out in the midday sun

Image | March 26, 2020February 27, 2022 | andy townend

“and from the ends of the earth, across the thousands of miles of land and sea, kindly, well-meaning speakers tried to voice their fellow-feeling, and indeed did so, but at the same time proved the utter incapacity of every man truly to share in suffering that he cannot see…”

– Albert Camus, The Plague

Today, I will let my photos tell my story.

Except, one more thing?

Some words, from a colleague with whom I am fortunate to be working (in a virtual sense), who observed (more or less) “our planet has been suffering a fever for some time, now that we too have a fever, perhaps we will change”.

He nailed it.

Coronavirus is presenting us with not only what is perceived (by some) as an existential threat but perhaps also the reverse. Pollution across the world is down, perhaps because people, people like me, are grounded.

So, are we up for a change? I am, even if only in a small way. Every little helps, no?

And, perhaps as my photos suggest, we may be down, but our planet, nature is surely not.

Stay safe everyone.

…and a p.s. as expected, the hotel has (this morning Friday, 27 March) informed we remaining sixteen guests that they are considering closing next Wednesday. So my nomadic lifestyle continues, another twist and turn, watch this space.

*all images hand crafted with iPhone 11 Pro 4.25mm f/1.8 lens, unedited*

On Travail

Image | December 8, 2018October 26, 2019 | andy townend

The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.

St. Augustine

The clue to this post is in the title, which is a clumsy attempt to wrap multiple concepts into a single pithy phrase.

Among my resolutions this year were to write and shoot more. Rather dismally I have failed to respond well to my own resolutions. This does of course make choosing next year’s resolutions so much easier, as I plan to have another go.

However, I am happy to report that I have read a lot this year. And I will write about that also. In due course, the fullness of time, and so on.

I have also travelled a great deal. A very great deal. And, that is also something I intend to write about on the same terms as above.

I am not comfortable with my personal carbon footprint this year. So, trees will need to be planted. Probably enough to stock a decent sized hillside.

What prompted this post was my need to share (other than on my FB page) my journey home.

Continue reading →

high life

Aside | October 16, 2018November 4, 2018 | andy townend

this seat is mine

mine, for the time
it takes
to cross, the
desert
to cross,
from there
to
here,

a part, of me
is no
longer

mine

lost
with all the
other
parts,
along,
the way

lost

by all, those
others, who

said

this seat, is mine

rise // set

Image | March 30, 2018February 27, 2022 | andy townend

Don’t forget:beautiful sunsets need cloudy skies.

– Paulo Coelho

No filters and no edits.

Shot from the window of my BA flight home last night.

For WordPress weekly photo challenge rise/set

scale

Image | October 11, 2017October 11, 2017 | andy townend

For WordPress weekly photo challenge – scale.

I will be back with more for this challenge. I saw this gas station through the window of my bus, speeding through the night, and grabbed this hurried and blurred shot with my iPhone.

It looked oddly out of scale in the dark.

locked in

Image | February 26, 2017February 26, 2017 | andy townend

We all live in a house on fire, no fire department to call; no way out, just the upstairs window to look out of while the fire burns the house down with us trapped, locked in it
― Tennessee Williams, The Milk Train Doesn’t Stop Here Anymore

This post was inspired by a few things.

For starters, I’ve been working too hard and neglecting almost everything, and everyone, else. Apart from the obvious social clues, my Fitbit sits on my wrist admonishing me with a digital iciness of tone, pointing out that I am not exercising enough, and it has facts, and they are not Spicerian alternative facts, but hard, cold evidence. And, not so long ago, whilst walking in the street, I felt decidedly odd, numb fingers, a sense of unreality, dizziness and a general feeling of fading vision. Trust me, that is the universe speaking to me. I think.

Also, I have been using the theft of my beloved X100T as an excuse for not shooting enough, or writing about it.

In conversation today, someone made some kind remarks about my photography. I took this as a challenge, and so set about capturing my environment. This in turn was an act of rebellion about an environment that feels like it has captured me. Shielded from the world outside by double locked gates, security guards, razor wire and faithful drivers.

I’m not complaining. I’m lucky. I’m just rebelling, a little.

These shots were captured (there’s that meme again) with my iPhone. I used Analog Efex Pro 2 (Toy Camera 3) because the effect seemed to capture the way reality bends when in a certain frame of mind.

As for my camera, at least my Nikon is safe at home, and there’s always the X100F to look forward to.

A glass half full?