Pig Sty Avenue

I've got a lot to blog about the subject of "street" photography. No time tonight. I've added a link to 2point8 to remind me, though.

castlegate berwick upon tweed , originally uploaded by PigStyAve . We had a right kerfuffle today. Herself was off with Molly to Edinburgh. I was to help them on the train at Newcastle... As I was finding a place for the folded up bit of the pram, I looked out of the window and there was the station bloke waving the train off... The corridor was packed, the doors locked and there I was captured, and being bad tempered with the guard as far as Berwick. Hmm. Luckily I had my camera, and had a couple of hours there. 'Twas a pleasant enough accident, really. This photo has a lovely feel to it.

crying baby , originally uploaded by PigStyAve . Two teeth now. We've had a few sleepless nights with the teething - and the heat lately doesn't help. But she's a great baby, and gives us all frequent nights of several hours sleep. What more could we ask? And, bless her, here she is doing a bit of research.

... is to give you and your pals a bookmark to something informative, useful or funny. This thread is all three. It'll help me to remember how to take photos.

Hopefully, I'll be doing some extra hours at the College's summer school next month. It's quite well paid, which will come in handy . F1.4! I left photography alone during most of June and early July, and expected to dust off the camera and reapproach it with fresh eyes. Instead, I just seem to be taking snapshots. I got a good one of Alexander yesterday but he won't let me post it. Bloody kids, getting minds of their own, I don't know...

crushing a new building , originally uploaded by buildingcrusher . If you've never encountered the photography of building crusher, you're missing out on something moderately significant.

Radical Philosophy , originally uploaded by Pig Sty Ave . That's Molly thinking-over an article she's just read in her Mam's Radical Philosophy magazine. Her virus lasted only a couple of days. Probably to do with teething - she's got a top tooth to match the bottom one now, and is having a great time with the novelty of teeth grinding. The current bout of academic work is nearly done - probably another full day next week to tie up some loose ends and proof read the several essays. And then no more studying until September, when I start on Sociolinguistics for the Masters, AND a teaching course at work. Couple of weeks holiday now. We won't go away this summer, but have local days out.

...of coming home to roost. Coincidentally, in rare idle moments, I've been leafing through The Great Shark Hunt , which, amongst other things, casts a malevolent eye on the last days in power of my Uncle Richard . Totally different details, of course - nobody's suggesting (yet, anyhow,) that New Labour's been burgling and bugging anyone, (why would they bother?) But there is that same feel about it all: the weird feeling of untouchability that all governments get when they've been in power more than a few years. Thatcher went down the same road. Another factor that goes with power is that arrogance will lead to people getting rubbed up the wrong way. Most significantly for current purposes, the police and the press. High handed bullies, pricks like Alistair Campbell and Johnny Boy Reid, have been humiliating and sending-away-with-lumps-in-their-throats all kinds of people over the last ten years. Just think about it. Somebody inflicts psychic pain like that an...

Molly's got a viral infection: temperature, feeling sad some of the time. We took her to the doctor this morning, and it's nothing to worry about. Another week and I should finish the Grammar and Phonology module of the MA. It's taking a lot of mental energy just now. But the allotment is a restorative. Mostly watering and weeding this weather.

You would not believe how this pond has progressed since the last post about it . It clouded up for a couple of weeks - thick as pea soup. And then, as if by magic the water cleared wonderfully. There's quite a lot of weed on the surface, and we thin that every now and again. There are still two quite distinct sizes of tadpole. I've done a bit of Googling on this, and it's possible that the smaller ones are the common frog, and the big ones the marsh frog : which would be splendid. There at least two newts, I can't tell which sort. From my Googling, it seems unlikely that any of the visible tadpoles are newt-tadpoles . There are several different kinds of tiny crustaceans, and those black shiny beetles that come to the surface to get a bubble of air. All kinds of insects buzzing around the surface: a dragonfly; flies with yellow spots. It's a marvel, that pond. And all from nothing in just a single season. I'll try and research all the life there and g...