Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge – Feathers
Photo Challenges
Mr. Bean Finds His Voice
Mr. Bean has no voice.
I don’t know why, maybe it’s because he was thrown away as a new born kitten before being found on a rubbish heap and rescued, but what usually happens when he tries to speak is his mouth opens and no sound comes out, just air. Sometimes he will manage a small, croaky squeak, which can only be heard if you’re listening very carefully.
Last night we were all showered and tucked up in bed and about to turn out the lights when I heard a tiny, distant and plaintive “mew?”. Coming from … somewhere?
“What’s that noise?”
Piet couldn’t hear anything, “perhaps it’s a mouse”.
Although I was not really satisfied with that explanation, I again reached for the light switch and then I heard it again.
“Mew?”
That was definitely a cat. I knew it wasn’t Tom – he sounds like a foghorn – could it be Mr. Bean?
Piet buried himself deeper under the covers.
So I got up, found the torch and shone it out into the darkness, while calling “Bean! Beanie Beanie Beanie Bean! Come along Mr Bean!”.
“Mew?”
Oh so faint.
I shone the torch up towards where the sound was coming from and there he was. Mr. Bean, precariously perched between two branches in the old dead tree that hangs over our bedroom roof.
By now Piet was fast asleep, so thinking I could do this on my own, I donned my slippers, went outside and tried to coax the frightened little kitten down from the tree.
To no avail. I called, I pleaded, I rattled his favourite toy, I promised a feast of special cat biscuits but nothing would persuade him to come down. He just sat there, staring at me with those huge glowing eyes and occasionally uttering a small “mew?”.
So am I staying up here all night?
The noise from my futile attempts – the dogs had helped a bit too, with some excited barking – had by now woken Piet and spurred him into getting out of bed and joining me under the tree.
And this is how Piet came to be at the top of a ladder rescuing a kitten out of a rotting dead tree in the middle of a cold May night. (I thought it salient to not draw his attention to all the wood-louse spiders that had come out from under the bark to see what all the fuss was about)
Mr. Bean seems none the worse from the ordeal
How Much is that Kitty in the Window?
Hobo was a street cat who adopted my son one day when she walked in off the street and took up residence in his house. She was well known among the locals, and every day while he was at work she would walk about, visiting and greeting old friends along the way.
A few years ago my visit to family in the UK coincided with an ‘Art In The Window’ event, where retailers, restaurants and individuals showcased artwork in shop windows and even the front window of their homes.
My son and his partner, both talented artists, had joined in the fun.
The town became an open air art gallery, and it became impossible to “quickly pop out to the shops” – on any journey outdoors I found myself distracted and delayed as the various and varied displays along the way caught my eye.
One morning I was sitting in my son’s front room when I heard a commotion outside on the street. There was lots of ooing and aahing and laughing and a small crowd had gathered in front of his house.
I snuck outside to join them and to try to eavesdrop on what they were saying about the art.
As well as the art on display, they were also looking at this little poser, and wondering how much she was selling for.
All In a Day’s Work
This Highway Is Also My Way
Wordless Wednesday – The Look of Liquid
Surf’s up
An Ancient History Treasure Trove
Kilmartin Glen is a small village in Scotland somewhere between Oban and Lochgilphead. The Glen is home to more than 800 ancient monuments within a few square miles, and is said to have one of the richest concentrations of historical sites in Scotland.
Starting between the 7th and 8th century candidates for King would place their foot on the sacred Dunadd’s Inaugural Stone, signifying he was now married to the land.
Last summer I was fortunate enough to visit this area with my family, all of us in one way or another tracing our Scottish roots.
Nether Largie South Cairn is the oldest of the series of cairns found in the valley, probably dating back to the fourth millennium BC. It’s incredible to think that structures such as these still remain standing after so much time.
The small entrance to one of the cists, or coffins, found at Nether Largie South Cairn. Was a King buried here?
Along the lane from the South Cairn to Temple Wood, even the stone walls are ancient.
Temple Wood – or Half-Moon Wood – was so named only in the 19th century, after the planting of the trees around the circle. It is thought that the site was first used for burial around 3000BC
No-one is really sure of the significance of the Nether Largie standing stones, but it has been suggested they were erected 3,200 years ago and used to predict the movements of the sun and the moon.
Reaching back in time
Even a year later, looking back on these pictures I am left feeling nostalgic for a time and place I have never really known.
To see more old things, head over to Terri Webster Schrandt’s Sunday Stills: Objects over 100 Years Old challenge.
Some Odd Balls
Every Sunday Cee’s Photography hosts an Odd Ball photo challenge.
Odd Ball Photos are those great photos that you take which really don’t seem to fit into a common category. We’ve all taken them and like them, because we just can’t hit delete and get rid of them. If you have any of those type of photos, this challenge is for you.
Because of time zone differences I am too early for today’s challenge, but here’s my contribution for last week.
The pictures speak for themselves in terms of odd-ball-ness.
A Photo a Week Challenge: Street Lights. Also: A Revamp
In an effort to motivate myself to contribute more to this blog I have decided to do a make-over. You may have noticed the name change, from Far Out in Africa to the more appropriate and less restricting (at least I think so) I’ll Give You a Letter For That.
For now not much else will change, but I think the non-Africa posts will seem less irrelevant.
Let me know what you think.
I know the title says A photo a week, but I’m terrible at making decisions.
So I’ve included a number of pictures that ‘may’ fit with the theme, which I took during a visit to the UK to visit family last year.
If you want to play along please visit Nancy Merril‘s post, where you can read the rules and hopefully join in the fun.
Moonset over Glossop in Derbyshire
Small alley in Durham
Durham flower display
Street lights in Newcastle upon Tyne
Crossing the Tyne Bridge, towards Newcastle
An intriguing sculpture stairway in Newcastle
At the Quayside Market, Newcastle
A narrow flight of stairs, Newcastle
G for Green is Go and God is Love
I'll Give You a Letter For That 