The arrival of spring, a Poem

My Artwork

The Arrival of Spring (cathe waller) by Rg Gregorythe


on the last day of winter i went to bed
harsh winds rainstorms beating my head
houses trees with a sucked-out look
new year flaked from the old one's hook

then overnight such a change of heart
spring come home with her confectionery cart
hundreds-and-thousands strewn in the breeze
houses sampling them as well as the trees

people savouring them in punts on the river
earth knee-deep in them praising the giver
so (blankets off) i'm out in the streets
glutton for spring and her burst bag of sweets

Lichens in Hiruela, Madrid

Map of Madrid

Early this month, I went with Ron, Beatriz and Mel to visit a nearby town, north of Madrid,  called Hiruela,   where we saw different kinds of lichens, which are fungi in artforms of nature. The lichens were all over not only on trees but also on the ground. I got some of them attached in small twigs and branches for my decorative purposes.

See samples below.

This town is a tourist spot with some recommended paths to follow within rows of trees.  The whole town was almost at our own private tour.  We chose a route that indicated walking for three hours, but we did not finish the route as it became complicated for me along the way with difficulty of crossing from one end to the other.  I had to cross a stream to be able to go to the other side.

Another older group that were behind us opted not to cross the stream but I think that the cold water did me well since it removed the tiredness in my legs and feet. It was like a cold massage and I did like it after all although the water was really very cold and I had to be careful less I slip over the pebbles.   Luckily, it was a clear,  sunny day and even if the temperature was cold,  as we walked,  the weather mellowed down.  Here is a glimpse of the town and its river.

Hands Shadows

Such a simple way of entertaining!

Cinemagraphs Photos in Movement

Cinemagraphs are still images that contain within themselves living elements allowing a glimpse of time to be experienced and preserved. Cinemagraph is a technique of blending the effects of images and videos. It was introduced by a New York fashion photographer Jamie Beck, in collaboration with motion graphics designer Kevin Burg. Since then, many other designers have created similar forms of cinemagraphs. Cinemagraphs are typically simply created as animated .gif files making them easy to use on a web page. In this article, I feature stunning examples of cinemagraphs for your inspiration. Don’t scroll too fast if you want to experience the Cinemagraphs and look carefully – elements you don’t expect to move may do it…!  Source of text:  Tripwire Magazine.  Article by Justin Betonio

In order to make a cinemagraph, first of all, we must focus on one element so that we can create a coherent movement  once or several times.  Likewise, it is essential that the color schemes of the image that we record on video are not too many otherwise we will obtain results that will look like drawings instead of photographs.  

Two simple ways of making a cinemagraph

1.  With the use of the iPhone Cinemagram. In the App Store, we have found Cinemagram, a program that allows to create a cinemagraph in less than a minute with  an iPhone. We only have to record a secuence on video, or choose any saved previously in the phone, select the repeat time of the final image, indicate the area that we want to maintain as animated, apply a filter to the animation like those of the Instagram and we will obtain a cinemagraph similar to the above.  It cannot be any simpler.

 2. With the Use of Cliplets in  Windows.  This second option recommends the use of a free program called Microsoft Cliplets. Although we have not tried this, we have seen the help videos that are published in their web page and it does not seem complicated to use.  The only problem is that the result is not a gif file, but a video.  It seems that to maintain a link in movement in a web is not too easy.
Source of Previous images and text:  El País.com

Source of last two images:  Trip Magazine

The Pancake Race

And the winner is..........MELISSA!!!!

This is Mel's story on how she won the  pancake race competition in Bournemouth held last February 21.

"I invited my Japanese friend Reina and a Japanese student from EF Language school (it's only her second day in Bournemouth) to come and join me on yesterday's Pancake Race. I've never heard of such an event but apparently it's a common thing to do here in the UK on Pancake Day so I thought about giving it a go...why not?.

We only had to bring our own tossing pans to Bournemouth Pier's restaurant (KEY WEST), the pancakes were provided by the restaurant's chefs, each runner had to run around the pier holding the pan (with the pancake in obviously!) and toss it twice at each "Flip Markers".

The Rules: If a pancake is dropped at any time(I dropped it once!) the runner must pick the pancake up, place it back in the pan (without any assistance from spectators) and continue the race until the finishing line. I was ahead from the very beginning until the end. It was a piece of cake!. Only 10 runners joined though...ha ha!

I won: two fish & chips meals at the Ket West Restaurant, two tickets for any show at Bournemouth's Pier Theatre, 2 weeks free membership at The Club (leisure centre with spa and swimming pool!) and an electric pancake maker!

I also felt so popular amongst all the spectators, all clapping and taking pictures of me. A university student also recorded video of myself and my Japanese friend Reina for her University project.
Representatives from Heart, the local radio station,  also took pictures (see webpage http://www.heart.co.uk/solent/events/going-out/events/pancake-race-bournemouth/)

I was a celebrity for one day!

I made pancakes with my new electric pancake maker last night. I made savoury pancakes filled with Ricotta cheese, spinach and chopped(see photo attached) and for pudding: chocolate and banana! ...Lush!"

That was quite a funny experience for Mel and with hardly any effort from her side, she won the race.  An event to remember for a long time.