hell of a season

A week into one of the worst heatwaves I can remember and we're all gatvol. Tips on how to stay cool can be heard on radio, in staff rooms and at the supermarket and I think I've just about tried them all. They all work for about a half an hour, until whatever was wet, dries.

I was at the beach just after five this morning in a desperate attempt to catch a coolish breeze or two...and I wasn't alone. You can see the heat in these pics!!
Urgh. Fast forward to winter!

Hell of a Season- The Black Keys - El Camino 2011

2011 rumbles in ....but it's alright

On a day very reminicent of New Years day two years ago I crawled out of my terribly anti-social cave and wandered down to good old Strand beach to mingle with the masses.
It was much cooler this time and the rain kept falling in big random drops every now and then but the weird weather didn't seem to worry anyone.

 Then, suddenly, the big random drops became less and less random and things got darker. 

Too dark to even see the obvious blobby bits on my lens. Damn.

 Suspicious minds might see this as a bad sign. Not a great way to start a new year. But I say, at least the bloody wind wasn't blowing.

 Here's to a cool, calm and collected year.

 Regardless of what life throws at you may you always find a lovely view, a comfy bench and a friend or two to share it with.

Happy New Year everyone!
PS- Check my flickr for more later


Nina Simone -Here Comes the Sun

hello 2010

Last year this time I was on the beach celebrating the New Year with the rest of Cape Town.

Not happening today as the wind's howling.
Instead, I'm going to wash paw prints off walls later on.
And think about all that stuff one is supposed to think about on the first day of a new decade.
Like.... is this the year I will finally buy a stove? And will I learn the secret to keeping my indoor plants alive? And, will I ever finish the canvas primed and propped up against the wall in my lounge?
And *gasp* will I get around to finishing my quilt!? Oh please let it be so!

Anyway, enough of that heavy navel-gazing stuff.

Here are some pics from the so-early-we-didn't-even-brush-our-teeth walk that Debs and I did on the beach the other morning.It was blustery and overcast as most mornings have been lately. And bloody freezing.
Poor tourists.

 

Another gratuitous Max pic.

Happy New Year everyone!

Here's to a year filled with good times, great health

and peace.
Let there be lots of peace.

Laura Veirs "Life is Good Blues"

tiddely-om-pom-pom

The Strand beachfront desperately needs a makeover.

It's a nice enough beach. It has great stretches of sand, a rock pool, a small jetty at one end and a fleet of surfers at the other.

But there really is no character to the place at all. It's missing some local flavour.

A wide promenade all the way along Beach Road would be nice. It should be scattered with kooky performance artists and uber hot dudes working out ala Venice Beach in LA.
There'd be no desperate hunting for interesting people to shoot.

Or how about a long pier stretching out into the waves with kiosks overflowing with candy floss and balloons
and benches of little old ladies eating ice-cream while holding onto their hats.

Where are the quaint seaside shops selling buckets and spades and dodgy postcards?

And I luv Strand T-shirts....

If I could just pick up the entire stretch of  Kalk Bay main road I'd be one very happy photographer.

Cause it's all about the photo, see?
I'm ruthless that way.

Sorry to the lady in the photo above.
No one will know it's you, don't worry. ;-P


Basil Rathbone sings  'I Do Like to be Beside the Seaside'

an empty street at dawn

Things at work are hectic (just over a month left!!!) but I've also been soooo lazy lately.

End of year burn-out? Hmm, probably. All I know is that my fingers have been itching to shoot something for a while now. So yesterday morning I hopped in the car at 05:50 and drove through to the Strand. Not to the beach this time (although I did end up there) but for a walk along it's quiet streets.

It was unbelievably quiet -no birds, no dogs, no cars. Just the sound of my camera and the sea.

I know night owls don't get it but I just love being up while the rest of the world is asleep.

It's like holding a secret close to your chest.

I  remember doing the exact same thing when I was a little girl living at the vlei. I'd tiptoe out the house, grabbing Toffee the dog, and walk down to a road that led to the waters edge.

Toffee would be in doggy heaven rooting around poking his nose into mole hills and I'd lie back in the tall grass and listen to the coots splashing in the reeds.

 

Now it's seagulls instead of coots.

Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings- Inspiration Information

..er...spring? hello?

 After huffing and puffing my way through what must have been a trully hilarious

teachers vs Gr7 girls netball match on Thursday I've made some promises to my heart.

I'll walk on the beach every day.  These holidays. These ten day holidays.

I'll not eat anything really bad....like white bread.

And condensed milk.

Straight out the tin.

Walk on the beach day one.

 

 Jocelyn, a building for you. : ) Fiddled a wee bit in PS.

 

As luck would have it, just as this delightful looking family arrived my battery ran out.

When I took this shot it was so flat that the auto focus couldn't work anymore.

I quite like the blur though.

ETA: WTF is blogger doing to the photo thumbnails these days?!!Blech!! 
I've half a mind to move over to Wordpress.