grdiii

This is one of those things in life that I simply don't understand. This is a section in one of the biggest bookshop/stationers in the UK. I freely admit that I can't see the "entertainment" in reading about other peoples miserable lives, battered wives, orphaned children...

...with apologies to Jazzie B and the rest of Soul 2 Soul ;0) So. This is my usual weapon of choice for funtime street shooting. No plastic, no batteries, no artificial aids, no safety net. Just brass and glass. If I get it right I have only myself to praise. If I get it wrong, I have...

Pure and simple. Edward Weston, are you listening...?

This is about as "found" a "still life" as I think you can get... It is a manhole cover outside a shop in Guildford, Surrey, England. The passage of many feet over the years has pressed the metal down onto the frame underneath to create the Union Jack impression. I composed...

Another still-life, sorry. The calendar was my grandfather's. The propelling pencil belonged to my mother. It's GPO-issue. It has a big knob on the end to use on rotary dial 'phones. She ran a telephone exchange in the 1950s. The note pad is from a hotel in Singapore. The 'phone... can you...

Driven a couple of hundred miles today. Started early, got home late. All day customer meeting... in Birmingham. Sometimes when I'm stressed I play with this. It's a 5-string bass - sinistral. The lowest string is deep enough to make small dogs within a 100-yard radius lose all bowel...

With apologies to Rene Magritte... ;0) I have had 2 or 3 goes at this one. I knew the effect I wanted to achieve, but this is the first that I have been happy with.

I was away last night, got home late tonight. I've had this idea for a while, but decided to make it real this evening. I have size 14 feet, whilst my beloved has size 5... She doesn't wear these all the time, btw...

Hello. Sorry I'm late with yesterday's assignment. I'll do lines to make up. This one may need explaining to non-UK readers... "Focus DoItAll" (known in our household as "Focus Buggerall") was a DIY store that went under last year. The shadow left by the sign seems...

The two men circled the table of books, each watching the other as they moved. Hunt - peck - select - discard... The game went on. Neither had a clear advantage... so much to choose from... but neither would back down until one had found that special copy of Thomas the Tank Engine...

Time for another still-life. These wooden bowls are everywhere in the Canary Islands. They pack flat then concertina out when you get them home - the ideal keepsake. By the time you read this these two will be mixed into a cake; it's one of those days.

Some days it all just gets a little too much. Some days you just want to be alone, with your thoughts. You want the world to stop bothering you. Staring into space, staring into yourself, holding back the night.

Many miles travelled, many miles to go. Running on empty...

From the toy box.

Ok, so maybe you have to be a Pink Floyd fan (or at least aware of their back catalogue) to get today's paronomasiac title pun. The juxtaposition just amused me - a bit.

In New Hopetoun Gardens.

I must have been off my trolley when I took this. Aisle be carted away in no time, you'll see - just another basket case... To be fair this is a rare sight; my local Waitrose is so efficiently run that a build-up of trollies in the car park is almost unheard of. Walk - stand - capture -...

In West Lothian

On the Cramond Causeway

In Bamburgh, Northumberland

Beadnell, Northumberland

Around Duddo, Northumberland

Etal Castle from the light railway station

This is a palm in my garden (not a lot of time again today). I thought I had killed it about 18 months ago, but it has sprouted again. As long as it survives the frosts it should be quite a sight come the Summer.

It has been rankling with me that I haven't put up a people shot yet. Meet my Son, James. He is 18, going to art college, with a lovely girlfriend and an interview for a new job on Tuesday. He is also massively hung over, having celebrated a friend's birthday last night. We had just...

Funny thing memory. It seems so real, so close, then it fades. These words will fade too, in time. But not just yet...

There is something that I find quite disturbing about this statue. It has echoes of Fritz Lang's "Metropolis", and of Olympian achievement, but there are also dark echoes of events in the 1930s. It dominates the area in which it stands - you can't ignore it.

This is a common sight on the streets of the UK at the moment. Shops that have not survived past Christmas. Hawkins Bazaar specialised in "stocking fillers" and toys and didn't have a good enough December. What makes this personal is that my son had a job with them. In six weeks...

...the front door. Mad busy at the moment. Started at my desk at 07:00 and hardly left it. My intentions were honourable - I made to go out, but the phone rang and so... I promise to try harder in future ;0)

GRD3 sat on the shelf for most of the day, I was all settled in my PJs tonight catching up on my SIJ comment writing and watching a repeat of Friends on tv tonight when my hubby suggested a walk. Out we went (obviously got changed first), camera in hand and this was the best of my snaps.

GRD3 and me in Edinburgh today, liked a few of my images and couldn't make up my mind between this one and another one but with a flip of a coin, this one of the Usher Hall was chosen.

Such a busy day today. Up to Birmingham and back. 4 hours in the car. Three meetings. Home for salmon en croute, a decent glass of wine and a hot bath. Lights down low, light the candles on the hearth, enjoy. Suddenly the day seems more bearable...

So, this morning I got up early, drove all the way down to the New Forest, parked up overlooking the cliffs at Barton on Sea, pointed my camera at The Needles and... Nothing. Flat, boring, nothingness. Great gorbs of nothingness. More nothingness than an empty biscuit tin. Flatter than a...

Yes, yes, I know, but I couldn't resist it - the Force was strong in this one. ;0)

What amuses me about this old, faded sign is that it is in a one-way street... that nowadays flows the other way...

Busy day today... Very little time to think, let alone take a picture. So, if in doubt aim for a cheap laugh at own expense... Palmer is not only my surname it is also a rather good champagne house; I always keep a bottle or two in the rack. Some years ago I gave one to one of my ex-wives...

Couldn't resist this one. I drive past here most days. I can only think that they sent out the work experience lad to paint these lines. The silver box is a phone box, just past it is a postbox. I love the fact that they had a couple of goes at it...