Photo A Day 2016

 As I've mentioned before, I've been doing the Photo A Day challenge during 2016. I haven't actually put up a photo for a little while and from time to time during the year there were odd gaps. I've been pondering whether to do it again next year. 

 

How much do I mind the missed days or, latterly, weeks? I suppose it does irk me a little when I miss some. But it's a bit like healthy eating. Just because I ate a big slice of cake today doesn't mean it isn't healthy to eat fruit tomorrow. The fruit still counts. So with the photos, the ones I've taken still count and there were still days when I did produce a photo but had to dig deep at the last minute to put one up and on those days I was certainly meeting a challenge.

 

The Facebook group for the challenge is full of people who meet it every day, whose photos are in the 'lovely photo' category every day, who experiment with filters and effects almost every day. Mine, by contrast, sometimes aim for the 'lovely photo' but sometimes are just unadorned snaps of the daily prompt in order to meet the challenge. I think I should be happy with that.  I've also produced the occasional image that I'm really pleased with.

 

So ... I'm going to take on the challenge again in 2017, with the same kind-to-myself attitude that if I don't do a photo every day I haven't failed the challenge.  In 2016 Photo A Day has sometimes made me think about how I take photographs and take time to construct a shot, sometimes made me keep my eyes open better for opportunities to meet the prompts I know are coming up and these are good things, which I hope to build on.  Most of those taking part in the challenge I've done are using their phones and phone apps to manipulate photos.  I, on the other hand, take on my camera and upload to PC, where I have Photoshop.  I think I'll continue with that but perhaps make an effort to use my phone for some photos as up till now my results from the phone camera have mostly been rubbish and it would be good to do something about that.

 

You can see the whole album of 2016 Photo A Day images here.  In the mean time, here's my pick of a favourite photo from each month of the year.  In some months had few photos to choose from so the favourite photo isn't always one I'm particularly pleased with and it seems I didn't meet the challenge at all in July, so there are only 11 photos.

 

 

Not everyone's cup of tea

Poetry isn't everyone's cup of tea.  Bereavement isn't either:  I wouldn't recommend it if you can avoid it.

I learned 25 years ago, after the death of my first husband, that it's ok for the bereaved to make jokes about death, loss and the downsides of their departed loved ones where it isn't for anyone else.  I offer the (hopefully) mildly amusing introduction to this blog post in that spirit.

Anyway, one thing that's been going on over the past few months is that my subconscious has been reminding me that it's the time of year when my second husband died.  It's been gradually feeding me the memories of the month or two leading up to his death.  I'm used to this, it happened with my first bereavement (for about twenty years) so I haven't been surprised, but it hasn't been a happy time.  I get on with my life and there are still many good things in it but I was also suffering from various minor physical ailments which increased in severity.  My system does that.  Most physical ailments I suffer from are triggered by something or other psychological.  I did what I always do - had extra acupuncture and other alternative things.  This has, thankfully, put me on the road to physical recovery.  It's also allowed my conscious mind to unlock what's been going on in my unconscious mind. 

Poetry is a valuable tool in condensing what we think or feel into a form which, if it's done successfully, conveys ideas concisely and rapidly.  I think this latest poem of mine does that.  It's been tough.

a different grief

and now unexpectedly

different grief

I didn’t know

I hadn’t done

two years

has been about the ending

bad memories

of your suffering

knowing

I couldn’t have done more

but always wondering

now suddenly

here you are

being Mike-ish

loving me

reminding me

of all the good times

two years

after your funeral

now I am suddenly

reconnected with the real you

able to miss you

at your best

and not the worst

of those final months

Nothing to report

I like the phrase "nothing to report".  It's not technically an oxymoron but it is a nice contradiction in terms: a report is clearly being made, therefore there is something, even if it is that there is nothing.  I picture a couple of tired cops watching a dark house in a lonely street overnight and checking in with "nothing to report".  What they really mean is that there's no activity of the sort they're watching out for.  But that *is* a report.  I probably watch too much cop tv.

I see it's been three months since my last co ...  oh, sorry, no, that's not it.  Three months since my last blog post.  Astonishing!  I've occasionally thought I should write something, at least to make it clear that the blog is still live, but haven't known what to write about.  Nothing to report.  Except, of course, I've been leading a full and busy life as usual.

Suddenly in the last few days I have felt like writing.  What's changed?  I think it has to do with creativity.  Whatever you think of my writing, for me it is one of the many things I do that come from the part of me called "artist".  If that part is very busy doing other things then I think writing tends to go to the back of the queue.  I have now more or less finished making work that I need for events before Christmas so writing steps forward.

I have Ideas for other posts.  They may come thick and fast.  Or they may not.