My Project 365 - Day 5

All the little things that make me smile

5 Jan 2013
A pair of clowns that has been with me since 2002

My Project 365 - Day 4

All the little things that make me smile

5 Jan 2013
Learning to  use Paper 53 to draw on my iPad

My Project 365 - Day 3

All the little things that make me smile

4 Jan 2013
Fridge magnet from a dear friend.
Friendship is priceless.

My Project 365 - Day 2

All the little things that make me smile.

3 Jan 2013
Watercolour of Stourhead, a birthday present

My Project 365 - Day 1

There is a 365 photo community on the internet where members post a photo a day; some of the photos are stunning. As I eschew social networks, I will do this project on my own and on this blog. The theme: all the little things that make me smile.

2 Jan 2013 - Hues of sunrise from bedroom window

New Year's Eve at Brighton, West Sussex

Inexplicably, my visits to Brighton tend to coincide with a cold windswept landscape. On New Year's Eve, the motorways M25 and M23 were almost devoid of traffic, so it was a relatively quick run to this seaside resort, a place once popular with retired widows and now the gay community.

The North Laine at Brighton was an eclectic collection of alternativism. The shops sell everything that you never thought you needed, from pointless knick-knacks to weird sculptures. What spoilt the fun was the cold and the driving rain, which made it difficult to take pictures, however odd or funny an object might be.

The irregular shoe shop

A dazzling collection of pointless objects

Probably one of the most creative objects -
a beautifully hand made cake

Legs Up!

Winter scene at Runnymede, Surrey

There has been widespread flooding in many parts of UK including the South West and South East. In Berkshire, flooding of the River Thames at Reading has disrupted railway services and further downstream at Runnymede, the River Thames has risen to a level that I have not seen before. We eat at the Runnymede Hotel time and time again with friends and loved ones, and on December 30, we arrived to find that half of the car park was submerged in water. At the back of the hotel facing River Thames, the water level had risen right up to the edge of the lawn. The dull grey sky and the drizzle summed up a miserable and wet winter of 2012.

River Thames at Runnymede in the Summer 2012

The same spot on 30 Dec 2012

Lacking in festive cheer,
Left Bank Restaurant, Runnymede Hotel

Perhaps it was lunch time and most people were still recovering from the excesses of Christmas, the restaurant was half empty at 1 pm. Still, the company was delightful and we exchanged news about each other and those we know. It really sank into me that I had been travelling too much and too often....