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Flora at Hall Place, Bexley

12 Pics – Hall Place

In the hot house and shop.

This one comes in peace, offering tokens of jelly beans.

Happy is the tiger with a badger as guardian angel
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Hang on Snoopy, snoopy hang on, de dup de dup, dee do do, de dup .

Whaaaa, surprise.

In the Garden

She’d not pulled a double a double rose, a rose but only two, When up came young Tam Lin says “Lady pull no more.”

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In the House

Thank you for visiting and there will be more about the house and gardens later.

Posted by Graham in Hats | October 12, 2014 | Categories: East London, Flowers, Photography, Places to Visit, uk | Tags: bexley, flowers, Hall Place, london, orchids, photography, roses | 14 Comments

Winter Blues & Seasonal Affective Disorder

Some suggestions for treating and dealing with Winter Blues and Seasonal Affective Disorder. 😀

And, Vitamin D supplement, which is usually created in our skin when subject to sunlight. 🙂

Posted by Graham in Hats | October 9, 2014 | Categories: Health, Information | Tags: fighting winter blues, Health, SAD, seasonal affective disorder, Winter Blues | 19 Comments

I went to Bushy Park in search of green parrots, but found deer instead . There are a number of flocks of green parrot around London, thought to have escaped and managed to adapt to our UK winter. I hadn’t thought about it, photographing green parrots amongst a summer of verdant green leaf wasn’t going to be possible. I heard them and occasionally saw a quick flash of green wing but that was all.

I was delighted to find deer instead. I knew they were in Richmond Park and Hampton Court Deer park but pleasantly surprised to find them here. Photographed in early August they still had velvet on their antlers.

Fallow Deer

The Black Prince, and I think he knows it. Black deer are quite rare but do live amongst the herd.

The above were happily grazing amongst the fallow deer, although they are probably reds. It’s mid-summer, live and let live.

Red Deer

Red deer are the largest of deer-kind with the exception of moose and elk. Found at southern end of Bushy Park, they were not so much a herd as a squad.

They have the unnerving and unerring ability to raise their heads at exactly the same time. Much like a bristling of antennas. One can almost hear “Have you got permission to be here and have got any ID.

” I say it is tea time you know”

Time to leave

Deer are generally not dangerous but one must be careful in spring when there are young about and in autumn when they are rutting. They will also attack and sometimes kill dogs. Some deer herds (those around London) carry Lyme Disease which is spread by ticks. It is quite difficult to pick up but such places are not suitable for lounging in the grass or for bare legs in tall grass.

Posted by Graham in Hats | October 7, 2014 | Categories: Animals, Photography, Travel, uk, West London, Wildlife | Tags: black deer, bushy park, fallow deer, red deer, wildlife | 6 Comments

Beautiful Demoiselle (Calopteryx virgo)

I first noticed a few bright blue flitters beside the Thames near Hampton Court some while ago. I thought at first they must be butterflies. It turns out they were Beautiful Demoiselle damselflies. I finally discovered some in the wetland area of Bushy Park. I also discovered, eventually, that they fly away if you let your shadow fall upon them.

Damselflies and Dragonflies have a number of charming names in folklore across the world, including sewing needles, snake doctors, horse stingers, mosquito hawks and devil’s darning needle..

Beautiful or gruesome ? It probably depends on how close we look and, of course, the eye of the beholder. Certainly, I think, one of nature’s wonders.

Posted by Graham in Hats | October 7, 2014 | Categories: natural history, Photography, Places to Photograph Near London, Places to Visit, West London, Wildlife | Tags: beautiful demoiselle, bushy park, damselfly | 5 Comments

Bushy Park

Bushy Park is just a short distance north of Hampton Court and is full of surprises. To the west of the park are wetlands, just behind this view. I could almost eat these clouds. They look as if they are too solid to stay up there. Magic. Later posts have a particular little gem and some shots of deer.

The wetland area is very peaceful and the river quite still.

This one confuses the eye beautifully.

… and on the pond further down; “There’s an old mill by the stream, Nelly ~ “.

This one is basking in her own glow.

… and here’s the old mill (I think). 🙂

August 2014

Posted by Graham in Hats | October 5, 2014 | Categories: Photography, places to photograph in london, Travel, uk, West London, Wildlife | Tags: bushy park, Duck, peaceful, pond, river | 11 Comments

Characters at the Greenwich Tall Ships Festival

Characters (18 pics)

I’m a star. – Those on the other end of the lead were watching the river and had no idea what their dog was doing. She was drawing a little crowd of her own. The words “what a character” were often heard. She wins my first prize for “Character of the Festival”.

A close second comes :-

Please click on an image to expand and view a slideshow:-

Greenwich Festival Characters Punch and Judy

The Crews

Please click on an image to expand and view slide show:-

And, then click on

The Tall Ships ►►

And, thank you for your visit.

Posted by Graham in Hats | September 30, 2014 | Categories: Animals, East London, fun, Greenwich Park, Photography, Travel, uk | Tags: characters, crews, Greenwich, london, tall ships, thames | 10 Comments

The Tall Ships at Greenwich

The Greenwich Tall Ships Festival

14 pics. The Festival brought a group of tall ships up the Thames for the first time in 25 years. They met from all over the world at Falmouth and raced to Greenwich. During the last day parade the wind was not favourable to sail. Hats off to the skippers for making sail for the spectators, even though it meant expending extra fuel to make progress. There were 50+ taking part. Here are a few.

Dar Mlodziezy

Dar Mlodziezy, which dwarfed all the other vessels, won the first in it’s class (A).

Duet

Duet won first in it’s class (B) and first overall. It is a yawl. That is, it has an additional mast/sail aft of it’s rudder. The design was originally created to add extra sail without breaking the design rules for it’s racing class. That, together with a big mainsail and two additional foresail(s) on it’s bowsprit, makes a very powerful rig that takes skill to handle well. The Cirdan Trust ⇒. Pictures under sail (updated) ⇒.

Stavros S Niarchos

The Stavros S Niarchos won the communications prize for doing the most to aid the race schedule communications.

Tenacious

Tenacious was a mix of able bodied and less able bodied crew. They did well to gain third in their class (A)

Gulden Leeuw

The Golden Leeuw won the the Friendship Trophy for having contributed the most towards international friendship and understanding. They were also the most international crew and won the Young Trainee Award.

Pelican of London

The youngest Captain (Tom Whiteford)

J.R. Tolkien

Loth Lorien

Morgenster

Oosterschelde

Mercedes

Swan

Pirate

I couldn’t get the name of this one but it certainly caught everybody’s attention. Most particularly because it had a working cannon which they delighted in using, making everybody jump and producing great clouds of smoke. They even had the cheek to fire it in the vicinity of Woolwich Arsenal. In past days they would have been blown to bits.

Royal Barge

The Royal Barge appeared two days earlier and is the one used for the Queens Jubilee. Sixty years in the same job and they didn’t even give her one with an engine. A close look at the those on the oars would indicate that they have probably been quaffing something.

Next, click on – The Festival and it’s characters.

And, thank you for visiting.

Posted by Graham in Hats | September 29, 2014 | Categories: East London, History, Photography, Travel, uk | Tags: Greenwich, greenwich festival, history, london, photography, sailing, square rigged, tall ships, thames | 5 Comments

Flowers that look like something else – Plants pareidolia

I just had the share this. View original for 20+ pics of extraordinary orchids.

Posted by Graham in Hats | September 28, 2014 | Categories: uk | 6 Comments

Climate Change – Making a Real Difference.

The London Rally

What Has Changed and How You Can Help

On Monday 22nd September 2014, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund pledges that it will divest itself of all fossil fuel assets. It is reported that 650 individuals and 180 institutions have joined this pursuit as part of the worldwide Divest-Invest platform which began seven years ago. This is surely a death knell for those companies and politicians who do not push forward with green technology and policy.

The situation is beginning to change. I believe it has come about because all the elements for change are now in place. We have much to thank the genuine climatologist for. They have for decades faced an uphill struggle, often against personal abuse in attempts to discredit them. There is now sufficient awareness to have raised simultaneous protest right across the world, with a report of 400,000 attendees in Manhattan alone. And, the involvement of the the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, well respected statesman Kofi Annan and the Divest-Invest program.

Making a Difference

There remains only one essential element to maintain the impetus. That is us. Now we really can make a difference. The whole issue is driven by the public opinion that affects politicians and the consumerism that drives commerce. So, be part of wave in the ocean not just an isolated drop. You can:-

Find greener suppliers here⇐. Switch and, most importantly, tell them why. Trends make business plans which are a prime mover of change.
Change any investments, and tell the companies why.
Write to your democratic representatives both local and central and voice your concerns.
Insist the climatologist and engineers decide what is necessary and the economist provide instead of hinder.
There are various schemes that make it possible for your computer’s down time to be used to run climate models. Such as Climate Prediction Net⇒.
Support Greenpeace⇒, Friends of the Earth⇒, Peoples Climate⇒ (the rally organizers) or any other committed organization. Many people have committed years to help us. They need and deserve our help.
Be knowledgeable and a source of solid information for friends and colleagues.
Pass it on by blogs, emails, tweets, shares and word of mouth. Be knowledgeable and a source of solid information for friends and colleagues.

Do any of one these things and you will have made a difference. There are still those who wish us to believe that we can’t. It was always a lie. To paraphrase FDR, there is nothing to be hopeless about except hopelessness itself. You can surprise and shock those who thought we were complacent and you will be in good company.

I am reminded of the The Boatlift⇒ film posted by Cindy Knoke (at CindyKnoke.com) with the very apt title of “The True Nature of Humanity”. It is the extraordinary story of those who came forward and helped people caught in the 9/11 disaster. And, as the boatman said: “I never want to say the words ‘I should have’. If I do it and I fail, I tried. If I do it and succeed, better for me. And, I tell my children, never go through life saying you should have. If you wanna do something, you do it”.

Now is the time to assist the surge forward by adding one small piece of effort. Just one thing, just do it and smile that you made a difference. And, good luck to you all. 🙂

More posts (including the last rally) on the subject ⇒

Posted by Graham in Hats | September 22, 2014 | Categories: Climate Change | Tags: ban ki-moon, Climate Change, Climate Prediction, Consumer Power, Divest-Invest, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, Kofi Annan, making a difference, Peoples Climate, Rockefeller Brothers Fund | 27 Comments

Climate Change Rally – London 2014

If you would like to learn how we can have more of an effect click here. (click here for 2015 Rally Information)

For the past 3 decades, it seems to me, that there has been much effort to persuade people that there is no point in trying to make a difference. It didn’t work. To those who never give up, add those who are just beginning. Hope and endeavor just keep on being born. It is slow but it is relentless. ~ Latest news – 40,000 attended the London rally. That’s 4 times the expected number.