Sweden.

3 second exposure with camera propped firmly down onto a jetty while I am lying flat on my stomach.

I tore a strip off the skin of my little finger getting down on the old worn wood of the jetty, I console myself with the knowledge that at last I am suffering for my art! ;-)

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day ~ May 2012

It seemed more like the middle of March than the middle of May when I stepped out to try to take some photos this morning. Chilly, gusty wind and winter coat on. Moreover it it had rained quite heavily in the night. Plans to leave the greenhouse shut for a while were thwarted when I saw a little bird flapping about on the staging. I was horrified to think that I had shut it in there for the night but tried to console myself by thinking that at least it had some warm shelter with some luxury bedding in the shape of fleece. The day has not improved with umbrella put into action earlier to fend off hail.

In May I have plenty of the above - geranium phaeum - in different shades - in fact too much but it is one of my favourite plants. It seeds itself about but not too nuisance values and is such an undemanding but obliging plant. It does not seem to suffer from any ailments and the molluscs treat it with disdain. Oh the leaves do get mildew in prolonged dried spells but no danger of that this spring.

The aquilegias have arrived -  I am not sure though yet whether 'Nora Barlow' is going to show up this year and will be disappointed if she doesn't. The plant above is a self seeded guest whilst below is an old favourite obtained from a seed exchange, possibly 'Hensol Harebell' if my memory serves me well ~

Another plant that I'm fond of polemonium caeruleum or Jacob's Ladder is showing colour. Firstly the stalwart ordinary version which seeds about ~

and one of cousins polemonium 'Lambrook Mauve' which is sterile but is easily divided in spring ~

The Pacific Coast Iris opened its one flower bud today - it must have known that it's a special day. I posted about this iris recently in what I have now christened my 'Not Waving But Drowning' border. Thanks for all your encouraging comments on that post which were much appreciated. Let's put it this way - there is definitely much more leaf than flower so the iris will be moving home later this year.

Two more May would not be withouts ~ polygonatum odoratum or 'Solomon's Seal' ~

and anthriscus sylvestris or cow parsley ~

Finally what would May be without a touch of blackthorn or May - I don't know about you but I'm definitely not casting a clout just yet ~

Much more May magnificence can be mulled over at May Dreams Gardens, with thanks to Carol as ever for hosting.

Malvern Spring Gardening Show 2012

After much ado about mud and the weather we made it to the Malvern Spring Gardening Show. The carpet was pulled from underneath our feet, when with a couple of days to go, our campsite booking was cancelled. This was done with great regret as it is possibly the site's busiest time of the year but the ground was simply too saturated. If I had not already been in possession of the tickets, I think that we might well have stayed at home as the forecast for our journey down was looking pretty absymal. However with some gentle persuasion from himself and many phone calls later, we managed to find alternative overnight accommodation some distance away just outside Ludlow.

So we got there safely and enjoyed a rain free day on Friday. As usual there was much to gawp and wonder at. Congratulations must go to the exhibitors on putting on such a good show given the weather in the lead up - they are absolute stars. I am always fascinated by these insect catching plants though not tempted to grow them ~

I was bewitched and beguiled by blue:

Himself's favourite exhibit  ~ the machinery that brings the big stuff to the show ~

The only RHS gold medal awarded to a show garden went to to the team from Graduate Gardeners Ltd for their 'Place To Reflect Garden, featuring a living wall of ferns ~

A full list of all awards can be seen here.

I always enjoy the school gardens competition, which features gardens designed and put together by local primary school children, with a lot of input from their teachers and parents I imagine. As usual some of the children had time off school to be there and their enthusiasm and excitement was catching. The future is safe in the hands of tomorrow's gardeners ~

Finally what I most wanted to bring home with me (apart from in the plants category) ~

On reflection though I did not enjoy the show as much as in previous years and having been asking myself why. It could be because instead of being conveniently situated a five minute drive away, we were further away so did not get to the show until well after it opened. Not only was there less time to see everything in but I was galumphing about rather slowly and eventually sorely in my not recently worn walking boots. Was it more crowded than usual or was it my imagination? Perhaps it could be possibly be a case of show fatigue. We have visited the show regularly over the last two decades so we may take a break next spring. Himself was quick to note a regular Ludlow based event taking place this weekend, which appealed to him more than Malvern. Beer, bangers (classic cars) and bread were involved! Say no more.

You may well ask what came home with me in the plant department ~ that will be revealed later this week.