Once more with feeling

It's been a while and I'm really excited about posting again. I needed to take a break from the blog for a while for a number of reasons. It was necessary and I'm glad that's done. One of the reasons I left was because blogging is meant to be a fun way of expressing oneself, however I found that my approach to it was becoming one dimensional and thus I was subconsciously constricting my thought and creative process. The honest truth is that I was finding myself spending more time wondering about what to put on instead of just posting and sharing. Anyone who has ever found themselves spending a considerable amount of time worrying about something, be it anything instead of acting on it will know that it's quite exhausting. 

So, what has changed? Nothing and a lot. Quite the juxtaposition. Mindset. Feeling. That invisible string that's attached to this little space. Not only have I given the blog a new look and feel that I really like, I'm challenging myself to improved the way I'll approach things from now on. Initially I wanted to focus only on photography and was going to use this as a means of documenting the learning experience and sharing the new knowledge and skills I was acquiring. The objective hasn't changed, but the focus will be more on story telling, capturing moments and surroundings. This means that more emphasis will be places on exploring events around the city and things that city folks do, capturing landscapes when hitting the open road, opening up more on environmental issues, sharing artwork and creative crafts as well as anything that captures my imagination at any given moment.

Once more with feeling.

View of the other complex from the balcony, taken at 6:02pm on a Winter evening.

Tales of stone from DTPE

Old building; from their intricate designs and faded stones to the stories that accompany them, some known while a lot more buried deep within the cement. How can one resist a chance to explore these sites. Thankfully, Down Town Port Elizabeth offered that opportunity. 

One thing I really loved about the city was how friendly and helpful all the ladies and gents from the Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism centres were. So, with map in hand (bag), Paul and I began our trek along the Donkin Heritage Trail that includes a few museums, view of the Opera House, City Hall, The Library and...a SARS building (huh? okay, the tax guys are not exactly part of the trail but they’re there and looked out of place).

Cathedral of St. Mary the Virgin

St' Augustine's Cathedral

Mosaic steps leading to the lighthouse

The bay in the background

Donkin Reserve Pyramid and Lighthouse

Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium from a distance

The view of the bay from the top of the lighthouse was breathtaking and the carrot cake from the coffee shop near the Donkin Memorial Pyramid was divine. 

Why did the snails cross the road?

Good Morning Beautiful.

Even though she never sleeps, the Earth allows us to witness her come alive in the morning. From snails crossing the road to flowers blooming next to the sidewalk close to a highway offramp. 

"Some flowers are only smelled when going down on your knees to capture them"- Piet Vermeulen

 Our busy lives make it so easy to forget things that are around us as we let the little miracles of life pass us by. In the midst of the mundane activities that sometimes fuel our existence,we should remember that there's more beauty around us, all we have to do is is stop for a second and look around.

Chasing the Sunrise

I’m accustomed to falling asleep between 3am and 4am, however I slept early the previous night and by my normal bedtime, I was wide awake, excited and peeking though the blinds with anticipation...It’s been a while since I’ve watched the sunrise over the horizon. The previous night’s rain had stopped and all concerns about walking around in a different environment alone with a camera in hand were thrown out the window. I was going to see that sunrise.

There was more than enough to keep this city girl occupied on the beach this particular beautiful morning.

I kept coming back to the beach, this was on a cloudy morning. 

 Nature has many ways of reminding us just how small we are and how grand and magnificent she really is.

Runaway Candlelight

The initial idea, inspired by the sound of the soft summer rain and crickets outside, was to create a relaxing atmosphere and read a book so I wouldn’t have to renew it again at the library. As my eyes adjusted to the dim light, the burning wick drew me in...

Playing with slower shutter speed
ISO 100  f6.4  Exposure 4s

This is one of the initial shots. The flash went on and I manually turned it off after taking this.

ISO 400   f4.9  Exposure1/56

Here's one without a flash. 

ISO 800  f4.9  Exposure1/56

Balance

Have you even gone searching for something specific that the hunt becomes an obsession? I’ve been looking for a specific book. This book that will somehow improve a lot of things and make my life a whole lot better. For months I’ve been searching bookstores, kalahari.net, amazon and expos to no vail. Then last week I found a copy at the library. Hallelujah!

I read through it and couldn’t wait to start experimenting and putting all the ideas I had on paper or canvas. Then Saturday evening came, a time I had set aside to paint. Exciting...right?

2 hours later I grudgingly packed everything away and accepted that there was no colour smearing to be done tonight. As much as I wanted to paint, my heart was simply not into it. My aching body needed to rest a bit and as for my head...it was running a blank.

And I knew why. It has nothing to do with procrastination. 

My whole being was out of sync. A week (or 2) of overindulging in bar-one ice-cream, burgers, pizza, coke and other stuff left me feeling sluggish, sick and a little feverish. It doesn’t help that  I haven’t been exercising and that Morgan Spurlock’s puke in Super Size Me kept playing in my head everytime I took a bite of that cake.

My head was physically attached to my neck but I had no idea what was there half the time. As for my spirit, one can only imagine. Scraping pots instead of dipping a brush into paint seemed more interesting and fun.

As I was packing everything away I thought about balance. Black and White, Hot or Cold, In and Out. It made me realise that outside the science lab, harmonious balance is harder to reach if the lines between are rigid. Look at racial segregation for example (couldn’t think of anything else right now), its causes more problems than solutions, it limits our mindsets, inhibits progress and creates ignorance. 

Everything is interconnected. The beauty about balance is that if different elements come together and work harmoniously, then something new and beautiful can come out of it. In my case, I need to get my body sorted out ASAP so my head can clear and I can focus on deeper meaning and the tasks at hand. Once all these elements start working together  I can take control and be free of this wretched dread.

This may seem contradictory to the quote I put at the top...just start doing what you love even if the conditions aren’t perfect. However, I’m not giving up or giving in. Like the AA serenity prayer, I think I know the difference between what I can’t and what I can change at this very moment.

Hello Sunday Morning, a new day to start afresh.

In Bloom