Tulips Grow Anywhere

New Blog!

2007-08-27T20:48:00.000Z

I've been contemplating switching for a while, much as I adore this blog, because I have so many problems with Blogger...the fussy girl that I am...and I am so technologically behind that I refuse to comprehend Blogger Beta, or whatever it is called now. :)
So, for various reasons, I have a new blog! Woo! But please promise not to desert me now I am a Blogger traitor. Pretty please? I won't be deserting you guys! And please update your links. Thank you!

Tulips Grow Anywhere Photoblog

So Me.

2007-08-25T09:41:00.000Z

Ths photograph is SO me. It is inextricably linked to who I am, to Lulu. My starry bracelet, that never leaves my wrist, and my etiolated wristwatch - the timekeeper that I am - and my pose: all are so utterly Lulu. This image really, to me, exemplifies me and who I am. Who I want to become, and who I will be. My sister took it. I wanted her to take a picture of my bracelet, just for fun, and she managed to capture this one too. I think it's funny, how, in the end it's the ones who love you - the ones who know you inside-out and back-to-front, who would give their lives for you, who could find you in a twisting maze - who really capture you. She managed to bring out the person that IS me. And I think that is why I am so often astounded by the picture YOU all share of your children and loved one; so full of childish whimsy, vitality and absolute childhood honesty. And now I realise that honesty is the children themselves. Captured by their mothers, who love them and know them more than anybody could know.

I have SO much to tell you guys!

2007-08-23T21:16:00.000Z

So much! Remember, in May and June, I did all those exams? All those exams that tore me away from photography and blogging and whatnot? Well, they're pretty important really. They're called GCSEs, and they go on your CV, they sometimes look at them for university and if you don't do well, you're not allowed to carry on at school anymore. So major. People freak out about them a lot. I got the results today! The system works a bit differently in the UK to in America, we have grades A* - G and then UNGRADED, God forbid, which means it was so bad they basically couldn't bear to touch it! But, thankfully, they're pretty rare...at least in my school. And, in the US and Canada, I think straight As is pretty normal, right? Or maybe not, but only 5% of the population gets an A* in each subject so, yea, pretty tough. I took 10 subjects...and I was so sick to my stomach with nerves...and so worried I was going to fail (a pass is A*-C) ... and I did so well!!!!!

I received six A* grades in English Literature, English Language, Latin, History, Religious Studies (I got 100% in that!) and German. And two A grades in Biology and Physics - which I am so happy about. I am the most unscientific person you could ever meet, and I generally got straight Cs the whole two years of the course (unfortunately Bio, Chem, Physics are compulsory to GCSE level here) but I worked so hard for the exam, and it obviously paid off! And then I got a B in Chemistry and Maths. Maths I find terribly difficult so I was really pleased about that, and a B is still about 70%...Chemistry I really couldn't care less, I hate it that much. It's being remarked though, because it was only 1 single mark off an A. So, yes, I am so excited! I've had more phone calls today than ever, even when it's my birthday!

We had to go into school to collect the results, and I saw so many people crying and being consoled on the way, that I started to worry even more - and then my Chemistry teacher (who is a bit scary and who you would NOT want to meet in a dark alley, even in daylight) strode up to me and said he wanted a word after I'd opened my envelope...so then I thought he might take me round the corner and punch me because I'd got a C or something but no, it was okay! He just wanted to ask if it was alright to have it remarked. Phew!

And, if you haven't realised, this is going to be a very very long post! And, so, I walked over to the table and one of my old teachers handed me my envelope. And, literally, guys, I was shaking. I should really have read all the signs but I think I was too nervous to really register it and take it all in. My Religious Studies teacher, the lovely and beautiful Miss W, was smiling at me and my English teacher gave me a huge thumbs up and my Physics teacher was looking at me giddy with happiness (probably relieved that I didn't fail his course entirely) but I refused to open my envelope for 10 minutes. I needed time to prepare myself!

.... so I just watched for a while. I watched Mr G hand out all those brown envelopes to my friends, as they sidled up to the table, with nervous shy smiles on their faces. I watched as the pile of envelopes, each bringing either joy or sorrow, dwindled and vanished...and I watched as the girls around me tore open their brown packages and smiled or wept or hugged their friends. It was nice to just watch. And, finally, I opened mine. And I was so so amazed. I truly was. And then my Biology teacher ran up to hug me, and I just started to cry, I was that amazed - and her daughter Abigail was jumping up and down. And the people around me were all so happy, so smiley and lovely...all looking at their marks and comparing. And that is when I realised IT.

I realised that I do so want to be a teacher . I realised in that singular moment, that moment so tiny and absolutely insignificant in my entire life, that school is my home. I want to be there forever - as student or teacher. If it can't be me walking in each day to learn, to receive brown envelopes that contain the unknown, I want to be there learning with other, giving THEM the brown envelopes and helping them realise their individual potentials. :) So I'm happy. I thought I was sad school holidays are coming to a close, much as I adore school, and I thought I was happy to have a break. Yet when I arrived to collect my envelope, and I saw all my favourite people - my teachers and friends who are all so wonderful - and I saw the green grass and the lacrosse pitch and the hall and the squeaky clean floors - I was enveloped with a sense of wonder and an utter joy to be where I was. I love it so. I cannot wait until school begins on the 3rd. Yea!

So, I hope you managed to keep up with my rambles thus far. Not much longer to go! I promise to have many more Toronto posts, and to be a better Blogger - it's just hard to be inspired to take pictures in all this gloom and rain - and I promise that about the Toronto pictures. Ellen made me swear I would post all 200, even the grainy blurred ones (who's saying there are any?!), because she wants to see them. Ellen, maybe not all 200, but I'll post most of them anyway!

Again, sorry I haven't been commenting much. I've been too sick with my throat and worried about results. But today was much better. So I'll leave you with one of my favourite Toronto pictures, my yummy chocolate frapp. They taste better in Canada! The best thing to drink in such humid heat :)

Love, happy as a cat Lulu

Miss Me?

2007-08-21T15:18:00.000Z

Ladies! I'm back! I had an absolutely exquisite time in Canada; it's very different to England, and London, but the change was certainly refreshing. I'm afraid I'll have quite a few posts on my trip for a while now, hope you don't mind! My two weeks were jam-packed: visiting the CN tower, walking around Toronto, going up north for a week, seeing Niagara Falls, taking pictures, baking cookies, taking more pictures and much much more. It was hectic but really fun. Here's just a few from the two hours my sister and I spent chilling out in the Indigo Bookstore on Bloor Street, whilst my mum and her lovely friend and colleague Karen were in a meeting. Ellen, you are SO lucky to have such a store....we don't have any bookshops as large and comprehensive here. You lucky thing!

Thank you for all your lovely comments whilst I was away - I truly do appreciate them. I hope to get back into the swing of things soon, although I caught a nasty sore throat on the plane back home, so don't count on it for a day or two. More photos to come very soon!

Love, Lulu

Bye, Bye

2007-08-06T12:20:00.000Z

Promise to take loads of good photos and post them on your blogs so I can see them all when I get back! I'm going to Canada, Toronto and Ottawa and Lake Ontario, for 2 weeks and will have limited internet access. :) I might be able to pop in and comment on a few blogs though. We'll see!

Have a great two weeks and I'll see you when I get back, hopefully with lotsa fun pictures to share. Love you all!

Love, Lulu

Costa Coffee and The Guardian

2007-08-05T06:55:00.000Z

Yum. Costa Coffee and The Guardian on Saturday to read...my favourite. [The Guardian is a newspaper in the UK, and the best one in my humble opinion!]

Sorry I haven't been commenting on blogs much. I've been all wrapped up with packing for Canada and things. Today is the 2nd anniversary of my grandmother's death too, so we are going up to Suffolk to celebrate, well...commemorate, with my grandfather and aunts and uncles. And beautiful baby Lottie, who never got the chance to meet my Grandma. Also, a note for Ellen - I keep trying to e-mail you but it keeps bouncing back! I'll try again but I thought I'd mention it here, so you don't wonder why I'm not mailing you my pictures.

Thanks for reading!

Love, Lulu

Ellen, you sweetie!!

2007-08-02T11:47:00.000Z

So the oh-so-wonderful, absolutely lovely, kind and totally fab Ellen has given me a Creative Blogger Award. Thank you Miss E! You can check out Ellen's blog over at http://photographybyellen.blogspot.com/ She has some great backlighting going on and some shots from her trip to Cuba that I just adore. So, go on over! Apparently it's now my duty to pass on this torch to three more creative bloggers who deserve the award. There are SO many people I could choose, truly and utterly, but thankfully many have already been chosen by another Blogger so my list is narrowed somewhat.

1) Amanda - http://www.littlelabyrinth.com/bloggin

Her images and words always inspire and amaze me. She never ceases to move me with her images. Their DOF, colour and soul is out of this world. And her knitting...well...tell me that is NOT creative!

2) Rebekah - http://52weeks.blogspot.com/

Rebekah is a girl after my own heart. Her posts and pictures are full of joy and fun, gorgeous light and wise words. I always enjoy a visit to her infinitely creative blog.

3) Brenda - http://bloggingwithbrenda.blogspot.com/

It's impossible not to love Brenda and her wonderful creative images of Gracie and Sam. Her B/W conversions are always wonderful and her creative use of light is stunning.

Now I think Brenda, Rebekah and Amanda...you pass on the award to three other Bloggers you deem as especially creative. Glad to know and learn through you three!! Thank you all for your words of encouragement yesterday. Today I made a resolution to just shoot, shoot, shoot. I was going to go downtown to the Tate or the V&A Museum but my mum left me a list of chores to do so I doubt I'll have time. I might just take a train ride or treat myself to a Starbucks icy milkshake or something! We'll see. Meanwhile I *think* might be getting out of my rut. Finally! It's taken long enough. :) I was really pleased with these shots from today...so pleased I might even share it and some others on ILP...I really was, even though they're just my everyday.

This is #5 in my 10 things project. A pile of unread novels, and a polka dot mug of hot chocolate. What could be better? You tell me. Anywho, have a nice day. Love, Lulu. :)

Today.

2007-08-01T18:50:00.000Z

Today was such a warm, sunny day - for London, at least! It was nice to see the sun for once, and to marvel at the blue skies reflected in the navy glass of buildings downtown. I went for a little photo walk central, and ended up being pretty disappointed with my shots. I don't know what it is with me lately, but whatever I photograph, I seem to find something wrong. Something I could have done better. Something I wished I'd snapped but only thought about later. Maybe I need to take more time, maybe I'm just not at that stage yet where it all comes naturally, or maybe I just need to stop beating myself up about the little things. It's mighty strange though - in fact, it's not like the Lulu I know at all. Please talk some sense into me!

But I'll share them anyway...that's what blogs are for, right? :) I love Tower Bridge. Seriously, it's the best bridge in the city. It's just so cool. It was only built in 1894 but they built it in a gothic kinda style to ensure it fitted in with its surroundings. Today they couldn't have failed better (and I love that!) because on either side of the beautiful River Thames, opposite Tower Bridge, are brilliantly shiny buildings made of glass and other metallic substances which shine and gleam in the morning sunshine. I ended up hitching on a boat ride to get this shot...the things we do for the love of photography!!!

I also love the London Eye. I swear, London is home to some of the *best* modern architecture. I've only been on it once, a few years back now, but it's a whole lotta fun. It's high too - so a bit of a no-no for those with vertigo (I love that word!) - but if you don't mind heights, it's a lot of fun. I have been wanting to try a shot like this for a while but it's hard to get the right light and the right conditions. The sky clouded over for a moment, in true English style, so I snapped. It's not quite how I imagined it would look, the photograph I mean, but I still like it okay.

I wish I'd had the time to snap a few of the passers-by and of a train rolling into a station on the Underground...not sure how the TFL (that's Transport for London) guys would have like that...! And of the tube and the river and just little details but I met up with my cousin and grandparents so time was limited. Next time. It's not like I have ages to travel or anything. It's right on my doorstep. I love my city. It rocks. :)

Now, onto 10 things. For those that wanted the link, it is in the previous post (you just have to search for it)...but here it is again -10 things photo project

4. Funny faces. They get me every time. My cousin Thomas, who's 6 going on 4, was making funny expressions the whole time today and I was just in fits of giggles. His faces never cease to make me smile.

That's all from me :)

LOve, L.

10 Things

2007-07-31T13:14:00.000Z

Apologies that I have been neglecting my blog a little lately...I have just been feeling in such a rut, know what I mean? I, Lulu who practically has her camera glued to her hip 21 hours a day, was getting tired of taking photographs. I was! It seems so unbelievable, even, especially, to me because I haven't stopped for breath since I received my camera last December - but it's true.

So I stopped. I stopped taking photographs all together for a few days. I didn't photograph Thomas when I stopped by my aunt's house yesterday, I didn't shoot the beautiful sunset our street was graced with last night and I refused to take the camera with me to my friend's birthday party. And, you know what, it actually worked. Combined with a resolution to get out of my comfort zone - to shoot inside more and seek out difficult lighting conditions and great natural light spots in my house - I feel completely completely completely liberated. I feel as if I can shoot anything, whenever I want, and don't *have* to take some photographs to post on the blog every day. I can just shoot when I want, how I want, where I want...for ME.

So, being so embraced by freedom and all, I decided to embark on the 10 things photo project - in short, you are asked to photograph and document 10 things you love and that bring a smile to your face...blue skies or bath oils or babies or Brighton...you name it! It's so much fun, it truly is...if you have time on your hands, ladies, you should definitely try it...and I *know* I will treasure these images close to my heart when I am old and wrinky and archaic and 103, and my favourites are lavender parfum and false teeth and Wedgwood ornaments. I will look back at them lovingly and remember what it was like to be 16 and young and carefree, and to love psychadelic felt tip pens and mad red polka dot totes and washing lines full of vim. I just know it.

1. I don't eat them often at all, maybe once every few months if that, but when I do, I adore them. I only like 'thin' chips, not horrible thick ones that look like somebody's severed fingers...but thin, golden, crispy ones from Marks and Spencers that taste just ike divinity warmed up.

2. I am also a self-confessed stationey junkie. I mean it. Don't ever take me into Paperchase or WH Smith because you cannot hope to see daylight again until the store closes. I got it from my mother, although her passion has somewhat ceased with age. Since the ripe old age of six, people don't bother to ask me what I'd like for my birthday or for Christmas. They just buy me stationery - felt tips pens or coloured markers or pretty notebooks or stickers - and they know without a doubt I'll be delighted. That's me easily pleased.

3. Ever since I could stand, I have loved standing in the back yard between the washing lines. We have three in total, sometimes four, and they are always pegged full with brightly coloured towels and clothes and polka dot knickers and crispy white bed linen. I love to stand between the lines and feel the swish of the fabric around me; I love to look from my window at sunrise and see the bright hues of the garments reflecting our sun's golden light; and I love to read beneath the lines being fanned gently by my favourite summer dress as it dries.

More to come soon...until then, be happy! Love, L.

Back Home

2007-07-26T22:40:00.000Z

I had a wonderful time in Suffolk, deep in the heart of the English countryside, but am very glad to be back home. I love coming home - inhaling the familiar scent of violets that plagues our home (I'm guessing it's those purple sweet discs I ate as a young child!) - and seeing the new shoots that have sprung up and how my room looks exactly the same...untouched and untarnished. I don't know why but I just love it so.

My friend Katie, aka Katherine, K or Kate, stayed over Saturday night with her family and us girls (that's our mothers, my sister and the two of us) went up to the Tate to see the wonderful photographic exhibition that's on there at the mo, and then her whole family + my little sister and I drove back the 100 miles to their house in Suffolk. I love their family. Our fathers went to school together and we meet up all the time, despite living so far apart. Katie and I are best friends forever and write each other a letter a week. She's a year younger but we get on like a house on fire, despite being complete opposites. Anyways... :) this is Kate...if she's reading, doubt it Miss Forgetful that she is, hi girl. Loved my time at your place, as always!

We had SUCH fun together. Despite being complete and utter soulmates, as friends anyhow, we hardly ever spend more than two days at a time together except in summer, so this was a real treat. They (that's Kates, her parents, her 2 little brothers who I adore, and the menagerie of exotic animals) on a beautiful farm near Flatford and grow alllll of their own food. Imagine that...I'd love it! Want a snack? Just take a stroll in the yard and pick up a few cherry plums and apples whilst you're out there! Heck, you might as well fry a few eggs (kept safe by their seven hens) in the summer sun whilst you're out there! It was pretty difficult to get a good picture of the hens, I did *try* though, because they scattered as soon as you got even a hundred yards close, but I did try! Here's a nice one I loved...that's them through the wheat. They don't have names, which I found pretty sad, so I christened them - Freckles, Spattergroit, Toby, Emmeline, Lucy, Josepha and Michael. :) One of them was SUCH a Michael, I'm telling you! ;P

As I was saying, we had *such* fun. I wish I could go and live with them for the whole summer. Because our families go back 30 years, and because I met Katie as soon as she was born, we're like family. Really. My sister and I are treated like extra daughters whilst we are there, and it goes both ways. Anyways, I love being there (how many times is it I've said that now? I hope nobody is counting!) We picked homegrown mirabels and mange-tout, we played bountiful games of cricket in the field, I gave Katherine a photography lesson in the orchard, and we rowed down the River Stour past John Constable's house and workplaces eating sardine sandwiches and boiled sweets as we went. I love days like that. (Hope no-one is counting how many times I use the word 'love' in this post either)!

Mrs. N and I made trips to the farm shop and little Tom, who is naughty as ever, danced his way down the aisles putting 5 packets of chocolate buttons and 3 jelly baby jars into the wooden trolley .... we read Harry Potter for a whole day (I finally finished and I have to say, amazing...my favourite of the whole series!) ... we danced at sunset ... paddled in the brook ... played basketball ... pogo sticked (my new verb for the day!) ... and had so much fun that is too delightful for description. I feel like I walk into another century and another time and place whilst I am there, and I come away all the better for it.

The family have a whole HOST of cats and dogs and bird and fish...you name the animal, they have probably had it at some point or have one or maybe eight now! There's the 2 dogs, 2 cats, 7 hens, a disabled and rather screeching pink cockatoo (no kidding!), 2 gerbils, 2 fish in a tank, 2 tortoises and...I musn't forget...70 fish in the pond! It's like a zoo there! The newest addition is Brenda, a Jack Russell puppy, who is the sweetest and naughtiest thing - and the most willing photography model I have met to this date!!

You see what I mean? She should be an Andrex model...they'd love her! And, it's getting late, so I'd better go. I have so much more to say and so much more to post but I have masses of stuff to do tomorrow and don't wish to be too tired for it all! Thanks for reading, and thanks for all your lovely comments whilst I was away. I loved reading them. Goodbye for now...

Love, Lulu. =)

I couldn't leave without...

2007-07-22T18:11:00.000Z

...saying goodbye. Blogging really is rather therapeutic. :) I wish I had the time and willpower to post everyday, and post some more INTERESTING things, but I'm afraid...in short...I don't! I'm going away to Suffolk for the week, until Thursday anyway, so I just wanted to let you know so you don't think I've been stupefied by a Death Eater or disapparated into a time void...

Yep, I am certainly in a Harry Potter mood - I'm on page 383 and loving every minute! It was funny, today I went downtown with friends to the Tate Britain to see the photographic exhibition 'How We Are' (if you're ever in London, you *must* go and see it...gorgeous, wonderful, inspiring, brilliant, absolutely wonderful...have I already said that? anyway...) and I saw people reading Harry Potter 7 in Hyde Park, on the riverbanks, in Costa and Starbucks and even Pizza Express! And on the train - every line, the Met, the Jubilee, the District - and even a traffic warden who I believe was meant to be on duty! But you MUST not tell me what happens. I want it to be a surprise. :) Here's a HP themed pic for now...

I promise, yes Miss Ellen, to have another wedding photo post when I return and to e-mail you my picture...and post something more intriguing. I'm rather worried that my blog is becoming rather boring! Anyway, have a fab week and promise not to desert me.

Love, Lu.

Wedding day!

2007-07-21T14:52:00.000Z

First, thank you for all your well wishes - it was seemingly a 24 hour thing because after churning out my insides a million times, I felt better the next day. And so, the wedding could go on in style! My Aunt Jane looked absolutely radiant...she's past 40 but a wonderful woman and an absolute beauty. My sister Elle (Eleanor) and I were bridesmaids and wore beautiful deep turquoise dresses and white satin slippers, with curls in our hair pinned up with gorgeous pearl pins (albeit from Claire's Accesories but you get the picture). It wasn't terrirbly fancy, which was lovely, but it was absolutely fun and I got to see so many people - old and younger...mostly old - that I hadn't seen in such a long time.

I loved the dancing most. Times like that always make me want to cry at the sheer brilliance and beauty that is life itself, kwim? I just looked around at everyone jiving and hustling and waltzing with their shoes kicked off, old and young, from 6 years to 106, and just smiled. The photographer was a lovely guy, very funny too, and didn't mind at all if other people took pictures. In fact, there was a whole crowd (nearly all of the 90 who attended) snapping pics behind him and he just said, "Well, if my pictures don't work out, we've got plenty of yours to go around." He was a Nikon/Fuji shooter but I forgave him because of that comment...such a sweet man. He left about 10 minutes into the reception and my aunt asked me, yes little old me, to take his place...just for snaps really...and I did so absolutely willingly and gladly of course! They aren't anything special but I think they sparked in me a love for wedding photography although I think I'd only ever want to be a second shooter - to capture all the details and little things that the main photographer might miss. Here's a few... :) ... just because!

And, my beautiful sister, who you never ever see. :)

Finally, the gorgeous bride! Isn't she beautiful? I think so anyway. :) In short, it was a wonderfully happy and blissful day!

And, I am dreadfully dreadfully sorry...I have so much to do at the moment, despite the fact that this is meant to be a relaxed summer, that I am rather neglecting commenting on blogs. I am reading, just not making my mark...so utmost apologies. I promise to be better. There is just so much going on - weddings and friends visiting and I'm going to my best friend's in the countryside next week and after that my lovely, wonderful and totally awesome cousin from Canda (who's 30) is visiting and then I'M going to Toronto (yess!) and then it's exam results and then it's back to school!! Anywho, sorry for that diversion, basically I'm pretty busy...but never too busy to read your blogs. :)

Sickadeedoodah, sickadeeday....

2007-07-18T16:42:00.000Z

Yep, I'm pretty sick - seems to be the 'in' thing at the moment. I so wish I could be out in the summer sunshine taking photos or doing anything but lying in bed anyway, but I've got a reallly nasty stomach bug that is just not nice at all. It's such a bad time as well...I'm a bridesmaid at my Aunt Jane's wedding on Friday and I had to miss a piano lesson, a hair consultation for the wedding and a wedding rehearsal today. Fingers crossed a million times over that I'm better for the wedding. My Canadian cousin that I adore, who's actually about 32, was meant to be coming to stay before the wedding but she's booked into a hotel now because silly Lulu had to go and get sick. So not a good day all in all but hopefully I'll be better soon - just wanted to check in and say hi, anyways. Here's a quick snap from sunset a few days ago, although the thought of food is still making me rather queasy. Thanks for reading.

@ f/2.8, 1/400, ISO 100 w/ 35mm and 300D

Love, L.

Another holiday snap...

2007-07-17T09:28:00.000Z

... I loved this one. I walked down to the beach about 6 or 7pm just to take some pictures of the sea as the sun set and hear the soft crashing of the waves once more before we went home. And, as I walked along the beach, I saw these three - a father and his two young children - standing silently by the sea. It was too beautiful not to snap (and, yes, I did check it was okay)!

It's one of my favourite pictures I've ever taken, even though I only met this family in passing and even though I am unlikely to meet Rose and Jude and their father Simon again. It just touches me how small and insignificant they seem next to the mighty and all-consuming yet utterly beautiful sea. Thanks for letting me share. And thanks for all the wonderful comments your guys leave me...I truly do appreciate it.

Love, miss Lulu ;)

Did you miss me?

2007-07-15T08:39:00.000Z

I missed you all! I really did. I had a wonderful - yet hectic, pandemonic, slightly chaotic - time at the ocean and miss it so much already. I love the ocean. It's like coming home. It's when you remember without thinking how to climb cliffs, go rockpooling and be the perfect paddler. It's when you can see the shore in your mind's eye, smell the pungent salty air of the seaside and feel the crunch of glistening wet sand crystals beneath your feet even when you are 100 miles inland. That's why it feels like home to me, although I have never lived near the sea.

There is something, some invisible force, that draws me to the ocean....that vast, huge body of water that nobody can ever hope to see the whole of. The uncountable drops of brine, the life it holds and the power it has over life and death and our land enchant me. I think it all began when I went on a trip to the beach with school, a beautiful beach with white sands and smooth pebbles, gleaming azure waters and green sand dunes as far as the eye could see. We had a booklet with some information about the beach itself and the ocean in general but one quotation, printed in small Times New Roman on the back of the leaflet, still stays with me.

“We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.” ~ Mother Teresa

So I think the ocean kind of signifies the world to me...but each drop of water represents a human being, someone so tiny and diminutive in the whole scheme of living, but someone so brilliantly important in their own way. The ocean's special and ever since I first visited, many yonders ago when the sun shone in summer (!) and I could wear glittery mauve jelly shoes without feeling self-conscious, I have vowed that one day I will live in a house right by the sea so I can be breathless every minute of the day - astounded by its beauty and sheer mass and blueness.

So now that's over and done with, I just had to write it somewhere, I'll share some nice little details about my lovely holiday. And, if you haven't yet realised, this post will probably be a long one, so leave now unless you're in it for the long run...! My parents, little sister (who's actually not so little anymore) and I stayed in North Devon, one of the most beautiful and serene places on the English coastline. Many of the beaches are deserted, with only a few souls wandering their sand even in summer, and some days we had the sea to ourselves. The water was absolutely freezing, cold enough to give you frostbite I'm sure, but since when did that ever stop me?! I guess I'm just too used to the English Channel which is significantly warmer than the Atlantic Ocean, naturally. Still, here's some proof that I did actually go in [my feet in the water as you may not be able to decipher thanks to such limited DOF]...

It was sunny and warm most days, although rain plagued us on the last couple of afternoons in true English style. My mother and I drove to a deserted little cove and shore named Putsborough Sands together, just to see it. It was absolutely stunning. There really are no words to describe it. Seriously. You'd have to see it to believe it, and my photographs do not do it justice by a long way. The sun shone high in the bright blue sky illuminating puffy marshmallow cloud formations as Atlantic waves lapped the shore, and clouds reflected onto the sands. My heart just skipped a beat. It was that beautiful. The tide was out and my mum had my camera bag safe and sound round her neck so I just ran. I ran like I have never run before...wind blowing in my hair, wet sand at my feet, the crunchy pebbles between my toes and the absolutely blue sea waiting for me...almost calling my name. And as I ran, blue sweater round my waist and sandals long discarded, I felt truly happy. A different kind of happiness, a place of absolute sweetness and joy. I almost didn't write this for fear I could not even hope to emulate such beauty and such joy but I am glad I did, for I have tried. This is the view I was met with.

And...other stuff...we played a game of Boggle every evening (I always won, unapologetically, it's the only game I am good at), we ate ice-cream until we were bursting, we painted sugar dishes in a shop, my sister and I made up songs, wrote stories, cooked pasta and garlic bread, stayed up late, woke up late, went out to dinner in typical English pubs and had fun. Here's just a few more pictures from my stay....

And, a rare one of my little sister who recently turned thirteen. The sea is in the background, which I love, of course.

Thanks for reading. If you got this far, well done! From the bottom of my heart!! =) Have a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful day...and thanks for the lovely comments you left me whilst I was away.

Love, miss Lulu =)

16060 days

2007-07-06T21:12:00.000Z

There are a dozen and three things I could talk about tonight: the last Brownie meeting until September, my crazy day, my excitement about going to the seaside tomorrow, just stuff really. But, instead, I want to write about my grandparents and their house.

I love my paternal grandparents unequivocally, you could say more than anything in the world. We are inextricably linked, so alike and love each other dearly. They have lived in their house, a three bedroom semi in the London suburbs for 44 years. Yes, 44 years. My two aunts were born in that house. Forty-four years is 16060 days. That many. Think of all the memories, the history. Eight Prime Ministers have been and gone whilst they lived in that house. Seven American presidents. Countless birthdays, 44 Christmases....think of all those moments in one house. The day they moved in President Kennedy was killed. Since then so much has happened, so much has changed... computers, mobile phones, 9/11, Civil Rights Bill, Women's Movement...so so much.

They're moving now. To a bungalow nearby. I will miss that old house. I could navigate it with my eyes closed, I bet you I could. Often I go there in my dreams...and I know where everything is. The Ribena bottle is in the bottom cupboard as you enter the kitchen, next to the lemon squash and Cadbury's Chocolate Fingers tin which hasn't housed any chocolate fingers since 1973, so I'm told. The calendar hangs on the wall below the red clock with white geometric numbers. The golden bell hangs from a hook on the ceiling in the hall. My grandfather's tartan napkin sits on the dining room table, next to his crosswords and his red Parker biro. I do love that house. Today I went over, just to say bye. I took pictures too. So I can always remember that house. I love it so. But things change, that's life I guess. When I was nine, I wrote in my diary (a pink check canvas book a la Anne Frank) that I wanted to bottle my life up in a glass jar so I could always go back to it. But as much as I loved my life when I was nine, I love it now too. There are things, of course, I miss. The freedom, the lack of homework, my maternal Grandmother....but things anew I adore. So it goes both ways, I guess.

So, here are some photographs that I will treasure of that old house of memories and history. That old house of, essentially, love.

{ The old cushion naming wildflowers and plants. }

{ Grandma's coloured pegs. }

{ Grandad's bonsai trees ready for the move. }

{ Flowers in his beloved garden. }

{ The notorious red faced clock. }

{ I love how you can see my Grandad in the background, moving box in his hand...says so much about the day. }

{ The dying apple tree in the backyard which is no surprise, that's it dying, the amount of rope swings it held and we climbed... =) }

{ Key in the bedroom door. }

{ Grandma's hat and favourite magazines on the table. }

Oh...and a PSA, I'm going away for the week tomorrow to the ocean so won't be posting until next Saturday (14 July 2007) .. I'll miss you guys but can't wait. I love the sea. Have a great week and I'll be back in a week with lots of pictures and stories, I promise!

Oh, and hey Ellllllen..hope you had a fab time in Cuba!

Books & Bloglines

2007-07-04T19:40:00.000Z

Today I discovered the joys of Bloglines...so much fun! And I think it'll be much quicker and easier. For those who don't know, it's a way to track the blogs you like and you're notified when someone creates a new post. If you aren't registered, you should be! It rocks!

Anyway, enough about Bloglines, and more about books. As a self-professed bookworm I thought it would be nice to have a thread JUST about books (kinda failed before I started, didn't I?!)....I'm going to recommend some books and I'd love it if you'd recommend some back! I think I shall have this every Wednesday...we'll call it Libellorum Wednesday (because Libellorum means 'little book' in Latin). =) I think it should be fun. And if you're not an avid reader, I hope we can persuade you to come join the Dark Side!

...I love these books. Most I have read recently and really enjoyed, so I thought for my first Libellorum Wednesday post I'd share these with you. I promise not to always recommend so many, but as this post is the first of many...I shall today!

1. The Time Traveller's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger

Brilliant! It's beautifully written and it was recommended to me by so many people that I just HAD to read it. I wondered what the hype was about at first but once I got into it, I adored it!

2. The Story of Us, by Marcia Preston

As a young mother struggles to overcome the death of her son, she embarks on a journey to find the family who received his organs. Raw, heart-wrenching and utterly compelling.

3. Perfect Match, by Jodi Picoult

I do love Jodi Picoult (whose name is pronounced Pee-KOH, I was surprised to recently discover) and was dismayed when I began to find her novels a little similar. This one was the exception. I loved it. Nathaniel was so endearing, as were Patrick and Nina, and the ending was so unexpected I was shocked for days. A great read.

4. The Lost Art of Keeping Secrets, by Eva Rice

I keep a reading log of all the books I read and I have a category where I write "This book in one word:"... how sad, I know!...And for this one it was quirky. And this book truly is quirky. The characters have such depth and add so much character and interest to the book. Penelope is incredibly endearing, Charlotte fun and slightly aloof and Inigo, well, read it and you'll see! The great characted names just enhanced its charm!

5. The Importance of Being Kennedy, by Laurie Graham [no picture, sorry!]

As devoured in a previous post, Bobby Kennedy is my hero. His idealism, his belief in his duty to spread goodness and his triumph through adversity. This book is written by the neice of a woman who was a governess and nanny to the Kennedy children and, even if you loathe the Kennedys, is so beautifully written you cannot help but be drawn in. It does not read like a history book, even though it is based on the diaries of Laurie Graham's aunt: it reads like a beautiful, compelling story that cannot be put down until finished!

Hope that's given you some ideas for some summer reading! Now I'd love to hear what books YOU recommend! =)

Love, Lulu. x

Draw Me A Picture?

2007-07-01T20:49:00.000Z

Okay, sorry guys! I have been so busy this week, my first exam free week for months! School's officially over (sad but I'll cope) and I have been shopping for books, to a bridesmaids' dress fitting for my aunt's wedding, photographing wildflowers, cycling, shopping for books, to my auntie's hen night, swimming tonight, out to a play, shopping for books again!! So hectic, so fun and soooo chaotic! Every night I get in and eat dinner and read a little, maybe photograph, and I feel so tired that I just drop off to sleep. I keep thinking, and yearning, to blog about my adventures, but I just forget or fall asleep before I get the chance! So, my apologies. I plan to blog every night this week, to get back into the swing of things. Promise! =)

We've had my cousin staying over this week and he is the sweetest thing, letting me try out my new film SLR on him...drawing me pictures, making spyglasses and ID cards for his special 'ZoooMiNalS' secret club (don't even ask)! I said Grandma wanted a photo of him to put on the wall at her new bungalow, they're moving next week, and so he agreed to let me take a few...yay! All with the Pentax MG, 50mm lens, f2.2, asa 800/400 except the colour one which was with the 35mm lens and 300D, if you're wondering.

What else has been happening? Well, I read a GREAT book. You MUST read it. It's called Cage of Stars and is written by Jacquelyn Mitchard. I picked it up by chance in Waterstones because I liked the cover photograph and it sounded good so I bought it on a whim. It's amazing...about a young Mormon girl in Utah whose sisters are murdered completely unexpectedly by a schizophrenic. The novel details her initial revenge, her adolescence and journey into adulthood as she struggles to understand the deaths of her sisters and her eventual acceptance of the killer's condition. It was utterly compelling and wonderfully written. I have never been to Utah, I am not LDS nor do I know many, I do not have murdered sisters and I have never felt the need for revenge but I still felt able to relate and understand Veronica's feelings and emotions. It's a beautiful book, and one you must read. It should be on required reading lists on every high school in the country! =)

Anyway, enough babbling. I'm off to read Brothers by David Talbot...about John and Robert Kennedy. I love it so far. And, if you hadn't guessed or realised by now, I adore reading. Got any good books to recommend? Not that I don't have enough (I'm reading The Memory Keeper's Daughter too!) but I always love hearing new recommendations.

Thanks for reading...and I absolutely PrOmIsE to be back tomorrow! I do, I do. :) I don't have anything planned for once so I think I'll just have a lazy day at home, relaxing and reading (hey, what's new?) and photographing and catching up on TV. All the programmes I watch have ended their seasons now. =( Which is a bit distressing really!! I was so distraught, although not as much as my sister, that Doctor Who's season three ended on Saturday. Sooo upsetting. It doesn't come back until Christmas Day and that's only one episode, then not again until March. What a shock episode though - I did NOT expect Martha to not want to go with the Doctor at all. I think she'll be back though...and if not, I vote for Sally Sparrow (a la 'Blink') to be his new companion. She rocked. =)

Anywho, sorry if you have no IDEA what I'm on about. Doctor Who is a British show that ended in 1984 but was recently brought back in a new modern series. It rocks. Seriously. All the people my parent's age watched it when they were kids and almost all kids (and lots of adults) watch it now. It's amazing! ... http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/

See ya! Be good...oh, and happy July! =) Love, L... :)

End of Exams, Lots of Books and Fun :)

2007-06-27T10:45:00.000Z

Crazy title...I know, but I think it's called for. =) And pretty crazy few days, have I had! Apologies also for the crazy, crazy, crazy blog look at the moment; I tried (unsuccessfully) to switch over to the New Blogger Template and found myself Utterly Confused And Wracked With Discomfort at the thought of those difficult widgets and all my links being erased!! =) So I tried to switch back, again without success, so am left with a blank blog without links and a header or anything. I'm working on it though.

As I had my last examination on Monday (joy to the world!), my friend M came around to my house yesterday and we went round all the charity shops in town (that would be a measly TWO) ... I think you call them thrift stores in America ... and picked out books we liked and bought them. I can't wait to read them. I bought six, yes six, for just £3.25. That's a huge great whopping $6.49. If I'd bought them new in the shops, they would have cost about £35 altogether. What a steal! =P

And so to celebrate (although pre-planned) our Great Big Book Bargain (M bought seven for £3.50) and the end of examinations, we went to a play on the Southbank. That's not far from where I live, in central London, right on the river. The play was A Rose Tattoo, by Tennessee Williams, and it was wonderful! The cast were brilliant and so was the music. Afterwards we went out onto the balcony to see London all lit up by night and I took a few pictures. I am just loving my 35mm f2.0 lens...it's so sharp and so lightweight and so great for general purpose shooting. Here's just one. Oops, it didn't upload. Next time!

Have a great day! love, L. (Oh, and you can click to see the photo bigger, sorry they're so tiny but otherwise it makes my blog even more funky that it already is)!

Bad Blogger. Bad Blogger.

2007-06-24T20:42:00.000Z

Be honest, how bad a Blogger have I been? I haven't posted, haven't commented, haven't anything and I send my sincerest apologies to each and every one of you. =) But summer starts tomorrow at 10am, after my last exam. I can't believe these exams, GCSEs, are finally over after so so long! We've worked laboriously towards them for two years and I cannot wait to finally be free of their shadow. =) In brief revision breaks, I've been experimenting with film as well as with my newly repaired and sharp-as-tack 35mm f2.0 which finally arrived [love it!] so I think I'll share my film shots tomorrow, I'll be back free of study for 10 weeks and full of zealousness and zest for blog commenting and posting. I promise!

Digital ISO 400, f/2.0

Thanks for all your sweet comments on the last post. Love y'all!

Just popping in.

2007-06-19T10:13:00.000Z

To say thank you for all the support you have given me in the last 4 months of this blog. I love reading your comments and words, it really motivates me..so thanks. =) I know I haven't been posting as regularly as usual but exams are almost over...18 down and 4 to go! So I'll be back soon, exam-freeeeee and ready to snap! Just pulled one off the cards from the last week...hope you like it. =)

L. x

Overdue.

2007-06-16T08:40:00.000Z

I sincerely didn't realise I hadn't written since Tuesday! Life has been a wonderful chaos of studying, exams and in-between relaxing with little time for photographs or much else. Yet, when I snuggle down under the covers in my cosy bed by the window, I look out at the fading daylight..excited about what tomorrow will bring and I think of all the things I will do in 9 days...when exams are over and I have 60 days of peace and solitude and fun and giggles to myself! I want to read lots of biographies, a new one of Bobby Kennedy I haven't read and a couple of others and, oh, I just can't wait!

I am already making a reading list, planning to join the new library round the corner, to visit the secondhand book store and pick up as many 20p paperbacks as possible, to paint the antique desk in pyschadelic shades that sits forlornly on our bonfire, to plant some half-hardy perennials, to finish my book and write more in my diary. Oh, it shall just be pure bliss after two years of a voice in the back of mind nagging at me "You must study now, Lu!"...much as I love it! About 2/3 of our year group, that's Year 11, finished exams yesterday but because I take Religious Studies and Higher Level Bio, Chem and Physics I finish on the 25th. But as much as I am excited about the holidays and the summer, I don't want school to end. I do love it so...the people, the ethos, the girls, the teachers, the grounds and most of all the learning. I think if there is one thing I love, it is to learn. About anything! That's why I like photography, reading books, school...I just love to educate myself and to learn more about the wonderful and diverse and utterly beautiful planet and its people. =)

As for photographs, still no sign of my 35mm. I sent it almost two weeks ago First Class so it should have arrived at the photographic company HQ by now but they say they still haven't received it. What a nightmare. I'm thinking I might just buy another 50mm to save myself the trouble, but certainly not from there!! Anyway, here's two from recently...you just gotta love cheesecake and strawberries!

I'll be back later with some more photographs, no exams until Wednesday so I have some free time to do my thing. =) Love you all. Be good.

Bellis Perennis

2007-06-12T16:25:00.000Z

“If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. I would go to more dances. I would ride more merry-go-rounds. I would pick more daisies.” ~ Nadine Stair

Daisies [bellis perennis], to me, are hope, joy and love wrapped up into one. They've always symbolised that to me, ever since I made my first daisy chain on a warm August night in 1998. I've loved them ever since.

Who Do You Admire?

2007-06-11T08:54:00.000Z

One of the first things I ask someone in life, when I meet a them or speak to them on the telephone, is "Who is your hero? Who do you admire?" ... I believe that from their role model, their inspiration, you can tell a lot about that person - their character, their interests, who they are and who they would like to become. So I'd love to hear who you admire - anyone, family, friends, a politician, a celebrity...whoever it is. I'd love to hear who and why and how it came to be, whether on your blog or in a comment.

I have a lot of idols. Well, I don't like to call them idols...more admirables, role models....my grandfathers, my grandmothers, my parents, Martin Luther King, Anne Frank, Harper Lee. But the one that always stands out, the one that always comes back to me, the one I can relate to most of all is Robert F. Kennedy. Ever since I watched a documentary on him a long while back I have admired his triumph through adversity, his devotion to his family, his courage and bravery, and his gentle nature, his belief in his duty to do right. There is something in his spirit and his policies that kindled a fire inside me, that made me want to change this world, to bring goodness and happiness to all. Whilst his brother took the fame and glory, he stood on the sidelines and worked harder than ever yet still managed a smile. His message was one of hope and of truth and of love. His idealism and views speak to me beyond words. I think he would've won, had he have lived. He would have won.

So, let me know, who do you admire?

L. x

Chaotic.

2007-06-07T15:40:00.000Z

That's how I would describe my life right now. Chaotic, but fun and engaging and interesting and terribly detailed and busy as banana jam. But fun. I guess that's what it's all about, being swept along for the ride and making the most of it, enjoying it in your own special way. Thankfully life is not so chaotic that I haven't had time to take a few pictures here and there. Most of what i have been doing is detailed in the next photo...it's me, my life right now. Not technically perfect but fun all the same! Yep, you win, revision, revision and yet more revision. But it's all fun.

I had Biology [difficult but doable] and Latin [easy!] yesterday and German today. I adore German so much..the way it flows, the culture, the literature but it was really ziemlich schwierig today. But my German teacher is utterly lovely and I know she'll be proud of us all whatever we achieve. She's nice like that.

It was lovely this morning, all of us German students studying together before the exam. Laughing and joking and practising our phrases. Do you ever have moments like this? Where you just marvel at the beauty of life and friendship and wonder why some people resort to violence and war? We were sitting in the big hall and as our voices echoed around the room, you could hear the soft tinkling of a grand piano in the background...from downstairs in the assembly hall. I wished I had my camera but there's a quote I read once, about how you shouldn't be bitter that you didn't have the chance to capture it...you should just soak up the moment and I did. I just smiled. As two girls [ballet fans...] pirouetted in time to our chanting of sein and haben, the sounds echoing around the room and the morning sunlight spilling through the window, I felt that moment of happiness. A moment of stillness and beauty and truth and life. I love moments like that. =)

And now, sorry for that little diversion...I just had to write it and etch it in time, some completely unrelated pictures from the last few days. I still don't have my 35mm back but I'm finding the kit lens quite fun (ssssshhhhh!).

Have a fab evening, I have to go study the Cold War! Love, Miss L.