100 Day Project - Day Eight

“Just living is not enough," said the butterfly, "one must have sunshine, freedom, and 

a little flower.”

Hans Christian Andersen

And in the (ongoing and interminable) absence of the real thing, one must go to where there’s an illusion of it. After all, they tell me illusion is perception is reality. Ha. I’m buying it. Time to take a journey to where one can experience flowers and a bit of city-style freedom under a canopy of pretend-sunshine! Kew Gardens here I come…

Details, in yellow

I have absolutely no idea what this tiny yellow ball is but I've occasionally (in the past 6 months or so) noticed them on pavements all over the city.  Usually, like this one, they're wedged into a crack between paving stones. I've asked two people if they know what they are. They'd never noticed them before. The week before last I decided to start taking a snapshot every time I see one and I have three on record so far. 

I'm starting to think they might be a sign. Something meant just for me. Perhaps a reminder not to let the small but important things, the tiny spots of colour in my life, fall between the cracks?

Quite probably they're something a lot more prosaic but I'm going with my interpretation for now. I could do with the reminder.

* it's yellow day in Poppytalk's Autumn colour week. Check out the group's photostream here. Most of them are a lot more interesting than this one.

Plan B - soak in some city

Absolutely nothing in the way of sunshine in the Big Smoke. But there's still light and lustre to be found there if you know where to look:

~ Step back in time and into a cloud of delicious scents - an ambiance of enduring elegance

~ Sheltering under a golden marquee - two days, 48 hours of rain, lots of reason to pause and take in the view

~ Selfridges, still one of the finest and unlike any other - and those sunny yellow carrier bags always promise treats

~ Springbok gold in Trafalgar Square - always reminds me of loved ones far away

~ Sweetest smelling Mimosa on the Embankment - reminiscent of Spring in warmer climes

~ Catching up over lunch and a glass of sunshine with a very dear friend - an amazing view from one of my favourite places in the West End

~ Midnight window shopping in Mayfair - no crowds, no expense, bliss

~ Mood lighting in the hotel - sheds a warm glow over dinner

~ A night in London's theatreland completes the visit - amazing to see living legends perform their craft 

Off to the coast for a few days... no internet connection, no cellphone signal... just me and the sea. 

And maybe some sunshine. Although I'm not counting on it.

See you on the other side lovely ones...

Let the majority rule...

Framed?

Unframed?

In the spirit of democracy and as I've been dithering about it and simply cannot choose for myself because I like both for different reasons, I'd like to enlist your help in deciding how to present photographs here from now on, and I'll go with the majority vote. I quite liked the look of the framed version of my recent inspiration board and I wondered if I might extend it to all my pictures. Or most at least, as at some point I might change it up again. I really appreciated your thoughts on the larger size, which I'm enjoying, but which of these formats do you prefer? The framed or unframed versions?

I tend towards a preference for quite a lot of white space but I appreciate that I work on a little 13" Macbook so what I see will be different to what many of you might be looking at.

I've been tinkering around with the look and feel of my little blog space over the past few weeks and although it's hardly a dramatic overhaul, I have finally made a few updates I've been wanting to try for a while - inserting post dividers; tidying up the sidebar; putting up a menu linked to some pages where I can record and access some of my favourite quotations more readily; working out how to tweak the HTML to create a background for the entire space; creating some linked images out to other spaces like my Flickr favourites and my other little blog project... and it's been fun playing around with it. I can't explain how excited I was when I actually managed to figure out the HTML for removing the border on my header - it's a little bit sad really - I'm so untechy and easily thrilled when I learn something new.

Anyway, I think I'm quite happy with it (although, as always, I'll need to live with it for a bit to be sure and am delighted to have your feedback either way) but now I'm at that crucial point I sometimes reach with my paintings, where I'm not entirely sure whether to fine-tune just a fraction more or leave well alone. And I simply can't decide about this photo format thing. I appreciate it's hardly going to upset the universal balance either way but if you feel inclined to chime in, I'd value your input... otherwise, it may just be decided on a coin toss. So, what do you think?

Unframed?

Framed?

These pictures were taken recently - the top set at a local art gallery, where I go for tea quite often. They have a tiny but lovely collection of iron and bronze works, including the little study of Eve by Rodin (bottom centre of the mosaic) who looks a bit like I feel on a Monday morning. And the bottom one taken on an early morning crossing into the City over London Bridge looking east towards Tower Bridge and a wintry sunrise, a view which makes a Monday (or any day of the week) feel just a little bit better.

It's been great to read the lovely lists of what you were up to at the weekend and although it hardly feels like I've had a pause to speak of and here we are at Monday again, there's no stopping the march of days, so, deep breath and off we go again.... 

Wherever you are and whatever you're facing this week, I wish you a happy one!

♥

Warm, fun and fuzzy...

...evening out with special friends to celebrate a special day

Thirty sweet and soulful years, and growing still

Spinning food to share it is all part of the fun

Service excellent, attentive but discreet

Good conversation all 'round...

...and plenty of laughter...

...perhaps caused by another of T's exaggerated and funny tales

Yours are probably in focus, right?

Caught in the flash light...

...and then the fun really began!

Playing with my brand new take-it-anywhere toy - a thoughtful, albeit overwhelming gift from two of these delightful souls. So little and light, it fits easily into my tiny evening clutch... love it.

In low light situations, for every one I snap with a flash, I like to take one without. I often love how they turn out even more than the sharply focussed shots. These capture the mood of the evening perfectly... warm, fun and fuzzy. Lovely!

p.s. sorry for any confusion caused - not my Birthday! I see how the reference to that and the gift sound when combined, but the Birthday boy was my sweet friend ETB (as he's affectionately known) and although he received gifts too (as is fitting), my camera was a thank you from him and his wife for some help I was able to offer on an important project they were working on earlier in the year...

p.p.s. when my Birthday does appear (it is this month but much later) I will be heading closer to five-oh than three-oh! I remember the threes well though - thought I'd have "it" (life, the universe and everything) all sussed out by thirty. Almost fifteen years later and I'm still figuring it out. He seems a lot more together than I was at that age.

The wind blew overnight...

...and laid a carpet of loveliness at my feet