tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49373170219186299702024-03-06T03:54:47.862+00:00Back Behind The LensHelen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.comBlogger91125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-28523286392399716712018-03-11T21:03:00.000+00:002018-03-12T10:46:53.573+00:00Sky Fingers and Snow Angles<div style="text-align: center;">
I look at sky at lot and wish there was a camera in my hand and I wasn't so busy doing a million other things. It's such a hugely changing, inspiring thing to photograph and can be captured anytime anywhere by camera or phone with usually very pleasing results! I am by no means the best sky photographer but does that matter really.</div>
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Fingers, piano keys, fireworks, fish scales...what do you see? Of course our ancestors took great heed of the skies, the stars at night, moon cycles, colours determining the weather. Where I grew up in England my village community set great stall by the sky "red sky at night, shepherds delight, red sky in the morning shepherds warning" It was important. We got cut off from the outside world in the winter, huge snow drifts that tractors with snow ploughs on the front had to cut make shift roads through. We would walk to school through these snow tunnels breaking huge icicles of shed roofs to suck...can you imagine!! It was normal to us, we knew no different or no better. My friend still lives there and even though winters are not what they used to be in England, they still loose their water supply or electricity at some point during each winter. </div>
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Last weekend we had enough snow to keep everyone at home giving a perfect excuse to get out with the camera. It was very foggy ensuring there were no shadows so dynamic angles were more important then ever. It was -6 with winds that made it feels twice as cold so it was a case of searching for the shot quickly and snapping even quicker! </div>
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Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-88192578570672613372017-11-14T20:36:00.000+00:002017-11-14T21:09:02.993+00:00Black & YellowThis year there was more yellow in the landscape than I had ever seen before and a stormy day black sky made a great contrast. I just had to pull over and snap this storm on the horizon over the fields. It looks almost tornado like!<br />
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The gloomy light dulled the vivid yellow a little but as the storm came nearer and the sky turned really black I managed a few snaps before the huge raindrops arrived and I had to dive back into the car.<br />
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I meant to go back on a sunny day and get some more shots of the fields with a blue sky but the plough beat me to it and that's probably how it should be :-) this year it should be black and yellow, next year it will be yellow and blue.<br />
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<br />Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-87464143434360617002017-10-24T19:14:00.000+00:002018-03-12T09:01:47.100+00:00A New Location<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I find myself regularly now in pastures new.. in a City! It's exciting exploring new places and I'm sure there will be much more camera wandering to come but for now the Cemetery is providing many photography opportunities. It's taking me a while to find my eye again I have to admit as it's been a long time but that joy is still there although shockingly my eyesight isn't. </div>
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WOW! seems like time is not the only thing that's moved on since I last posted. What a weird feeling it is to not be able to see the image through the viewfinder or even the image on the Live View...well that's different from before! It took a bit of getting used to but it's just a case of faffing with glasses a bit :-)</div>
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Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-78743061124197491422014-11-02T15:17:00.000+00:002018-03-12T09:02:37.200+00:00Sunset Chasers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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There haven't been many days this year that I have felt like picking up the camera and venturing into the world outside, it's been a year of home and new business building. BUT there has been some tramping around in muddy fields and camera clicking. A call from a couple of friends one evening on what had been a thoroughly uninspiring day led to a sunset of splendiferous proportions and found us haring down country lanes in the car to capture it! Great fun and we each commented how much we'd missed doing it :-) </div>
Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-13556416250880465242013-02-18T18:14:00.002+00:002013-02-18T18:14:30.755+00:00Love is all around<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A little late I know but last week I wasn't really feeling the <i>Love</i></div>
Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-82332036091126137132013-02-03T13:07:00.001+00:002013-02-03T13:07:12.675+00:00Tiny Toes and Wedding Bells<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Ha ha I hear you cry, you've failed miserably and not blogged for 3 weeks! Not so, I have been writing furiously on another blog that I have created and am very excited about. Its taken up a lot of my time because I had almost a year of stories to catch up on but I'm sure I can manage the two now - gulp! Anyway the image above is a celebratory image of how much I'm loving my new job and who wouldn't with gorgeous newborn babies being photographed in the studio everyday!<br />
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They're also very much a Wedding photographers so its lovely to be working in an atmosphere of happy events and positivity. I've been quite surprised how different one studio can be from another and this one is an absolute joy to work in!Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-54960133718662030532013-01-10T21:29:00.003+00:002013-01-10T21:29:32.563+00:00Grandads Farm<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Driving past I caught a glimpse of this wonderful sign!</div>
Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-74585938219756973122013-01-09T22:52:00.000+00:002013-01-09T22:53:22.075+00:00Time keeps rolling on<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I started a new job today and walking home, I walked past a significant new building for our town, the new Council Offices. Construction had ground to a halt as the developers had gone into liquidation but now a whole new sparkly investor has been found and the project is steaming ahead again. Its a time for stop and start and keeping faith that the start will start again...in all fields.<br />
I like the little jogger in the foreground too, a new start for a new year for her too.Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-54720819597314712802013-01-08T20:43:00.001+00:002013-02-03T12:44:09.984+00:00Rain Rain go away<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The rain is back! Surley there cannot be any drops left in the sky and I have to walk to work in the morning because my car is in poorly car hospital-Taxi! Nipping into one of my favourite shops today, I just loved their new window display (as I usually do) and I had to take a picture, from the inside of course, it was raining!Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-44964929064225984012013-01-07T20:57:00.000+00:002013-01-07T20:57:48.201+00:00Prince Alfred takes the spotlight<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A funny one today </div>
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Poor little Alfie is blissfully unaware that mummys about to go back to work. Both the cats have got used to me being around pandering to their every need over Christmas, they have become pretty demanding to be fair and I'm quite looking forward to having a break from THEM! I've had to put a lock on the outside of the bathroom door because they jump up in the bath and the sink all the time trying to get water out of the taps and they make such a mess! Because I'm renovating my house the bathroom is a shell now, taken back to the plaster walls, bare floorboards, its very dusty and its an endless clean up job. Adding cat prints and hair, oh my word how much hair my cats shed is unbelievable, to the mix is just annoying. But saying all that Alfie is great fun and he loves to play especially with carrier bags, he does take a good picture...Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-77205997955319083582013-01-06T20:20:00.001+00:002013-01-06T20:20:04.980+00:00Are You Watching Grandad?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Don't get me wrong, I'm not remotely proud of this picture, the composition is bad, the lighting is confusing and its out of focus. But the subject was charming!</div>
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No-one else was about in the Mead after the shops had closed as I wondered home. It was chilly, getting dark and the only sounds to be heard were the music that is piped into the bandstand and a little girl dancing and singing to her Grandad. </div>
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I sat down on one of the benches to watch. </div>
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She was running and dancing and singing 'twinkle twinkle little star' at the top of her voice all to enthusiastic encouragement.</div>
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"are you watching Grandad?" she called out once in a while to make sure Grandad had only eyes for her. I sat there for half an hour remembering a time when the only audience you ever needed was your Grandad. Always one for rounding up local kids and putting on a show, I admired the little thing as she sang even louder when she began to draw a crowd and I just had to take a sneaky picture. Several pictures as it turned out as I just couldn't get the settings right, so this was the </div>
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best of a bad bunch. </div>
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To have moved closer and asked for a picture to get a better shot would have ruined the intimacy of the moment so I'm quite happy to have captured this snap which evokes a memory rather than being a good photograph. I'm sad that my daughter didn't have her Grandad for longer, he adored her when she was little and I wish for the millionth time that he hadn't got that damn desease. But he had many happy moments watching us all dance and sing for him during his life.</div>
Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-64780300378367565952013-01-05T20:52:00.000+00:002013-01-05T20:52:09.611+00:00Bye Bye Christmas for another year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Christmas decorations came down today, some friends were sad to take theirs down, others couldn't wait to get rid of the clutter. I don't really have any feelings either way. Its been a lovely Christmas, quiet but full of friends and I was a good mum this time. So a whole new year to play with and another new job to come- exciting!Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-48683693582205659912013-01-04T20:56:00.002+00:002018-03-12T09:09:47.070+00:00Wichert WallsToday was a good day, two good friends getting new jobs! My friend and I worked at the same photography studio for most of last year, both loosing our jobs before Christmas under not very nice circumstances and both feeling aggrieved and a little nervous for our futures. So the job hunting had begun and today we travelled down to the village that I was born in for my friends interview, a pure coincidence (or was it...) and a job that she really wanted. I had had an interview just before Christmas for another studio position but although I had been offered some hours I'd heard nothing more and was beginning to feel very twitchy! Well my friend received a phone call on our journey back to say that she had got the job and I had an e-mail waiting for me when I got home outlining start date, hours and rate. We certainly are two happy girlies today!<br />
Now the village that I was born in (well I was actually born in a hospital but brought back to the village only hours old) is one of the most picturesque Anglo-Saxon villages in Buckinghamshire and is one of only three wychert villages nationally.Wychert describes a method of construction using a white clay mixed with straw to make walls and buildings, which are then thatched or topped with red clay tiles. It really has the most beautiful thatched cottages down its little winding lanes flanked by the areas distinctive walls and I could have taken the most gorgeous and endless photographs but it was my friends show and she is not a photographer. Sometimes you have to let the opportunities slide and I knew that throwing anything else into the mix today would stress her and I have vowed to re-visit alone with my camera another time.Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-84256128753684255462013-01-03T20:48:00.002+00:002018-03-12T09:10:37.115+00:00The Grand Canyon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This picture is of an exhibition that I visited before Christmas by photographer Deborah Bird. I went back today for another look. She had been awarded a Bursery Grant to visit and photograph within the Grand Canyon. Deborah froze her paper sculptures in water and then photographed them as they melted with the natural light and the Canyon as a backdrop. I went to meet Deborah and she was very inspiring and very tired!<br />
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Take a look at her work on <a href="http://www.deborahbirdart.com/">www.deborahbirdart.com</a></div>
Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-33086509413166018022013-01-02T19:11:00.001+00:002013-02-03T12:39:22.001+00:00Venturing into Town <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A Dismal Day</div>
With my Christmas Chest infection beginning to ease, I decided to venture out and see what I could snap. I could tell from Facebook posts that people were going back to work and business' were re-opening today so I walked into town to see what interesting 'scenes' I could spot. Its only the second of January so the shops and the main street look very much as they did a few days ago at the height of the Christmas shopping madness with only the addition of sales posters giving a splash of red everywhere. Shoppers trudged about looking glum and drab and when I called in to say hello to my friends at the Art Cafe one of the customers commented that I wouldn't get a good picture on such a dismal day. I can usually spot a picture somewhere but I knew what he meant, no sun to cast interesting shadows, no frost or even snow on the ground to give some wintry sparkle. But when I came out of the cafe the street scene had been transformed by a gorgeous sunset. It just goes to show if you wait long enough a good picture will show up.<br />
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The town's Christmas decorations are still up and they're still switching on, even though all the merriment is over when it starts to get dark, which is nice. It had been raining non stop for about two weeks and although its stopped now the ground is soaked to bursting and the atmosphere is very damp so the pavements were glistening. Add a little interest in the foreground with a couple of A boards and hey presto!Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-66408350845633072922013-01-01T20:15:00.001+00:002013-02-03T12:36:57.375+00:00Happy New Year! Happy 2013 to you all! What a pretty poor job I did of photography and blogging last year then! Time to take action and FORCE myself back into it as I clearly have the creative willpower of...of...well of someone who has no creative staying power at all! <br />
Last night I watched 'Julie & Julia' whilst sitting home alone on New Years Eve for the first time in my life, something I was dreading but that actually turned out rather well with this wonderful film. It is a story about an almost 30yr old office worker who really wants to be a writer. She decides to make herself complete a writing project by combining it with her love of cooking and she creates a blog on which she charts her progress in cooking all of her heroine Julia Child's recipes from her cookbook in one year- 365 days- a recipe and a blog a day. <br />
She confesses that she starts things and never finishes them - sound familiar? <br />
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Really, come on me - New Years resolution - get back to blogging! My notebook, a new one for a new year, my portfolio books of photography work for sale and a game of patience all sitting on the sofa suddenly seemed a very fitting image to take to signify this resolution. I have also promised my daughter and two of my best friends so now I have put it out there that I have challenged myself, pride will not let me fail, now how the heck do I use this camera again????Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-37425685266556321692012-09-19T20:18:00.001+00:002012-09-19T20:18:05.991+00:00Stoneleigh Abbey and the visitor that changed everythingIt takes some talent, or not, to go to a house as stunning as Stoneleigh Abbey in Warwickshire and not take one single photograph to be proud of! To be fair as I have done very little photography this year, it will take a while to re-find my eye and I know to be patient. Today was the first step in getting back into the swing of it and having been invited onto the Jane Austen Tour at the Abbey I put my camera where my mouth was yesterday and took a few shots when the tour was finished.<br />
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My friends and I found the tour a little odd as it turned out that Miss Austen only set foot in the house for 10 days in her entire life but it was sold to us that these 10 days were the inspiration for Mansfield Park. It was amusing how enthusiastically the tour guide pressed the notion upon us, with rather overly hopeful links to chapters in the book, that it "must have been Stoneleigh" Her joy that the handwritten manuscripts for Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Predudice would have been within Stoneleigh's walls during the stay was charming and we were directed to the many pieces of furniture that Jane would have seen as though the novelists gaze had turned them to pure gold. Such belief and delight held a mirror to me that I hadn't really felt that enthusiasm for anything much this year.<br />
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Life is better, much more peaceful but I have felt numbed and dampened down, not in humour as I've laughed more in this last year than for several years previously but in the ability to be immersed in anything really deeply. I lost a lot in a year and its bound to take its toll, it'll take time but today was a huge step forward, I'll be trudging down country lanes in pursuit of that perfect shot again before we know it. The gate has been shut but its about to open again.<br />
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Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-56002513343155113382012-09-17T10:38:00.000+00:002012-09-17T10:38:25.563+00:00After the Storm<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After the Storm was a Nick Butterworth story that I used to read to my children when they were little. Its a tale of Percy the Parkeeper and the animals that live in the park who are of course his friends. One day a huge storms hits the park, causing damage and disruption the the lives of the animals and good old Percy gives them support and love and rebuilds everything until all has settled again. <br />
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I have had my storm and am still in the aftermath, feeling 'very sniffy' like the fox in the story. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a mess, I have been very brave and steadfastly determined. I have committed to developing my house, worked hard at my job and spent lots of lovely time with friends and relations but I've done no photography or artwork at all.<br />
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My heart was broken at the choice that I had to make and somehow it has been unthinkable over these last 9 months to tap into 'emotional me' to be creative. Emotional me has been too broken.<br />
<br />
A great artist, they say (whoever they are) is someone who has suffered and lets all of that pain and angst out into their work, creating pieces of much greater depth, feeling and brilliance. Well, like I told my counsellor, I haven't wanted to let it out, it can stay nicely packed away in the moving boxes that still stand in the corner of my bedroom thank you very much.<br />
<br />
But after a conversation with the photographers and creative types at work yesterday I began to think that that was an awful shame, and a waste. I think, actually upon reflection I would like to try a little emotional creativity after all now. Slowly at first I think.....<br />
<br />
The photograph above was of a storm that hit us a couple of months ago on what had been a lovely sunny day. The sky went very very black and all of a sudden the most enormous hailstorm and hurricane took over our world, denting all the cars in our town, smashing windows, conservatories, destroying roofs and flooding houses and shops. It was unlike anything anyone had seen before and my car still resembles a golf ball! Things have been put back to normal and now all that remains is story swapping and knowing chuckles whenever you see a fellow golf ball driver, life goes on and I feel very lucky that it does. I shouldn't waste my given talent, more is to come.<br />
<br />
Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-21440971971277479792012-07-09T19:51:00.000+00:002012-07-09T19:51:00.863+00:00I own a home - at last!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIvTSW_W-98Ot1lJqaDKsR-Dh97_u5ANCbb2gWn6bP3-82WlgLRwsBdeI-mtBAvMvcptInJjLWFfUtDaCdpsgBM9AEXIOU2Yt9gF1FxphWTrNWdO59KgUNZBvdwTlBxHM1gZn3I5ygB4k/s1600/All+pictures+from+phone+Nov+to+June+146.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIvTSW_W-98Ot1lJqaDKsR-Dh97_u5ANCbb2gWn6bP3-82WlgLRwsBdeI-mtBAvMvcptInJjLWFfUtDaCdpsgBM9AEXIOU2Yt9gF1FxphWTrNWdO59KgUNZBvdwTlBxHM1gZn3I5ygB4k/s320/All+pictures+from+phone+Nov+to+June+146.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
I haven't taken any photographs since I last posted, not one. I haven't blogged, I haven't painted or done anything creative at all, unless you can call decorating creative. Today at long long last contracts have been exchanged and I own a home. Its taken so long! Ive been renting, in limbo just waiting, waiting, waiting. Its been tough a rollercoaster of lost deads and renegotiation and lost hope and refound hope and all the time dealing with heartbreak that I never expected to be so deep or last so long. But now a new beginning and a better life and a time for me to refind my love of photography and art. I work full time now at a photography studio and I am renovating a very dilapidated house but I will endeavour to squeeze in blogging time and photographs whenever I can.Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-45769792874655001142012-02-27T10:48:00.004+00:002012-02-27T11:10:39.146+00:00a bit of photography time squeezed in<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYeMskVmlpKyH_H7bm8rXyY4Coj_g37aHK0YjCgPQHkgsc_UMfOxAWYA_RjTndx8OqwzQ4tZHTOJ0tJ5g8yUrg3Y7oaJ733uBUj8sLe8P5-1-l-TSWFfYCllAiiUl12R9Kv2HI_qQXuGk/s1600/Playing+in+the+Snow.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 320px; height: 302px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5713767839663469442" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYeMskVmlpKyH_H7bm8rXyY4Coj_g37aHK0YjCgPQHkgsc_UMfOxAWYA_RjTndx8OqwzQ4tZHTOJ0tJ5g8yUrg3Y7oaJ733uBUj8sLe8P5-1-l-TSWFfYCllAiiUl12R9Kv2HI_qQXuGk/s320/Playing+in+the+Snow.JPG" /></a>I had stopped blogging, I don't know why...<br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb4YntzZvUyivYF3l6EEuIXY7A7D9m4kMJCtbapNbECmr2-nF70GHECkgx8S3vkKquZCDEVtSFUg-nrT2o4EReJ-QfxUg7-15xrrJwkfqEkXT_BJE946tt5n82Z6UM1Z3JY_fgckT6diI/s1600/Bird+of+the+Wood.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 261px; height: 320px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5713767829598997666" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb4YntzZvUyivYF3l6EEuIXY7A7D9m4kMJCtbapNbECmr2-nF70GHECkgx8S3vkKquZCDEVtSFUg-nrT2o4EReJ-QfxUg7-15xrrJwkfqEkXT_BJE946tt5n82Z6UM1Z3JY_fgckT6diI/s320/Bird+of+the+Wood.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEtVLh6e9ROs2DwfpIVE5QkdQ7HCt_Cu17MH-2ErBHRo1bOgIzyIwhI8lrPZzPwgGzWKc6iyOOR2ux6_FmA-BvUww4F-G9cAveQFzuclol0sXGkb2OScavSgPqNXJ-FYN7W5g1yWCimpg/s1600/More+Beautiful+In+Winter.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 320px; height: 285px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5713767822029926770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEtVLh6e9ROs2DwfpIVE5QkdQ7HCt_Cu17MH-2ErBHRo1bOgIzyIwhI8lrPZzPwgGzWKc6iyOOR2ux6_FmA-BvUww4F-G9cAveQFzuclol0sXGkb2OScavSgPqNXJ-FYN7W5g1yWCimpg/s320/More+Beautiful+In+Winter.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6yKf57xsVCmGNC-b7Z9M5l-JIDxza9jBxJdn6g6k9XwG2GtEdTMzS7f2M4wKgcN8ybnuN1ODy2GwipEHLpu3Oh1iFEuxYEkvhUpcBgoxRNNNHLr71OT-2_q1J6YbMmqBW_oNhyOn8MI/s1600/Broken+Drum.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 320px; height: 269px; float: left; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5713766525818547762" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6yKf57xsVCmGNC-b7Z9M5l-JIDxza9jBxJdn6g6k9XwG2GtEdTMzS7f2M4wKgcN8ybnuN1ODy2GwipEHLpu3Oh1iFEuxYEkvhUpcBgoxRNNNHLr71OT-2_q1J6YbMmqBW_oNhyOn8MI/s320/Broken+Drum.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNMmghG3HJDF6QwEE9Krc-CoLqBo4bOQmfvRPuNa2UwAf_E637p-QNC7sJr8wdOv75iia8LFKD04vPIKA-jCN5E5qxF8wEfhsKUUC2QHeI-OOyrk09HGVNzsy4m73ZUXSfUPoIbafvx14/s1600/Fairy+Spotting.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 320px; height: 270px; float: left; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5713766516257957906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNMmghG3HJDF6QwEE9Krc-CoLqBo4bOQmfvRPuNa2UwAf_E637p-QNC7sJr8wdOv75iia8LFKD04vPIKA-jCN5E5qxF8wEfhsKUUC2QHeI-OOyrk09HGVNzsy4m73ZUXSfUPoIbafvx14/s320/Fairy+Spotting.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Hpf9kuDl_61tUtCA2-5feYuxiRAaOhRnO0V0vrLT8C07TwNfbvwJUu547I2iQWtZzcE72KkfSARGYshQYKDIG6jKDb0qOKez11o95LsfJ-u4MiOzWRSkYB2QCeIaEHa5uMMlQtwKxqw/s1600/Eating+Trees.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 219px; height: 320px; float: left; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5713766507172723970" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Hpf9kuDl_61tUtCA2-5feYuxiRAaOhRnO0V0vrLT8C07TwNfbvwJUu547I2iQWtZzcE72KkfSARGYshQYKDIG6jKDb0qOKez11o95LsfJ-u4MiOzWRSkYB2QCeIaEHa5uMMlQtwKxqw/s320/Eating+Trees.JPG" /></a></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>not enough hours in the day possibly but probably more that I am still living in a bit of a limbo land and am not settled into any sort of routine. Hopefully this will be the week I sign contracts on my new house and can start to move in. I am looking forward to having a desk and some 'me' time in which to set aside hours in the day to write. I have been a headless chicken for the last few weeks <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">dividing</span> my time between work, visiting my daughter, seeing friends and driving endlessly backwards and forwards between them and where I am living. There has been no time at all for photography. We had a whole lot of snow one day though and I made myself take some time to go out with my camera. Keep fingers crossed that this is the week my new life starts and I will be <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">blogging</span> away again I'm sure!<br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ4Q9TnkPOckqaTo5vMYu5R-rKsukRxgjWo3X1gm6LqZ4XJwy2Vcs08mMhPlBjv-RWTqpgUXJcubEZs4X0CBq6_PK-JUVssRZeuN54vtg9gwMOlKA7Vo_zAnCXl92yqdGa7IYJZCnBj4Y/s1600/Orange+Glory.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 280px; height: 320px; float: left; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5713766499983926674" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ4Q9TnkPOckqaTo5vMYu5R-rKsukRxgjWo3X1gm6LqZ4XJwy2Vcs08mMhPlBjv-RWTqpgUXJcubEZs4X0CBq6_PK-JUVssRZeuN54vtg9gwMOlKA7Vo_zAnCXl92yqdGa7IYJZCnBj4Y/s320/Orange+Glory.JPG" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkawoyM1mfE5Qb6Pv4twQ2fjlxKNBJKjYDDDDpl8cZyl-PF9jTXLASaO27UQIys0dPGWvhbFrYO-T-mSQJnYeMY5lGLoAvjI3zkRBZSniyPMr7HYjQ_D-uOWN7mzyNIggBF6axy2jEMYI/s1600/Squirrels+Abound.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 320px; height: 296px; float: left; cursor: pointer;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5713766495651649602" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkawoyM1mfE5Qb6Pv4twQ2fjlxKNBJKjYDDDDpl8cZyl-PF9jTXLASaO27UQIys0dPGWvhbFrYO-T-mSQJnYeMY5lGLoAvjI3zkRBZSniyPMr7HYjQ_D-uOWN7mzyNIggBF6axy2jEMYI/s320/Squirrels+Abound.JPG" /></a><br /><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-4238666853044367532012-01-17T20:49:00.005+00:002012-01-17T21:50:19.978+00:00frost at last!<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjst_evs5b77YRr2_HDa6T115Yc3aRZ4BMrpqzZo3-Ruww4sF3eEEcOuUireT88nFV-t6CcD2F2Nx7o26Ozq7A-GFT_pCvFCuyl4h1eZjpkbSP1Ze3WskWBiNxUBsV_WwT9bkkEM5NDGR0/s1600/DSC00763.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698717964738358802" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjst_evs5b77YRr2_HDa6T115Yc3aRZ4BMrpqzZo3-Ruww4sF3eEEcOuUireT88nFV-t6CcD2F2Nx7o26Ozq7A-GFT_pCvFCuyl4h1eZjpkbSP1Ze3WskWBiNxUBsV_WwT9bkkEM5NDGR0/s400/DSC00763.JPG" /></a>What a glorious frost we had this morning! I was straight out into mums garden in my jamas and dressing gown! </div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698717454325783394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPooP1WjVIgtWIsxZGA_5r6lzlu2RY8QXzSl39LP8bZVLU6c267c5S1Dsd3fmXTlZorPQfWBkCDl-QcN1B1ldMgo-YtVBQrvUDr-7xquufsxG1jJUNcRD2zry-qYJvDQZ5kt0lKJ8DkSQ/s400/DSC00760.JPG" /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center">I have a lot of frosty leaf and berry pictures from last year so I was looking for something different to add to my portfolio.<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698717434621683714" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd2gRBYefZYl8SEjkLJ1jsVL9lZftU0ME1YETSO3R2LqwInYQ48sb5bCcw5LfzkqMh12hH1fxDadf6J3BK7mMoVKW-eMxcCmNcUTWbwncyp0rKLrwZ4zRV7HGEsr1d5sxk1Ib7_nGTfE4/s400/DSC00774.JPG" /> <br /><div align="center">There are a lot of balls in the garden, Madge is still pretty much a puppy and I just love the frost on this yellow one!</div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5698717432799621986" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi90ulIMz8UEZ1228hsW1t2T4Bpv0fuO2KFZPBXIwdZXgO4tB4_CWBDktKn2N1VZeaX38ah1Kk4Dgl6wxRCrmYV14gMn2VPCa5vhEQGLtcDNoLJLR-1nU-6RTVlYN3R-BT1TC9bGnrJ1QE/s400/DSC00779.JPG" /><br /><br /><div align="center">There are a lot of stones too, I wish I'd seen these a little earlier as the frost was starting to melt by the time I got to them. Perhaps we'll have another frost, its still January after all!</div><br /></div>Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-84242686490603794262012-01-11T09:27:00.007+00:002012-01-12T11:52:17.188+00:00full moon frolics<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitX3jkOj1EgAXj-9VGmL5eYogMYWJazZVyjCw3Jzl8h52RpbJld5SxML7xOUYSpA6xurWewupYbmYxrDpKXCEdDWOJ_LNn9rDEIUBV_TsqJbMunJeXsXZhRK25558zgEqSDR7sAdDEEGQ/s1600/DSC00678.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5696711519562237522" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitX3jkOj1EgAXj-9VGmL5eYogMYWJazZVyjCw3Jzl8h52RpbJld5SxML7xOUYSpA6xurWewupYbmYxrDpKXCEdDWOJ_LNn9rDEIUBV_TsqJbMunJeXsXZhRK25558zgEqSDR7sAdDEEGQ/s400/DSC00678.JPG" /></a> My mothers house is surrounded by countryside and it has been lovely to be in a rural location again after living in a town for years. We all trudged up to the top of a nearby hill the other night as my brother (26) wanted to let of Chinese Lanterns and take photographs of them against the full moon. Myself, my son and my mother were in charge of the lighting and release with a little help from Madge the dog! <br /><div><br /><div><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5696711511537491682" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLncNE0T0Ncm3Azn5VfkX1uCirEQmHp9s-KbwSvJxMhJzeiX0hCsgTCyQnUSRN250taXvv4yMYRiLt5FgPpM5fewATK54OA70wGmi8WgnyqhHr8MnWfUhob6yjXGFdsQOBjP4XvlSxRHY/s400/DSC00684.JPG" /></div><br /><div>It was actually quite fun and the sky was gorgeous with wispy clouds, followed by clear star scattered black with glowing orange from the city of Leicester in the distance. The lantern lighting wasn't hugely successful as we were trying to let off all 8 at once and so had unfolded them all and laid them all on the ground. In hindsight we think this had made them damp but we did manage to get a couple up in the sky. I hadn't taken a tripod and only grabbed my camera at the last minute as it was my brothers show really but I do like the effects that I got all the same with my camera set on night shooting and just the built in flash. As my laptop is still in hospital, i don't have any editing facilities so what you see is what you get. There are no special effects or editing done on Madge's portrait, it just came out that way! </div><br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5696711028432087234" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ApinIkmJjrZEF4pvZvxjW9z2-yLhDIyIchc91thAi4UskcufyQrZzOjcjZIVA3Xs8PGQpJoT-ZuPBnkuFsb3HithQ7Lmj5cJFVS_pkfwCA5tMVDybLoU4vLj7JsC-aqTf6L5CA-VlEI/s400/DSC00682.JPG" /></div><br /><div></div></div></div>Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-56368748915615970982012-01-08T15:35:00.003+00:002012-01-08T16:10:23.123+00:00alan rickman and the packmen<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB2GBcRNXmA0Am-rXwSokxvEjBQHVLR3Ml8Vh7mYVM7TpNPbU5N-xWIymahgTqfdomgltMHhtCsBNb-rXc0huidK0FbpTax90SVPoVQvQcrHkv7L7HLoCZ3zkkE5gwu9yLGXe3G-k0ytM/s1600/21+june+2010+077.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 223px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695288110646400754" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB2GBcRNXmA0Am-rXwSokxvEjBQHVLR3Ml8Vh7mYVM7TpNPbU5N-xWIymahgTqfdomgltMHhtCsBNb-rXc0huidK0FbpTax90SVPoVQvQcrHkv7L7HLoCZ3zkkE5gwu9yLGXe3G-k0ytM/s400/21+june+2010+077.JPG" /></a> I've had a bit of a disaster in that my laptop has crashed, lots of little pack-man like creatures appeared on the screen followed by a lovely message saying 'beginning system dump'. I switched it off quick but alas tis no more and won't even boot up. A trip to the laptop hospital is scheduled for the morning but it means I am having to borrow my sons laptop. I was loading a video off You Tube of Alan Rickman, one of my favourite actors as my friend and I were having a Saturday evening Facebook conversation about the joys of watching Alan. The clip in question was of him in 'Die Hard' but as soon as I opened it <em>boom</em>, meltdown. I'm sorry Alan but I will never see you in the same light again!<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 312px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695288101208375474" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOo-bllND6bdHrIUs9mp7MIRN5BijW-ySqbkfwrLjxk9KsNjtcFlizElHTr12UGaW7u19Y4JmkIhKuw10tWiUIxD2ALa0z3YZfCo5G0TYaP5bO7Nkse9FDa0JJciesV5_SSu9h9eAOSvQ/s400/21+june+2010+090.JPG" /><br />Now I was sure I had my USB stick in the handbag I have brought to mums whilst I live here temporarily but its not in there so I don't have any photographs to put on here! I have a few on another stick that I did bring, which are actually quite lovely to look at as they were taken mid summer last year, a world away from the grey days were having at the moment. Mum has a long hedge running the length of her driveway which is a magnet for Bees. Legs full of pollen they were buzzing furiously from flower to flower oblivious to my camera lens beside them. ooh I can feel the warmth of the sun on me now! <br /><div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 222px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695288096605431698" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSZFGQaQCN9-1ntzsRnFD6JBmst6TLuwVaVR8CirfzrY61KHm0-ptKPzI9EEtN3AcSvq_NrVvRq1YZPd7yFXqsQlh1r9rmMxxbBB8j1lJ198ik5ywxu1RcfQRKFg6LQxb1uSkZaPuUETI/s400/21+june+2010+074.JPG" /></div><br /><div>Yesterday I began the task of packing up my belongings at my former home. If all goes well I should be in the new house in 3-4 weeks so I began with my studio room outside and the garage. It wasn't too bad actually, I would think the hard part will be the things inside the house but I am able to leave that until I have the new one so I'm hoping excitement will keep tears at bay. It was strange to pack away our Christmas decorations, dividing them up between us so that we each had a tree and baubles for next year. Each year previously I had wondered to myself if my partner and I would make it to another Christmas, such was the precarious situation I had lived in. There was always the dark cloud hanging over me, the insecurity of why he wouldn't marry, why he still wanted everything to be separate even after all those years and worryingly his history of failed relationships. Although I had hoped and tried to make something more of us than my partner had wanted to be and I felt I had made a family despite of that, I knew in my heart that I was still on trial and would probably never make the grade. So this Christmas it was time to stop trying, to pack up the decorations for the last time in the way I had feared I would have to one day. Yesterday was that day. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div>Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-90702265597990989162012-01-05T09:28:00.004+00:002012-01-05T12:17:51.720+00:00get into the grooveA very windy, cold day found my friend and I at Syston's Watermead Park, a series of man made lakes which are home to many species of birds, types of grasses and a few interesting sculptures.<br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6gTe-VpqTskKYEG30b5eyk_8KFF8nKGx3sHYf_CGvt6TeAIYGtz4rhaXhi31Woj7lB8Apj-sn5HeoHMheur3gk2bqpapWnQb5nHaFYP-dvcC6-VaKCY4IvsUEZCSizPgHRcx80nx9Hxw/s1600/syston+2+004.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 359px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5694078810619829138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6gTe-VpqTskKYEG30b5eyk_8KFF8nKGx3sHYf_CGvt6TeAIYGtz4rhaXhi31Woj7lB8Apj-sn5HeoHMheur3gk2bqpapWnQb5nHaFYP-dvcC6-VaKCY4IvsUEZCSizPgHRcx80nx9Hxw/s400/syston+2+004.JPG" /></a>One of my Father's favourite songs was <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEhS9Y9HYjU">Noel Harrison's Windmills Of Your Mind</a> and the photograph above reminds me of the opening line 'Round like a circle in a spiral ' I had saved quite a few of dad's old favourites on my ipod to play over Christmas dinner when all the family came round as a way of having him with us. That didn't happen of course but I have been listening to the playlist quite a lot over the last three weeks and it has been a comfort. No music in there to remind my of my partner or my former life, just ones that bring back happy memories of childhood and dad dancing around the living room. My parents loved music, Elton John's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Srr5KetBCI">'Crocodile Rock'</a> would always have them jiving together whatever the time of day and of course as a child I loved to see them so happy.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXmGydmWsbzJNhyXSo3r5ujfUJdx-GaXwOseqfZiUsjHPxszK5kJPd4E5KBpXo2i_5z_vlTC8IPXpcXGH5_FD4qUZR3-A-V1N-Jwx3YlTWKZ3XFZLOw1Ef7hK7FB3sJoUEFy2dzL6VoIc/s1600/syston+2+010.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 266px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5694078805536275394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXmGydmWsbzJNhyXSo3r5ujfUJdx-GaXwOseqfZiUsjHPxszK5kJPd4E5KBpXo2i_5z_vlTC8IPXpcXGH5_FD4qUZR3-A-V1N-Jwx3YlTWKZ3XFZLOw1Ef7hK7FB3sJoUEFy2dzL6VoIc/s400/syston+2+010.JPG" /></a>I had to have a MRI scan a few years ago which before hand was met with worried faces by some and "its awful inside inside there" warnings by others. You could choose the music to be played inside the machine and I chose 80's music to bring back happy memories and hopefully let me drift away in thoughts whilst I was scanned. It worked and it was that day I really understood the power of music, it transports you right back to the time when you were happy, to what you were doing and to how you felt. Music Therapy is fascinating, live music was used as a therapy for injured soldiers in both world wars and is used to treat all manner of mental illness' and disabilities today and if you have a chance, read about the </div><br /><div align="center"><a href="http://www.nordoff-robbins.org.uk/">Nordoff-Robbins School of Music</a>.<br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMAdN8LsHhwYPQrtEZvQoO-kvrKGB3_4Kc-M-bjnwau_tyJ1fV2IPtk2ntTrB0YnneTLAdnv7HTtBTk0j30ZPXD0ij3AV-LgvIfD55dDwzpff6W64zLTYKBEdAm0aK5u3tjwS21lDDT_0/s1600/syston+2+012.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 210px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5694078792755286770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMAdN8LsHhwYPQrtEZvQoO-kvrKGB3_4Kc-M-bjnwau_tyJ1fV2IPtk2ntTrB0YnneTLAdnv7HTtBTk0j30ZPXD0ij3AV-LgvIfD55dDwzpff6W64zLTYKBEdAm0aK5u3tjwS21lDDT_0/s400/syston+2+012.JPG" /></a> I used to watch the TV programme 'Ally McBeal' written by David E Kelley, an American legal series. One of the quirky lawyers, John Cage, had a theme tune (<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1-9vw8cUi8">Barry White</a>) that he would switch on and play inside his head whenever he needed a confidence boost. As the programme was essentially a comedy drama of course we would hear the music as he started to jig around to it, despite the bewildered looks of all around him but it worked for him and soon the co-stars were joining in and I liked the idea!</div><br /><br /><div>I adopted <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrLJXp3nYiE">Madonna's 'Get into the Grove'</a> as my theme tune, not the best song ever but as a teenager, I always felt incredibly confident when I danced to it at clubs and it worked! Whenever I needed a bit of umph I would hear it in my head or even put it on and dance around to it. I haven't used it for a few years but I think I will begin again now.<br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX80ip53ad1HIRP9w7idZelAn_66R9RNI87KaYsFXbi756Th09IvM-gi_SenBSLbBNv0IgEoGxEj-0ygYx_gDMCa04h6s6FBPfmASQ_hbOb_fZ1B-Vta8mTFxUqDDwTlY84DYFq7kmtyo/s1600/syston+2+002.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 266px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5694078785659994418" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX80ip53ad1HIRP9w7idZelAn_66R9RNI87KaYsFXbi756Th09IvM-gi_SenBSLbBNv0IgEoGxEj-0ygYx_gDMCa04h6s6FBPfmASQ_hbOb_fZ1B-Vta8mTFxUqDDwTlY84DYFq7kmtyo/s400/syston+2+002.JPG" /></a><br />As I was just typing that and humming my theme song in my head I received a phone call and I've just bought a house! Positive thoughts - blimey!!<br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFxDNgi2aw8SxWo98JrSU6lc16U4IkZl6keHluOw8NELpYZpa-UzI9WmuVKTlQJX56unSQ9aJ2kZRRaY76TEslJc6Gmm1Rmq0DulXNl3FMZeRIJ4cWcDobBT_QDzgedukFHPdmG167xrQ/s1600/syston+2+008.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 236px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5694078776735024562" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFxDNgi2aw8SxWo98JrSU6lc16U4IkZl6keHluOw8NELpYZpa-UzI9WmuVKTlQJX56unSQ9aJ2kZRRaY76TEslJc6Gmm1Rmq0DulXNl3FMZeRIJ4cWcDobBT_QDzgedukFHPdmG167xrQ/s400/syston+2+008.JPG" /></a>I think 2012 will be a year filled with music for me, I don't hear so well, my right ear isn't the best (thickening of the bones in my ear) and I have tinnitus (too much time around rock bands as a teenager) so I can only cope well with one, maybe two noises at a time. This means I generally put music on when no-ones around as anyone trying to talk to me or making other noises and I get a headache pretty quickly. With someone always around at home I had got out of the habit of playing my music so its something I'm going to bring back into my life. My partner never liked live music and concerts so hopefully this year I will be able to go to some of those as well! I intend to surround myself with positive things after the negativity of recent times, things that make me happy and feed my injured soul. Music is the first!<br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4937317021918629970.post-11818218177710217202011-12-31T11:32:00.003+00:002011-12-31T11:50:56.280+00:00a new path<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXfbR0_tlEbSSjelvsX_n-Nfw3_DRfeMHe7E3feFARCSQPbKk1HTvUXtL7O818MRx054AsfI7VJ38loKt6yOBOXjghWvS9vdq9NrQHwaeqytT_TKC48-M8ywI3_d_dw7PgePCCqmicHYI/s1600/%2527Fairy+Lights%2527+-+Copy.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 307px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692254358983723058" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXfbR0_tlEbSSjelvsX_n-Nfw3_DRfeMHe7E3feFARCSQPbKk1HTvUXtL7O818MRx054AsfI7VJ38loKt6yOBOXjghWvS9vdq9NrQHwaeqytT_TKC48-M8ywI3_d_dw7PgePCCqmicHYI/s400/%2527Fairy+Lights%2527+-+Copy.JPG" /></a> When the clock strikes twelve tonight it will be the start of a New Year and a start of a new life for me. Right now all I want to do is go home, back to my life, the one I have known for ten years. I want to walk in the front door when I visit my daughter later, clean my kitchen surfaces, make a drink for my family and sit down on our sofa just like every other Saturday I have had for years. There were so many parts about my family that I loved and so many things about the man I was with that I loved and I always hoped that we would make it, I can't imagine there being no 'us'. But for a while now, the bad bits had outweighed the good and although it is devastating to be without him, to have it fail, I know in the long run it will be for the best. Its such a shame, such a waste when you have given your heart. </div><br /><div align="center">So brave face at midnight and I will try my hardest not to cry when all the couples are kissing, I may even leave before that point, I will have to see. The photograph below, I have put on here before but when looking for a picture that symbolises the start to my year, there can't be any other than this one. Taken on a morning, very early, when it was just me alone in the woods with my camera and nature at its most glorious it shows me my future. I will be able to do this thing again that makes me so happy, wandering along with my camera capturing the magic, along my new path.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikACDK4tmrvceOb4yd0Dz4bTRjNNqdlqKcA0Vb6sInKIP38aW25H5UVNJS2azbFQGe20UHGqzZyM0d6MqeP7ME2Bi81y4NvknT_t6AKVPVFKw1ctzzCnDRKDGejRme3J6xcpIZogYrw_w/s1600/%2527Follow+the+Path+to+Fairyland%2527.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 293px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692254350016364130" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikACDK4tmrvceOb4yd0Dz4bTRjNNqdlqKcA0Vb6sInKIP38aW25H5UVNJS2azbFQGe20UHGqzZyM0d6MqeP7ME2Bi81y4NvknT_t6AKVPVFKw1ctzzCnDRKDGejRme3J6xcpIZogYrw_w/s400/%2527Follow+the+Path+to+Fairyland%2527.JPG" /></a><br /><br /><div></div><br /></div>Helen Watson-Joneshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16204470689652520348noreply@blogger.com4