Tankar

Lens Artists Challenge #168 – Seen Better Days

/ Leya / 126 kommentarer

Tina’s challenge this week is – Seen Better Days. Old, worn and dilapidated …yes, but I’d like to think one of the reasons to why so many of us love these things, and even take photos of them, must be because ageing is unavoidable. Things around us have all seen better days, and so have many of us. We have to accept it and find the intrinsic, inner beauty in what remains of the former glory.

Because often we can find a different beauty now. Just like deep love grows from a stormy infatuation, other values can make things shine. Shapes and colours for example.

Or, like this dilapidated shed, softly dressed in a snowy winter gown.

But – sometimes everything appears to be just a sad story…

Sad, but not without beauty, is Kyrkö Mosse – a famous car graveyard some 200 kilometers from my home. Standing silently there in the forest, even I can feel them talking to me. Someone, somewhere, once found the car of his dreams, and now that car has found its final resting place here, in the middle of nature. (All toxic parts have been taken away from the cars.)

Well, what can I say…Thank you, Still Restless Jo, for giving me the idea to this post when she read this week’s title! Jo wrote: ”Things that have seen better days? Ha! Sounds like me,” Sorry my friends, but I just could not resist the coincidence! Because today happens to be my birthday, and here I am – seen in better days. The photo on the left was taken when I met the world’s oldest blogger, Dagny, in 2017. I had just turned 60 and Dagny was 106 years old. The last photo was taken for my teacher’s ID-card, and I had just turned 50. Those were the days, and life was easier then in so many ways.

Should I reach the same age as Dagny, ( who is now 109, going on 110 – and still blogging…) my qualified guess is I would never look as bright and alert as she does…and I would certainly not be blogging.

Thank you all for the beautiful Autumn colours for Amy’s challenge last week! You offered some really sparkling and fiery entries – no wonder so many of you declared Autumn as your favourite season!

We are looking forward to seeing your posts for this challenge, and please link to Tina’s beautiful original post and use the Lens-Artists tag. Next week we are delighted to welcome I J Khanewala of Don’t Hold Your Breath as our guest host. Until then, stay well and be kind.

Thursday Thoughts – Happy Children!

/ Leya / 23 kommentarer

What is it with children and trees?

Children and roofs?
Children and sticks?

Children and building tree houses? And climbing and running?

Well, I guess we have all ”been there”. At least my own children have, and they would have loved this outdoors exhibition made for playing. Big or small. Old and young. We had a great day!

Lens-Artists Challenge #167 – Colours of Autumn

/ Leya / 88 kommentarer

This week Amy urges us to find autumn colours. I am enjoying all of yours, but here we are still waiting for them. In Lapland and northern Sweden the colours already have arrived.

The signs are here though – leaves falling – only a few so far, but we see them on the forest paths.
Milo is of course my fellow traveller every day, but right now he thinks the rains are too heavy. He’s got a massive coat and gets all soaked.

Mushrooms are popping up – big and small. And I love especially the very tiny ones. Many different species, and many of each this year due to the rains.
In fact, most of the autumn colours are to be found in my own garden – until October, when the ”real thing” starts. This scenery is from my kitchen window. I love my bright Helenium.

I was surprised to learn that a number of these species are called sneezeweed, based on the former use of their dried leaves in making snuff! It was inhaled to cause sneezing that would supposedly rid the body of evil spirits. This year my Heleniums have grown taller than ever – much taller than me. I would say they are about 2 metres – 50cm taller than usual!

I also learned that this genus is named for Helen of Troy, daughter of Zeus and Leda. And – now I know why I have so many peacock butterflies in my garden – the larvae of peacock eat Helenium leaves. Well, that’s one of the greatest things with life – you always learn something new.

Is not this a true autumn day? Just the still melancholy that I love—that makes life and nature harmonize. – George Eliot

But, soon the mist will envelop colourful mornings and evenings. A soft, beautiful, forgiving blanket handed out from Mother Nature.

I loved your artificial lights last week – so many inspiring posts! And some of you didn’t think you would find any photos…but you did! In Sweden we have a saying that goes like: ”He who searches, he will find”. We hope you will join us this week too and show us the colors of autumn through your lens. Be sure to link to Amy’s post and to use the Lens-artists Tag to help us find you.

Next week, Tina will lead the LAPC theme with a “Seen Better Days” challenge: Featuring things that are run-down, dilapidated etc. Please visit her beautiful site at Travels and Trifles.

Until next time – stay well and be kind – and enjoy your autumn colours and the crisp days to come.

Thursday Thoughts – The English Garden in Kivik

/ Leya / 47 kommentarer

I learned there was an English Garden in Kivik, about 100 kilometers from here…and I just had to go.

Late in the season, but to savour the last beauties…
Dotted
Aren’t they just glorious?
Very tempted to sit down here, but we were eager to see the 3000m2 – a small but lovely garden.

One of my favourites, the Rudbeckia in all its autumn glory.

And more!

Who can resist this?

Not me.

Lens-Artists Challenge #166 – Artificial Light

/ Leya / 194 kommentarer

Some of us are living in the Northern Hemisphere, and we will soon be in need of more artificial light as we are moving away from the sun. Artificial light means man made light, but, I also learned something new – that candles do not count as artificial light.

So, how do we use artificial light? Simply because we need it to see, to do what we need to or want to do?

No, today we also use it for fun – for example in fireworks and for Halloween.

We use moving light too – here on the houses’ facades at the Lodz Light Move Festival.

And moving light – is always used in concerts. In fact I am so old, that I remember when the laser harp was made popular by Jean-Michel Jarre.

Artificial light can be used in so many art forms – this is an art walk at ARoS, Aarhus Kunstmuseum in Denmark.

Painting on Ipad instantly became a new art when the Ipad arrived some years ago – here a David Hockney at the Louisiana exhibition in Denmark.

We need light, artificial light – but, do we really need as much of it as we use? The costs can be high. The results are in many cases negative for nature and with that, also for ourselves. Newborn sea turtles die when they cannot find their way to the sea, and head towards the light of motorways and towns close to the beach. And that is only one example of many.

For some time I watch the coming of the night? Above is the glistening galaxy of childhood, now hidden in the Western world by air pollution and the glare of artificial light; for my children’s children, the power, peace and healing of the night will be obliterated. – Peter Matthiessen

Thank you to Patti for last week’s fun, Going Wide, which set our eyes wide open to the world!

For this week’s LAPC #166, we invite you to throw some artificial light on things! Please use the Lens Artists tag to help us find you, and we look forward to ”seeing the light”.

Next week Amy will be your host – until then, be well and kind.

Life in Colours – Gold

/ Leya / 24 kommentarer

Jude is digging for gold this month…

I give you a Gaudi lamp, a play with light, midnight sun, Autumn gold, the plate at the cinema chair in NZ where The Lord of the Ring first was played, a golden frog – and finally the tree we in Sweden call Golden Rain. The opener is a golden saxifrage.