Today’s guest picture is that brand new word of the year, a ‘selfie’ taken my brother on a walk in October. I have used so many of his pictures that it only seemed fair to show the photographer himself photographing himself.
I had a day with few photographic opportunities but quite a lot to do. It started with a very good decision. Dropscone rang to see if I fancied going out for a morning pedal and I declined to take up this opportunity in spite of some very sunny weather and a temperature that was definitely above freezing. This was for two reasons. The first was that the wind had been howling round the house all night and the second was that it was still blowing very vigorously at breakfast time.
I have just got myself feeling a lot better and I didn’t want to exhaust myself in a losing battle against the wind.
When Dropscone arrived for coffee, having only managed eleven and a bit miles an hour for his 20 mile trip, I felt sorry for him and happy for myself.
I only had time after he left to take a quick snap of a perching chaffinch enjoying the sun and untroubled by the wind…
…and to take a quick look into the garden when some loud bird cries alerted me to the fact the some rooks were mobbing a buzzard overhead. I didn’t have my big zoom lens on so I only a got a distant view of the action.
It took a few minutes but in the end the buzzard got fed off and flew away.
I spent a bit of time preparing a birthday card for my friend Jean. It had a fetching fuchsia picture on it.
After a quick lunch, Mrs Tootlepedal and I went off in the car to Dumfries where Mrs Tootlepedal had some business. I didn’t take a camera with me as I wasn’t expecting a photo opportunity but we had hardly left the town before we had to stop while a woodsman felled a tall tree beside the main road. You can just see the tree falling uphill on the right side of the road if you peer at my camera phone picture carefully.
Our sympathies went out to the two fellows who had to stand all day with the stop signs in a very chilly wind indeed while the other feller felled.
The business in Dumfries went well and we came back by the coast road through Powfoot and Annan. The tide was well in and the view enticing so I would have been glad to stop and take a picture or two but even if I had had a good camera with me, the light was so poor that it would have been an uphill task.
We stopped in Annan and spent some fun time walking up and down the High Street in search of a sewing shop which had inconsiderately moved from one end of the street to the other. We found it eventually and as it had the material that Mrs Tootlepedal needed for the panto costumes, we didn’t grudge the extra walk.
As our route took us through Gretna, we paused to see if the starlings were about but we were too early. It was drizzling by this time and I didn’t fancy sitting about so we drove on. In spite of the drizzle there was a fine sunset behind us.
And it was just possible to make out some very low clouds hugging the English hills.
The lesson is: Always take a good camera with you. I will have to get a replacement for the invaluable Sandycam which I foolishly lost in France.
Mrs Tootlepedal had been busy with the slow cooker in the morning and it was nice to come home in the knowledge that our tea would be ready for us. I was also pleased to receive a delivery of a big box of 300 caramelised biscuits to go with my coffee and tea. As they are individually wrapped, they last very well.
I spent some more time preparing cards for Sandy’s craft fair stall and then went off after tea with Sandy and birthday girl Jean to do our usual stint in the Archive Centre. We put a week and a half of the newspaper index onto a spreadsheet as our internet connection wasn’t working. I will put it in finally at home tomorrow.
There was no chance to catch a flying bird at the feeder so that buzzard and its friends will have to do today.
Tootlepedal's Blog 
Your brother looks like quite a hiker. I like the shot of the fuchsia blossoms.
He is a great walker and off road cyclist. If he sees a steep slope, he is off up it in an instant.
Sorry to hear of the loss of Sandycam. Here’s to a replacement being found Tootle suite.
I have it in hand.
I’m surprised that they were sawing down trees on a windy day, it’s not very safe.
I wonder if the weather system bringing you the wind today was the same one that blasted through here over the weekend.
If it was, you can keep the next one.
How sensible not to go cycling under such exhausting conditions. I loved the card you made for Jean, a wonderful picture.
I only use a mobile phone camera, but when I’m out there pedalling, I still miss so many opportunities, as by the time I dismount, get my phone out, aim and snap the scene, I was hoping to capture, has changed from the “special” to quite humdrum. Shouldn’t use the word “humdrum”, because it’s always special being able to capture any scene in our great outdoors. Hope you get what I’m trying to say. I’m no David Bailey, so in my case I think it’s the cameraman not making the most of the scenes I get to witness. Thanks for the read, cheers.
The difference between what pleases the eye at first sight and what has a pleasing effect on the camera is often remarkably different. My problem is forcing myself to stop immediately a chance arises. It is very hard to turn back on a bike just to take a picture….and sometimes dangerous too.
Beautiful fuchsia.
300 biscuits would last me… About two months worth of tea times. Or less.
My favourite flower. I think two to three months will be about right on the biscuit front.
I didn’t remember you had lost the Sandycam. Bummer. The fellows felling has potential for a kids’ nursery rhyme.
I had a little dialogue in a pantomime I wrote for my school many years where Snow White was waiting for three fellows and two tree fellers turned up so I have explored those possibilities.
🙂
Even with a very good mobile phone camera and walking I miss half the things I’d like to photograph. You did very well in the circumstances.
I keep hoping to improve.