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a very pleasant walk around ventnor botanic garden followed by a visit to the donkey sanctuary ........ despite frances's best efforts the donkeys would not pose for a photo .....

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saturday was a glorious day to walk tennyson down, and the needles looked fabulous ...... we ventured down to alum bay on the chair lift, and onwards to yarmouth ....... this photograph is influenced by a sudden friedrich mood .....

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this was the view from ryde pierhead on friday evening as a massive raincloud obliterated the fine evening

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back at pottery and had a go at slipcasting using moulds - wonderful to obtain perfect results - next week i'll be glazing them

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caught the tower of St Thomas's catching the setting sun on wednesday evening (reflected in the sewing shop window)

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i thought as i spend so much of my day here,

i should include a picture of my desk before the year is over ...

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the shop windows at selfridges ... disconcertingly life-like.

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weekends are all about home-made pizza.

i love the ritual:
the kneading of the dough,
the smell of the frying onions and garlic,
buzzing around the kitchen topping them with all kinds of deliciousness,
maybe a glass of red wine,
and then that amazing moment when they come out of the oven ....

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today was an odd mixture of fine sunshine and pouring rain - perfect perhaps for the garden

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well it was a fowl sort of day today

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rain, rain, rain, interesting grand prix, rain, rain, and here is another in my newport by night series ..........

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the disappearing signs of summer...

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i haven't edited this photo at all.

it looks like a print,

but it's just this morning's light coming through a dewy window.

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got that scratchy feeling in the back of my throat.

everyone seems to be suffering,

so i am fighting it as best i can with plenty of early nights

and a microwavable bear who smells of lavender.

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travelling further afield on my lunchtime walks these days ...

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you'd think this oast house was in kent rather than in a newport back street!

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it was a blessing to do very little on friday after a week of struggling with work + a cold

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thursday was a hand-full - afflicted by a cold, still had to work all day at brading followed by an evening committee meeting at dimbola ..... despite the hardships, a successful day

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you know that autumn is here when condensation is all over your windows in the morning ........ i rubbed one pane clean .......

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at home tuesday surrounded by my menagerie embedded in acrylic ...... i managed to hand my accounts in today hurrrraaaaah!

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i thought i had nothing to photograph this evening, then happened to look outside and saw the kitchen light and round top light of the church hall ...... it all formed an attractive abstract like a piece of japanese art

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monday went in the blink of an eye.

i felt like i was rushing all day,

but achieved virtually nothing.

so glad to be home again.

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went on my favourite walk this afternoon.

it changes every time.

today: christmas colours in september.

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beeeeeeeeeeeee!

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this afternoon a pleasant walk with the family, passing on the way the old family home

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there was a classic car show on in newport today ........  this is THE mustang I want ...... 7.5 litres of muscle car!

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another picture in the "nooks & crannies around Newport" series

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and so the 30th birthday parties begin ...

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maybe it's just because i'm (re-)reading 'gormenghast',

but when i looked across the rooftops at bodelwyddan castle 

i felt like steerpike ....

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lunch time at the british museum.

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these shoes reminded me of toadstools ...

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here i am looking down the bottomless well at the villa!

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for a change I've been working from home on a wednesday (am usually at ccm) hence scouting around for nooks and crannies not yet photographed! ........ the good thing is that the accounts are finished .... yippeeeee!

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worked all day on my accounts tuesday, but had time for some reflection on other things (sorry...)

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monday was such a looooooong day ........ it's a blessing to work somewhere where even a 5 minute break is envigorating

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i am so fascinated by the way glass filled with water reflects light.

i am wondering if i can start collecting representations of this in painting

and base some kind of qualification on it.

that's how fascinated i am.

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tea and cake on the lawn at a local church.

 

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a scorching hot saturday.

we picnicked at polesden lacey,

and took a stroll around the grounds.

i was green-eyed with envy when i saw their vegetable plot.

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friday night.

going to boil me some eggs.

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ventured into london, today being the last day of the paralympics ...... my last london visit was the last day of the olympics!! ...... caught this fellow on the crossing home

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it was a glorious hot saturday and the buddleia was attracting no end of butterflies and bees

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had a quick look round Bailliffscourt hotel near Climping (!) ....... an extraordinary place set up in 1927 featuring what is virtually a recreated medieval village

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a week today and i shall be back at pottery ...... this is to remind me that i shall do some experiments impressing leaves in clay .....

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the chill in the air has brought with it some fabulous sunsets.

i quite like the way the telephone wires sliced across this one.

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milling around in victoria on my lunch break.

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did you ever notice the kangaroo on my wall outside the kitchen?

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i am loving this year's stripy courgettes;

they are extremely chic.

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abstraction on the hungerford bridge.

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spent the day at the olympic park today, 

watching the swimming in the aquatics centre

and wandering round the amazing gardens.

the whole thing was so incredibly well managed,

the atmosphere was electric,

and we had an amazing day.