365 ~ 7th~13th November

This week is sodding selfie week, with an overall theme of ‘gratitude’. It hasn’t been the best. 🥴

Abbreviations you may come across during this post. AFAC~ airy fairy abstract concept. AAFP ~ annoying as F-bomb prompt. CBBP ~ completely bloody barking prompt.  HDBS ~ hippy dippy bull****. AWP! ~ Absolutely wonderful prompt!

Also- there may be swearing.

Day 311~ Thankful. ~ I am thankful every day for this guy.  We met and dated in university but went our separate ways.  35 years later we met up again.  We both had parents in the same hospital in the same small town.  Neither of us knew that the other’s parents even lived in this town.  Through the power of Facebook we discovered this tidbit of information and arranged to meet up when we were both there visiting our parents.  We met for a drink and 6 hours later we were closing down the place.  It was like we had never been apart.  I believe we were meant to meet up again and be part of each other’s lives.  I couldn’t be more thankful that fate brought us together again. What are you thankful for today?

Well that’s a lot sharing we really didn’t need. Not only that but she put up a picture of her husband instead of a sodding selfie! Cheater! well sauce for the goose etc. 🙄 Nevermind, a straightforward prompt which is fine by me. Today Sophie and I went out to visit Gibside and take photos, so I was thankful for blue skies, autumn colours, my camera and spending time with my pal.

thankful

Day 312 ~ Mirror. ~ What a great week this is in our 365 Picture Today Community. We are expressing gratitude through our photography! Today is Macro Monday to go with our prompt word of “Mirror.” For my example photo, I used a segment of a lily bloom and placed it on a reflective surface to make a heart.  I shot the image with my 100 mm Macro Lens. Play today and see if you can find something that resembles a heart when reflected.

This turned out to be a right AAFP. Firstly, what part of ‘self portrait’ is a sodding lily flower on a mirror???? I tried a couple of items but nothing worked out to look like a heart in a mirror. Frego came to the rescue.

mirror

Day 313 ~ Gratitude. ~ It is easy to be grateful for the things we see right in front of us each day.  It is more difficult to offer than same gratitude for the less tangible things in our lives.  And it is even more difficult to accurately represent such gratitude in our photos. Today, think about those, perhaps less obvious, things for which you grateful.  Create a photo that represents that gratitude.  Use words if necessary.

Well firstly what’s the difference between Thankful and Gratitude really!? Seriously. AAFP and AFAC. Gratitude for less tangible things made me think of sleep, and my lovely cozy bed.

Day 314 ~ Early. ~ I am so grateful that I live in a beautiful part of the world, the forest is so pretty when the sun is shining and if you get out early enough you find the sun in the right place to make a magical photo. What thing are you grateful for early each day?

Sleep. Sleep is what I’m grateful for and not having to get up to go to work, but I don’t suppose that will do. I don’t live in a forest sadly but I did get up early, fed the cats, had breakfast, took Phil a cuppa and skedaddled quickly as the sat-nav was showing horrendous traffic on my usual route to the clinic. I decided to go off prompt when I got home as early wasn’t feasible.

‘Hey Frego, are you off to a fancy dress party?’

“No silly, tomorrow is Armistice day so I thought I’d dress like a WW1 photographer and pose next to Frank’s photos.”

‘OK sounds good. You do know they didn’t have digital cameras back in the day don’t you?’

“Stop being obtuse Fraggle and make the picture!”

‘🥴’

Off~prompt. Sapper Frank Jessop 232 Army Troops Company, RE. France 2015

Day 315 ~ Reflective.~ The word ‘reflective’ is appropriate on this day as it is the day of remembrance in honour of the men and woman who have died in the line of duty. Remembrance Day/Veterans Day is a day to reflect on and appreciate the freedoms we enjoy and often take for granted. In this photo I am in the cemetery with my red umbrella amongst the grave markers of soldiers.  To create a more artistic scene, I reworked the photo through a variety of apps. Today, reflect on the freedoms you have and appreciate your life.  It is a day for quiet reflection. Visit a cemetery, enjoy the beauty of nature or laugh with your family. Photograph that moment in time and reflect what it means to you.  Remember to include yourself in the photo and if so inspired, play with some apps and take your photo to a different artistic level.

The weather was too rubbish to go cemetery hunting, and I had a lot of home stuff to do. So Frego and I watched a video I made back in 2009 when Phil and I traced my Grandads steps through France during the war. He joined up with his best friend William, who went home on 10 days leave, got married to his ladylove Doris, went back to France and was killed 2 days later on the 30th October 1917. And it did make me reflect on my freedoms and appreciate my life. It made me wonder what Grandad would make of the world today and our right-wing self serving government who, with the aid of 17 & 1/2 million of my compatriots detached us from the united Europe he fought for and William died for, and the acrimony and bitterness that is now between the EU and us.

reflective

Day 316 ~ Empowerment. ~ Today we have given you a pretty big word for just a single image! Empowerment: the process of becoming stronger and more confident, especially in controlling one’s life and claiming one’s rights. 
the degree of autonomy and self-determination in people and in communities. Take a moment to think about what makes you feel empowered? Is it something you have gained confidence in over time? Have you helped someone else to feel more empowered? Do you have a favorite mantra that makes you feel stronger?  I can’t wait to see the powerful images you create today! 

‘Hey Frego, what do you think?’

“I think this is an AFAC, and AAFP, am also considering your HDBS abbreviation. An empowerment mantra???”

‘ I know. Who the heck goes around thinking to themselves ‘oh I’m empowered now!’ ?? We’ve always been strong, confident and capable haven’t we?’

“Exactly so Fraggle though I think I have the edge on that. Anyway wait here, I’ve got an idea for the prompt!”

empowerment

Day 317 ~ Cup. ~ REMEMBER – it’s never a selfish thing to fill your cup FIRST.  After all, if we don’t fill our own cup with things like kindness, hope, peace, love, understanding, or gratitude, how can we allow it to overflow into the cups of our loved ones who may need those things from us?  

Well ‘cup’ is straightforward but I’d rather have a physical cappucino in my cup than a metaphorical saint. Anyway today was a ‘from where I stand’ day so here I am standing with said cappucino in Tynemouth market and I’m feeling the gratitude bit for Phil taking the shot under my direction.

cup

So that was the penultimate sodding selfie week (I think/hope) just the one in December to get through. Next week we are doing night photography, so stay tooned for that!

Posted on Posted in 365, Fuji, FujiX-T2, photographyTagged , , , , ,

44 thoughts on “365 ~ 7th~13th November”

  5. ‘It made me wonder what Grandad would make of the world today and our right-wing self serving government who, with the aid of 17 & 1/2 million of my compatriots detached us from the united Europe he fought for and William died for, and the acrimony and bitterness that is now between the EU and us.’

    This x 10. Well said! And well done for getting the Lego to pose so effectively!

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  9. Loving the Frego pics. But yes, I think people forget that EEC/EU was established in the aftermath of WWII to help unite the countries of Europe and prevent bloody conflicts like that from ever happening again.

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  12. Good job on ‘Sodding Selfie Week!” I’m with you on that.

    However,
    1. I love the autumn colours for your day out with Sophie!
    2. Frego to the rescue; your mirror shot is excellent!
    3. Your bedroom looks very cozy and warm.
    4. My favourite for the week is your Grandad’s story – I keep wondering how both my parents would view the state of the world today.
    5. The photo of you at the computer is lovely. Well done.
    6. Frego’s interpretation of ’empowerment’ is excellent! You go girl!
    7. I would love to be shopping with in your last photo…sigh – perhaps when we can travel easily again. Fingers crossed.

    Good luck this week – I’m not looking forward to it 😫

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  15. Don’t know much about European Union but I always thought the Commonwealth was a stronger concept for the U.K., with those links of shared language, trade, culture and history, I even discovered last year that there are a kind of Olympic games only for Commonwealth countries ha ha, sports without the plebs; instead I don’t think it had worked with the E.U. it has historical rivals and trade competitors, as I saw recently in reference to a deal with submarines for the Australian government that angered France. Politics aside I feel gratitude for a comfortable bed too and I’d add a functioning bathroom. I will not miss much the prompts, I think her insistence in how fortunate she is for moments is stressful to me, is like she doesn’t even get a caries while knowing the rest of us mortals are taking x-rays and being poked without anesthesia by the dentist that simultaneously is watching the TV (and curiously this class of dentist is better than those focused in the teeth).

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  19. I know you hate it but I love selfie week, I love how you frame your vision, and all the while giving us insight into the current state of affairs between the UK and the EU. It’s all very complicated from my perspective and shrouded in frustration and anger. Love the reflective photo, Hugs, C

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