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details in passing
I’ve had a busy day so there’s not been much time for blogging. And yet, there exists an itch to put something down. These days when I get like this I start looking at photos and see what pops up. I look this photo a couple of days ago. I’m not sure what it was about the subject that beckoned to me. It got flagged in my peripheral vision, and caused me to take a step back, pause, and take the shot quickly. There was a pleasing quality about the composition. The double ivy sitting like two lonely hearts upon a severed trunk. Love (growth) despite death? What is it…
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bank holiday
Bank holidays don’t really mean much to freelancers. Other than there’s usually extra people in your house, and the post doesn’t get delivered. I’ve been working all weekend on a project that’s nearing its conclusion, and I’m in the awful push at the end which involves the application of willpower and determination over fatigue. And I’m doing it without coffee! I never thought the day would dawn. While I’m all in favour of discipline and schedules when it comes to writing – it’s a profession like any other – there’s a delicate balance between guiding your imagination towards the gate in a gentle fashion (think of sheep herding), and unleashing…
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Laydeez do Comics – Dublin
I’m pleased to announced that together with writer Lynda Rucker we’re setting up Laydeez do Comics – Dublin. Laydeez do Comics is an international network of meetings celebrating the diverse expressions of the comic book medium. Started in 2009 in London, it now has groups across the UK, America, and now Ireland. The events are women-led, not women-only, and usually feature speakers with a variety of comic book experiences. The inaugural meeting of Laydeez do Comics – Dublin, will take place from 7pm – 9.30pm on Wednesday the 22 May, 2013 in the Rooftop Bar, 3rd floor, of the Odessa Club, 13 Dame Court, Dublin 2. Our guests for the first…
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green life
Flowers are pretty, but there is plenty of fresh green life that is beautiful at the moment. Like this trio: I love their fuzzy little siblings pushing up after them. I’m sure the older ones will complain they had it much harder… I have a particular fondness for light shining through the early leaves of spring. There is a vitality and optimism that you can almost inhale underneath their green haze. I love this image because it communicates some of that to me in an almost abstract way. The new leaves were jouncing about in a breeze. They were limp and hairy with youth, and flopped along with the rough…
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bealtaine blossoms
May 1st – the traditional date for the beginning of summer in Ireland – had a diffident start here, rather like the year. But it unfurled into beauty, so I got out this evening to take some snaps. The blossoms were sublime. A perfect tribute for Bealtaine. These are blackthorn blossoms. They are more individual than cherry blossoms which congregate together in grand clusters. This is from the tree in my front garden, which has just gone into bloom. These petals look like a divine fabric I would love to be clothed in. I liked the lighting and colour in this shot. What a glorious start to the summer!
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it’s all about me…
People blog in a variety of fashions, and over the last month I set myself the challenge of writing a blog post every Monday-Friday about anything that came to mind. I also decided to incorporate photographs in them, and often the photographs were the inspiration for a post. I took that first photo of myself in a restaurant on Saturday. It was with the forward-facing camera on my mobile phone so it’s not the best quality. The light wasn’t brilliant, and I’m looking a little rosy-faced – a lovely product of having sensitive, fair skin. In the second photo I like the colour in my eyes, and of course all…
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bluebell April
One of my favourite flowers is the bluebell, and in my opinion April is its month. They’re usually out early in the month, so they are latecomers this year. I was delighted to spot them in their usual location today, just before the month ended. I hunkered among them, snapping photos as soon I saw their pretty violet heads, bobbing in the brisk breeze. Wild garlic has finally erupted to cover the woodland floor, but their beautiful white star flowers aren’t out wholesale yet. A few of them have made to effort, so I caught them too. Finally, the cherry blossom! One of the great beauties of Spring is finally…
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freshly minted leaves
I love the colour of freshly minted leaves after they break free from their sticky cocoons. They are soft, vunerable, and vividly green. The potential of a long summer shines in them, especially when golden evening light pours across their trembling veins. I took this shot from below, looking straight up at the leaf, suspended in all its glory. With much to watch in the undergrowth, and at eye level, in woodlands you can sometimes forget to look up, to the snatches of sky in between the looming treetops. Yesterday the wind gusted through the branches, and it sounded like the sea: waves crashed in the distance and washed up…
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at the centre and the periphery
I am the centre and the periphery of my universe. Some times I am the churning core, myopic and self-involved, and other times the distant observer, coolly judgemental of the ego sphere. Both are focused inwards. How liberating to uncurl outwards, breathe deeply, and notice the external view.
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trapped
Yesterday a swallow flew into my house, and became trapped. It happens several times every summer if I leave the back door open for a short period of time. Swallows speed so quickly across the skies I have no idea how they process the information of where they are going fast enough. They fly into the space, assuming there will be a way out, and become panicked when the obvious route – the glass window – will not allow them egress. This one flew up and down the glass, its wings beating against the barrier uselessly. My dog Minnie, excited, ran about the room, watching its struggles. After frantic attempts…