A dragon slayer in the making

“The sun is a daily reminder that we too can rise again from the darkness, 

that we too can shine our own light.”

~ S. Ajna

Some mornings are breathtaking and a privilege to be a part of.

You know when you’re walking along saying ‘wow’ under your breath as you walk that the morning has something EXTRA-ordinary about it.

Especially when the ‘wow’ is coming from someone who sees the early morning beauty on a regular basis.

AND never tires of it.

It was the way the light was falling.

The reflections it created.

The other worldliness of it all.

Not all mornings are like that.

Nor does a photo do them justice.

You had to BE there to understand.

Light.

The very essence of it.

In every shape, shade and form.

It’s on these kind of mornings that I feel invincible.

A dragon slayer in the making.

I love that the sunny days linger long into autumn.

Even though the sun’s rising later in the day there is

so much to look forward to on our rambles.

The explosion of colour that autumn brings for one thing.

It’s anything BUT brown and drab!

Brilliant hues of yellow, gold and orange 

all set against the bluest of blue skies.

I love the stillness of it too.

Even the leaves seem to dance in slow motion as they twirl to the floor.

No dragons chasing them.

The hound of course is oblivious to all this.

There’s water.

A ball

... or a log

And someone to throw it.

She leaves the dragon slaying to me.

Jabberwocky ... a language NO-ONE understands.

 Looking for the light between the lamp-posts to answer whatsapp

messages on a cold and dark winter’s morning is fun!  

Such unusual colours in the sun-rise this morning ... first time I've seen so much purple!

The hound doesn’t understand the frequent pauses in our ramble.

Her reading of p-mails and replying is the USUAL cause of a pause.

Not so this morning.

The impatient stance of her body as I yet again paused under a lamp-post was palpable.

Capturing seagulls in flight is fun
I do feel a bit bad sending the hound into the waves to make them fly!

I’ve reached an age where my ability to read text on a tiny screen has drastically diminished.

Especially when the sun’s not yet up!

Glasses do help but those are securely tucked away in the backpack.

Besides, it’s much more fun to unintentionally invent new words

 and leave whatsapping friend to decipher them!

Indy waiting PATIENTLY for the coffee cup.

Even when I CAN see, auto-correct has the annoying habit of turning some of our conversations into real humdingers.

It translates everything into Jabberwocky ... a language NO-ONE understands.

A small price to pay for INSTANT communication with mates who DON’T live in the arse end of the world I guess.

It’s Friday again though, my all-time FAVOURITE day of the week!

The one day of the week when I get to ramble till the cows come home

 ... in a figurative sense that is ... 

inbetween trying to reply to whatsapp messages!

The "Traveller" and one one of the more unusual spots he choose to snooze on

Everything about a Friday is just perfect in it’s own IMPERFECT way.

Low tide was at 7.20 this morning and the sun was still trying to rise.

Even the feet-seeking missile DIDN’T disappoint.

He’s back from his holiday and, in usual feet-seeking missile style, 

flung himself at my feet for the obligatory tummy rub.

He makes ME feel SO loved.

Delighted to be back together again!

In true Labrador fashion he took an instant LIKING to the ROPE swing 

Julia found on the beach last week.

Who would have thought a rope could create so much fun!

Yes.  A thick ROPE hung from a TREE with a huge KNOT at the end of it.

Cheeky Sam using the hound for balance

Someone, name unknown, has hung it from a tree at the far end of the bay.  

The cliff end of the bay. 

From a tree who’s roots are exposed by the crumbling cliff face.

The Hounds LOVE it.

He's tall enough to get his paws round the knot, the hound isn't.

It’s TOO high for them to easily grasp and it MOVES when they try.

Sam, being taller than the hound, is able to get his front legs ROUND the knot.

He TIP-TOES ballerina style up and down the sand with 

loud and vocal encouragement from the hound.

It provides no END of entertainment.

Not just for the hounds but for US too.

Mornings like this are BEYOND magical.

A crispness in the air.  An iciness to the sky

MY world is just BEAUTIFUL.

"And suddenly you know: 

It's time to start something new and trust the magic of beginnings."

~ anon

Catching shells!

Depraved manic dervish!

“What is photography. It’s a camera, and a lens, and a light. 

That’s it. It’s simple.” 

~ Zach Arias, photographer.

When I once said to the oldest lemming that all you need to take a photo is light, he laughed at me and told me that was obvious .... but he was missing the point!!

I was trying to portray how very simple photography needs to be and he didn’t get it .... he thought I was being dim or typically blonde. Technology, whilst providing us with the most amazing equipment, has also made photography more complicated. This chap, Zach Arias, put it in a nutshell. 

Photography IS all about the light AND how well you know your camera.

Will there EVER be a day when I DON’T learn something new?

I pinch myself some mornings to make sure I’m awake. The dark moments of the night when I’m surrounded by shadows are chased into oblivion by the awesomeness of Mother Nature. Every day begins afresh with the rising of the sun. It’s my talisman .... a sure fire reminder that life is cyclical and that nothing remains the same forever. Each day is a new one. Each day I get the chance to try living once again.

Who could ask for more.

Being enthusiastically greeted by an exuberant hound and a purring fur-ball every morning isn’t everyone’s cup of tea .... but I love it. Not only does the fur-ball purr but she also vibrates ..... vigorously! Should my alarm not wake me, I can be certain of being woken by a noisy vibrating fur-ball wrapping itself around my neck.  

Nothing’s ever normal in my world ... but would I want it to be?

I’ve worked in the shop the last 3 days so this morning’s ramble was a long one ... both the hound and I needed it. Carol’s away in Melbourne watching the tennis .... she’s a fanatical tennis nut and they’ve got tickets for both semi-finals. I hope Pete manages to restrain her during the Djovich match. He’s NOT her favourite tennis player, Djovich that is, and she’s been known to use some choice words whilst watching him play. Poor Pete .... he might have welts on his arms and be deaf by the time they return to Aux.

We did our usual early morning hike with Julia and Indy and then returned to the beach. The sunshine DOES something to my hound, I’m sure of it. She turns into a depraved manic dervish hell bent on digging up as much of the beach as she can, in order to unearth the ball or log she’s buried. Why bury it in the first place if you’re only going to dig it up again?

Suitably covered in sand and beach debris we headed back up the hill to the viewsite chasing butterflies as we walked. Watching them flutter away every time I tried to get close enough for a photo made me think of the butterfly effect in chaos theory. Simply put, the theory states that a butterfly flapping its wings in one part of the world  might ultimately cause a hurricane in another part of the world.

Hmmmm ...... so I wonder how many hurricanes we caused today!

“Find what you love and let it kill you.” 

~ Bukowski 1920 - 1994