Photo scavenger hunt for January 2019

Greetings to all fellow followers of Kate's fun blog and best wishes for 2019.

Another year, another interesting selection of topics though my thinking cap  has been working overtime with month.

Metalic

I drew a blank on this one since first reading the list then as I was packing away the surplus Christmas decorations I saw this pile of tinsel and baubles lying on the table and thought.....metallic. We have downsized from a 6 ft to a table top tree and are sending the now unwanted - no that sounds a bit harsh describing our beloved decorations - unneeded decorations to the charity shop along with the large tree.

Made

I must admit, I have not really made anything much this year except some knitted woolly hats.  I was inspired by seeing a programme on our local news about an event in Manchester where knitted hats, gloves, scarves and socks etc were being given out to the homeless and rough sleepers.  I rather felt I could knit beanies (knitted hats for our non-UK bloggers) rather than sit and twiddle my thumbs as I do not  have a project on the go except a jersey that I am struggling to finish.  So that is what I have been doing.

The felted hare is something Kate made me ages ago and the Tomte (Swedish Gnome) she made me for Christmas.  I could not pack him away with the decorations.....he would have not liked that...so I've kept him out.  Now I have a problem...I put him on the bookcase and he jumped off overnight.  I tried another bookcase and he was lying on the floor in the morning.  Now I have foxed him, he sits in the middle of the dining room table with the hare. He can't jump off that!

Aged

What is aged, wine - got none like that, a gnarled old tree - none immediately round here, us - well there is a couple living here that qualify but that is not very original. So as this month we have been looking and photographing wild life roaming round a reserve in South Africa  (details at end of blog) I thought I would take inspiration from there.   We photographed many elephant but this gentleman is the oldest, known as a Big Tusker for obvious reasons.  There are not many left in the wild as they have sadly been poached for their ivory.  But here at the Tembe Elephant Game Reserve in Qua Zulu Natal there is this one. You can also see he is old  by the sunken areas above his eyes and rather bony back. 

Modern  

Following on this same theme here is a younger and more modern version of the old man above. Two females, each with a new baby and one has the previous offspring there too.  

My own choice

Again a selection of pictures taken of animals at various drinking pans since Christmas.  We are spending hours watching them.  The computer is on all day till bedtime and I am just using my iPhone camera to take pictures of the computer screen - it is quicker than taking pictures via their web site but the quality is not always that good.  

(Clockwise) Bush buck, African Eagle and herd of elephants leaving the water hole at Tembe.

Female and young Nyala  drinking at Tembe.
Pair of Giraffe at the cat-EYE pan (no idea why it is called or set out like that).
Wooly necked stork at Tembe and zebra drinking at Naledi pan.

You can even watch at night as they have lights and special cameras operating.  This is a African Spotted Genet hunting. They have the longest tail of all the cat family.   

Finally I just love this sign.  I must be honest and say I pinched it off their web page. 

If anyone feels like watching wild animals under a sunny South African sky this rather dreary time of the year this is the link............. Africam  

There are about five different watering holes to choose from but we have found Tembe the most successful.  O. River is the Olifants River.  

So far we have seen elephant, giraffe, zebra, lioness, leopard, a long tailed spotted genet, a single buffalo, hyena chasing a small herd of buck, baboons, vervet monkeys and hippo (the latter two at Olifants River),  antelope namely kudu, nyala, bush buck, and impala, social weavers with their hundreds of nests in one tree at Tembe, grey heron and a pair of woolly neck storks as well as other bird life.  It's worth a look, you may even get hooked as we are.  It's rather like having one of those original screensavers we all used to have! 

November 2018 photo scavenger hunt

I can't believe it is the end of November and Christmas is just a few weeks away.  Where has the year gone?  Once again Kate has set us an interesting set of words for our headings.  I hope to be able to think outside the proverbial box with most of them.

Post box

In most towns in South Africa there is no postal delivery, all mail goes to your 'P.O.Box' at your nearest post office.  In the background you can see some blue private post boxes. We each had our own keys and could collect post at our leisure.  But posting mail at Hazyview Post Office where we lived, is another thing. This picture was sent to me by friends in South Africa showing the post box - minus door!  One wonders why; did someone want to retrieve something they had posted, was a thief at work - the mind boggles!!

Decay

Seems like this decayed plank will need replacing.  A job for a warmer day perhaps.

Secondhand

Second-hand or second hand - it all depends on the presence or absence of a hyphen and interpretation.  This clock is definitely not second-hand , we bought it new - but it does have a second hand.  It is the most brilliant kitchen clock.  It is radio controlled so always correct and it even changed when the clocks went back, all by itself.  We were most impressed!

Strand

A photograph immediately came to mind when I read this word and when I asked B his reply was the same.  Not a strand of hair, or wool, but Bloubergstrand in the Cape or just the Strand as we knew it.  I'm sure you are all familiar with the famous view of Table Mountain, with or without its tablecloth on top but what you may not know the picture is it is always taken from round the other side of Table Bay at Bloubergstrand (which translates to Blue Mountain Beach named after nearby Blue Mountain).  When we used to visit the Cape where my parents were living we loved going to the beach there.  There was a little village with just a few houses.  Now it is a huge sprawling suburb of Cape Town.

Fold 

I don't have picture of a sheep fold, or folding paper to hand but I did find this example of a fold of flab in my collection.  It was taken in a Private Game Reserve outside Amanzimtoti in Kwa Zulu Natal some years ago.  This orangutan was part of a breeding project which explains why he was so far from his home in Borneo.  But you must admit......it is a fabulous example of a fold!!  

My Own Choice

My scanner is suddenly not talking to my computer! Not sure why.  So I have had to use a photograph which I fortunately have on the PC sent to me by my friend in South Africa, so I am afraid it is two cheats this month, using my friend's photographs.  It is taken in one of the game parks in Northern Province.  What luck finding such a large family of lions just lying in the road.  

  As this is the last monthly scavenger hunt this year I would like to wish all of you a very Happy  Christmas and peaceful 2019.

                                                 

                                                         

October Photo Scavenger Hunt

Once again Kate has set a random selection of words.  It took me a while this month to decide which photographs to select and then I completely forgot to do it.  Life took over.  Then yesterday Lovely Lady reminded me they should be posted today.  Panic. So here is my take on Kate's words - rather hurriedly done.
Kate has been too busy to post this month.  If you could see the work she has achieved together with a couple of friends to get the Trawden Artists and Makers village art festival up and running then I know you will forgive her.  You can check out what she is up to here   TAM-trawden-artists-makers- 2018 and see some of the work on display this weekend.

Print

Like most proud grandparent I keep a few 'art' works done by the grandchildren.  I think these two pictures, though I am sure were done with the help of their mother, fit the heading.

The double print was done by eldest who is now 20 and doing his 3rd year at Lancaster University and the single print is done by youngest. now 18, who has finished school and has started an apprenticeship.  

                    

Spot

Near where we lived in Mpumulunga, Northern Province in South Africa is a Cheetah rescue centre where they take in Cheetahs that have been raised as pets or injured and rehabilitate them so they can return to the wild where they belong.  There were a couple of Cheetahs who had been raised as pets and been used in advertising alongside beautiful models.  They were so tame they could not return to the wild so lived in this enormous enclosure but preferred to stay near where the visitors entered the centre.  That explains why my photograph of a beautiful spotted cheetah was taken through a wire fence.  She just sat there purring just like a contented domestic cat but what a purr.  It was so loud

    .

Boundaries

Not much to say about this sign except it was taken on the road north of Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland. 

     

Flame 

The Flame Lily (Gloriosa Superba) is the national flower of Zimbabwe where it is a protected plant.  A diamond broach in the shape of a Flame Lily was a gift from Southern Rhodesia (modern day Zimbabwe) to the Queen on a visit in 1947 while she was still the crown princess.

When the rainy season started these beautiful flowers would come into bloom.  We used to pick a vaseful of them but as so often happens, people stripped the countryside to sell the flowers and so they became a protected species. 

You can see why they are called 'Flame Lilies'.

Leaves

Ever tried making roses from the gorgeously coloured autumn leaves?  Kate and I made some years ago and some of them are still going strong.  I get them out each Christmas and use them in my indoor Christmas Wreath which I make using as many dried things as I can as the central heating kills it off otherwise. 

The heading 'leaves' inspired me to go and find some fresh leaves and made some again for this post.  Trouble was, I don't have the right kind of trees here any more so we dashed off to Aldi where there are sycamore trees but the winds had blown most of the leaves off.  I did bring some home but they were not supple enough.  So I have resorted to using the lovely yellowing leaves of my climbing hydrangea (Hydrangea petiolaris) which were really on the small side.  If you can still find some leaves where you are they are fun to make. 

Selection of rather small leaves

Fold in half

Roll up small leaf for centre and wrap first leaf around it, outer corners folded across from each side. 

Give a half turn and fold another leaf around first 'petal'.  Continue in this way until a rose bud forms.  This is easier with larger leaves. Holding it firmly at the base, wrap some florists' tape around the stems of the leaves. 

Now you have seen how easy it is, check out this site diy-maple-leaf-roses-6-easy-steps

My Own Choice

As it is the 100th anniversary of the end of WWI at the moment I thought I put in a special mention of B's grandfather who was killed in Belgium where he was a tunneller with the Canadian Engineers.

We recently went to see the war memorial in Dunfermline, Scotland,  his home town, where his name is listed.  There we saw these lovely memorial benches that were all around the area.

            

        

September 2018 Photo Scavenger Hunt

Another interesting but challenging selection of titles but I'm not complaining as I always have fun searching through my archives for as many as possible.  Happy memories.

1. Brightly Coloured

These two photographs were taken at a concert put on by the nurses and staff at Thabomopo Hospital in South Africa where we worked for many years. It was a Psychiatric Hospital for Chronic Psychiatric patients and we had to regularly find stimulating activities like this for them.  The ladies below came from various tribes which explains the different traditional costumes.  The tribes represented here are Khosa (Nelson Mandela's tribe), Pedi, Shangaan, Sothu, Tswana, Venda and Zulu.  I thought their colourful dresses and the beautiful bougainvillea behind and above them suited this topic well.

To my shame I can only identify a few of the tribes these ladies represent.  The lady in the tall hat in the front row in the above photograph will be Zulu, and the Shangaan tribe is represented by the lady with the swinging skirt second from the end above and the nurse with cross over red fabric second from right in the back row.

l - r.  Tswana,   Sothu,   ?,  ?   Tswana, Shangaan.

2. Pattern

While on the subject of  tribal patterns and dress, these two trays have been made by the Venda people who live on both sides of the Zambesi River, some in Zimbabwe and some in South Africa.  They decorate their houses in the same bold geometric patterns too.

3. Upside down

Our grandsons in a gruesome pose - one is definitely upside down.  Taken in 2008 in Northumberland.





        ..........upside down.......................

                       ..................or is it?

4.   Ink

This had me stumped at first till I had a brain wave.........pens hold ink.....masses of pens in supermarkets.  Though I am sure that others may have the same idea as me if they were also stuck. 

5.   Bag

This pretty bag was given to me by Kate one Christmas.  I use it as my Knit and (K)natter bag so it always has happy thoughts attached to it.

6.  My Own Choice

I took this photograph while in Dunfermline, Scotland recently.  We were staying with our son and daughter-in-law in Scotland and they took us here as B's family came from here and he had spent quite a few cold snowy winters here as a young boy.  Living in colonial Africa we were brought home by the British government for 6 months every 3 years.  6 months paid leave, lovely.  Well it was for me as my parents opted to come in April till September. B's father liked to be here for the football season so his family always came over winter and froze.  We travelled either both ways by train from Lusaka, Zambia to Capetown which took 3 days then by boat on the Union Castle line from Capetown to Southampton or one way flying from Lusaka (which took 4 days in the 1950's but that is another story).  Anyway, I digress.  This lovely old pub was situated near the beautiful Dunfermline cathedral.

Well that's my lot for this month.  Now to go and check on other's interpretations of the titles.

August 2018 Scavenger Hunt

August seems to have brought the end of our lovely summer.  Had more grey days this month. Must not complain. We have had a beautiful summer.

 Had fun selecting pictures for this months' selection though after the first when I had both titles in one picture I thought I'd see if I could find pictures for both words each time, just for fun.  Thanks Kate for making us thing twice as hard!!

1.    Tea/Tee

I could not decide which to choose so have used both words for this prompt.

PS  Other Supermarket brands are available.!!

2.    Thyme/time

Last month I struggled to find a suitable picture for 11 o'clock and when I looked at pictures taken during our week in Scotland  I noticed this very handsome clock in Dunfermline. Says a couple of minutes past 11 so a pity I did not have this picture then..

These were my mother's spice jars and I love them.  I have broken one but fortunately not the one with Thyme on it.

3.    Aisle/Isle

This is the beautiful aisle down the centre of York Minster.  Quite awe inspiring.

The isle of Lindisfarne (or Holy Island) is in the distance.  You can see the castle and lime kilns. Picture taken from the mainland north of  Bamburgh. 

4.    Fairy/ferry

During our recent visit to Scotland we went to see the Kelpies - shape shifting mythical fairy horses.
They are part of The Helix, a large water park honouring the horses as the power houses of the early industrial revolution, pulling the barges along the Forth and Clyde canal.
The Kelpies were modelled on two one and a half tonne Clydesdale horses that Andy Scott, the artist, chose as his models. Their names were Duke and Baron.
Excuse the rain drops on the camera lens. To enjoy these beautiful horses, click on the photograph to make it full screen.

Echo the great beasts that work among us. 
Unbridled in this kingdom between canal and firth
Here to harness the river and carry each weary traveller.
Bow down your strong heads to taste the water.
Stretch up your long necks to face the sun.


Jim Carruth.

Taken on the Ferry that crosses Lake Windermere in Cumbria.

5.   Flour/Flower

This is my flour tin that I have had for years.  Bought in South Africa, hence the Afrikaans for Flour on the side.

This beautiful petunia was in my hanging baskets this year.  They were spectacular with a lovely scent too.  I have never seen such huge pretty petunias before.

6.    My own choice

There was something about this self sown poppy in this old terracotta jar and the flaking paint that caught my eye. So it may not be the most beautiful flower specimen but it certainly stands proud amongst all the other flowers in the garden.
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