skywatch

Happy Skywatch Friday! And happy skywatch to all bonfire afficionados who celebrate the 5th November tonight (in the rain - at least here).




And (disclaimer: skip if you've read this before) if you have some time to spare and love the Andes or the rainforest please visit my picture book about my fieldwork in the Peruvian cloud forest:
http://www.blurb.com/photo-book-contest/view_book/914061
I've entered the blurb competition, and if you feel generous please vote for me.

on the shore

I'm at work, so all I've got at hand is a photo in which water is somewhat in the background:



but if it weren't for the water I guess there would be no pretty shore...

Happy splashing!
Or (disclaimer: skip if you've read this before) if you have some time to spare and love the Andes or the rainforest please visit my picture book about my fieldwork in the Peruvian cloud forest:
http://www.blurb.com/photo-book-contest/view_book/914061
I've entered the blurb competition, and if you feel generous please vote for me.

a little late

I saw this chap in the woods - all its colleagues were long done with flowering and seeding. But what can I say, I'm always late, too.



More flowers at Today's Flowers, hosted by Luiz, Denise, Laerte and Valkyrien.
Or (disclaimer: skip if you've read this before) if you have some time to spare and love the Andes or the rainforest please visit my picture book about my fieldwork in the Peruvian cloud forest:
http://www.blurb.com/photo-book-contest/view_book/914061
I've entered the blurb competition, and if you feel generous please vote for me.

Monk's Walk

I don't often take photos of Oxford architecture - generally I just run past it in a big hurry. Two days ago, though, I put my theatre hat on and went location-scouting for a dance performance next spring with a colleague. So, one of the sites we looked at was this:


It's called 'Monk's Walk' and I used to adore it - but now they've sandblasted it, and it looks better to me in b&w.

More monochromes at Aileni's Monochrome Monday.

Or (disclaimer: skip if you've read this before) if you have some time to spare and love the Andes or the rainforest please visit my picture book about my fieldwork in the Peruvian cloud forest:
http://www.blurb.com/photo-book-contest/view_book/914061
I've entered the blurb competition, and if you feel generous please vote for me.

trees in the puddle

I live near a floodplain - so whenever it has rained I'll get to see some rather good reflections in the enormous puddle which is otherwise known as 'the meadow':




There are more weekend reflections at James' blog.
Or if you have some time to spare and love the Andes or the rainforest please visit my picture book about my fieldwork in the Peruvian cloud forest:
http://www.blurb.com/photo-book-contest/view_book/914061
I've entered the blurb competition, and if you feel generous please vote for me.

Bags

There is nothing more depressing than the sight of a 1 ton bag full of building material in front of ones house. On this photo you can see the husband some years ago opening a bag full of clay destined to clad our walls:



Nevertheless, they're practical and I always marvel at the hideous indestructible material out of which they are made. We did throw them all away, though, as soon as we had finished the renovation.

For more bags head over to the PhotoHunt at TNchick's.
Or if you have some time to spare and love the Andes or the rainforest please visit my picture book about my fieldwork in the Peruvian cloud forest:
http://www.blurb.com/photo-book-contest/view_book/914061
I've entered the blurb competition, and if you feel generous please vote for me.

red kite

I was out on an evening walk and watched this red kite snatch the prey of two buzzards. I wish I had a big lens....



Meanwhile, if you have some time to spare and love the Andes or the rainforest please visit my picture book about my fieldwork in the Peruvian cloud forest:
http://www.blurb.com/photo-book-contest/view_book/914061
I've entered the blurb competition, and if you feel generous please vote for me.

Or just go straight back to Skywatch Friday for more thrilling skies from all over the world.

blue

Here's the blue surface of the Dordogne - a beautiful river in the south of France:



Happy Watery Wednesday to you all!

autumn flower at night

So, that's when I get to take photos these days....at night:


It's one of the last flowers in the garden.

Look at flowers from all corners of the world at Today's Flowers, hosted by Luiz, Denise, Laerte and Valkyrien.

biofilm reflections

This is a wildly growing biofilm reflected by the water surface (is the water surface seen from the other side still the water surface?). The water it is growing in is very clean, so these microbes are actually good guys:



Thanks to James for hosting Weekend Reflections.

Self-promotion...

I can't remember when I last did a bit of shameless self-promotion. I think probably never. I have, however, discovered the joys of blurb and have spent some evenings putting together photos and texts from my fieldwork in Peru. If you feel really kind and have some time to spare, please head over to blurb - and maybe even vote for me:

Vote for my book in the
Best Blurb Books Contest!

Voting ends Nov. 9 View other entries »

Billy Budd or Tristan and Isolde?

If you like going to the opera, like me, this sky might remind you of a dramatic backdrop as well:



More skies at Skywatch Friday...

Too busy for words

I'm swamped by work :(



A big hello to you all - I hope you're having a lovely autumn!

shortly before sunset

Late afternoon water reflections on the lake in Blenheim Park:



Watery Wednesday, hosted by 2SweetnSaxy, has links to watery pleasure from all over the world.

hooray!

So, my internet works again, just in time for Today's Flowers :)



Happy Sunday to you all!

bottom of the sea

Our internet has packed in and might not be repaired until Friday :(
Very irritating. So here's a rushed post from the work computer:



For more water visit Watery Wednesday hosted by 2SweetnSaxy. I'm looking forward to your photos when all is back to normal here.

high-powered bird?

Slowly catching up on life...but I didn't have time to take proper photos for more than a week! So here's an old one -
Some weekends ago I spotted this nest on a pylon which I passed under. I find it quite annoying to stand underneath all that buzzing electricity - I somewhat admired the bird and wondered if the chicks have all turned out to be hyperactive.



More skies at Skywatch Friday!

Dover

The channel is hardly a pristine bit of water, but I love it - once a month the ferry takes me over to the continent where I can dance till I drop and hang out with all my tango-friends:



For more water visit Watery Wednesday hosted by 2SweetnSaxy.

Happy Monday!

Visit Aileni's Monochrome Monday for all things b&w.

orange(s)

literally - this one was quite juicy:



All things orange at this week's PhotoHunt over at TNchick's.

boring sky

Not only do I have to work non-stop, I can't even steal 5 minutes for some good skywatching - the Oxfordshire skies have either been grey and rainy or like the one below:



Boring!!
More skies at Skywatch Friday!

If you're wondering why I haven't visited any of your blogs - I think I won't manage until next week :(

Meet Mr. and Mrs. Swan

My fieldwork season is coming to its stressful end - a new Watery Wednesday coming up, and I haven't even managed to visit last weeks entries...
I'm spending many hours in the river each day, and then some in the lab. Tomorrow I will finish the experiment in a long mad day of sampling, freezing and starting some analysis. Meanwhile I'm looking forward to a last encounter with Mr and Mrs Swan and their eight rather grown-up cygnets. I've met them every day on their way to their preening grounds - annoyingly just upstream of my experiment. I hate peeling their feathers away from my flumes each day. Needless to say that they hate me, too. You can probably tell from Mrs Swans suspicious ogle in my direction:



Just after taking this snap of them I felt very much like hastening towards the bank...I'm not really up to facing 10 hissing swans towering over me whilst I'm submerged up to my middle in the river.

Back to Watery Wednesday, hosted by 2Sweet'n'Saxy.

power connection?

I walked past this plug in the ground the other day:



Happy birthday to Monochrome Mondays!

Broadway Tower

If you like Follies, then Broadway Tower is one not to miss. And, hey, its 312 m above sea level...and the second highest point in the Cotswolds:



More scenic sights at Scenic Sunday.

almost over?

These two photos are only a month and a bit apart and mark the sad progression of summer towards autumn. Time seems to fly, especially with my fieldwork going on and on.



Hope September will not be cold and rainy.

For more summer visit Summer Stock Sunday over at Robin's.

surprising dirty dishes

Most of the times I'm rather depressed by dirty mugs - so, when I saw this I couldn't help documenting it, even though it's aesthetic value might be of doubt:



I was surprised to find this ghostly imprint of the cutlery that's hidden in the murky depth of the coffee mug :)

More surprises at the PhotoHunt over at TNchick's.

skywatch

The sky as seen in the river a little while ago:



Happy Skywatch Friday!

Moving on

This little plant is traveling downstream just under the water surface until it gets caught on something and grows roots there:



Happy Watery Wednesday to all of you!

Another rose

The college garden is still full of them:



Look at flowers from all corners of the world at Today's Flowers, hosted by Luiz, Denise, Laerte and Valkyrien.

old roof

I like this old roof construction - it's the Market Hall in Chipping Campden, built in 1627:



More monochromes at Aileni's Monochrome Monday.

Vale of Evesham

Looking towards the Vale of Evesham in mid-August:



Visit Scenic Sunday for more Scenes :)

making hay

Making hay used to be one of the big summer favourites when I was a kid. I just loved the smell, and the action, and then sitting on the trailer in the hay all happy (albeit sweaty and itchy) when all was done. Nowadays I have an allergy, but I still love to look at it from the distance:




Visit Robin's Summer Stock Sunday and have a look at all the beautiful summer scenery there.

hazardous ripples

This weeks PhotoHunt theme is 'ripples'. The ripples I see most often - apart from watery ones - are those of my neighbours very old asbestos roofing. I'm not looking forward to the day when they have to be disturbed:

archive sky

I'm posting from the lab...so here's a pink old sky over a nice river. Nothing special but hopefully pleasant enough:



Find some more exciting skies at Skywatch Friday!

new river

I have moved my work to a lovely, clean river near Newbury. My current experiment is keeping me busy and so I have no time for anything (sadly including visiting all your blogs). Working amongst the trouts, graylings and ranunculae (or is it Ranunculaceae ?), though, is a real treat. Yesterday we even saw a swimming snake! I didn't manage to snap it...so all I can show you is a little ranunculus blossom poking out of the water:



Back to Watery Wednesday hosted by 2SweetnSaxy.

By the roadside

This cute little flower was blossoming next to a road. The name is on the tip of my tongue...I bet I'll remember later this afternoon when I'm nowhere near the computer.



Get a good dose of flowery goodness at Today's Flowers, hosted by Luiz, Denise, Laerte and Valkyrien.

waterfall

Happy Sunday and happy Monday - and altogether a happy new week to all of you!
Back to Aileni's Monochrome Monday for more b&w.

scenic cotswolds

An archetypal view of rural Sunday bliss:



For more scenic landscapes head over to Scenic Sunday .

summer disasters

Here is one that every dedicated icecream afficionado dreads: the slipped scoop. I'm glad to say that this one wasn't mine. I found it melting and lonely on a parking lot, and I still feel for the poor person who lost it. I hope they got a replacement.



Head over to Robin's Summer Stock Sunday for happier summer scenes.

artificial breeding

An artificially bred butterfly starts its well-observed life in a butterfly house:



More artificial stuff can be found at the PhotoHunt, hosted by TNchick.

Gull and Bucket

There was nothing exciting going on in the Oxfordshire sky last week. For all I know there wasn't even a good moment to watch the Perseids due to blanket cloud cover at night. So - it's back to the archives: a series of a gull being scenic on a bucket in the sky.







Looking forward to perhaps some Perseids photos at Skywatch Friday!

Raindrops...

Have a look at last week's Mother of All Downpours - it hit me as I was alerting my neighbour to the fact that her key was still stuck in the lock from when she opened her door. We chatted for 1 minute and I got drenched to the bone.



Back to Watery Wednesday hosted by 2SweetnSaxy.

late blossom

I spotted this blossom next to a ripening apple. What might have prompted the tree to produce a late flower? The hover fly is clearly pleased, though.



Happy birthday to Today's Flowers, hosted by Luiz, Denise, Laerte and Valkyrien !

untidy :)

A rather untidy old willow which I walked past last weekend:



Visit Aileni's Monochrome Monday for more b&w.

British Summer, part II

When it's NOT raining (and I'm not complaining for once: we had two gorgeous days...) the best thing about summer are the long walks at weekends.
Sometimes, though, British right of way - and how it's signposted - can get rather confusing:


If a signpost isn't clear the way to go is probably straight ahead - that's apparently what these women thought, who had missed the REAL path alongside the field and so had opted to walk right through it:




For more summer scenes head over to Robin's Summer Stock Sunday and Scenic Sunday .