Posted by Ed Kiser on June 11, 2005 at 05:06:41 from 205.188.116.6 user Kisered.
I was watching "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" and noticed when the rather horrible characters known as the Dementors came floating by, that the area nearby got all cold and frosted over. The picture gave a close up showing a flower getting all frozen, and I suddenly leaped up and announced that I knew what that flower was, that it was a foxglove, a collection of pink "bells" on a long stem, with the smaller ones near the top. It is not a flower that I would normally have been familiar with, but had very recently found it among the daily downloads I make from the www.cornwallcam.co.uk in addition to the daily offerings from the www.lakelandcam.co.uk site.
So far, I have 12625 photos gathered during these several years of daily downloading. I cannot get to that part of the world, so instead I take this vicarious "trip" by looking at these photo offerings.
The Harry Potter movie also shows some delightful scenes from that part of the world, with much of that particular movie being made in Scotland. That area is very similar to what I have seen in the photos of the Lake District as well.
It was a good feeling to spot that particular flower and to recognize it from the photo collection. Of course it would have been better if I could have actually been to those places, but that not being practical, I do enjoy this pictorial visit. So maybe I am not a "local", but it sure did give me a moment of feeling like one, to spot and recognize that flower as it frosted over.
You might wonder what I do with so many photos. There are four groups that I collect: The Lake District, Cornwall, Lowestoft, and the Norfolk Broads. I set my SCREEN SAVER to point to this collection, and set it to a one minute delay so as to get it started as soon as possible, then just sit back and let it randomly take me on a lovely pictorial tour of these four areas, to see the towns, the buildings, the water ways, the fields, the stone walls, the mountains, the lakes, the sea shore with its boats grounded on tidal flats. It is a random display, and with so many, it is as if I am seeing something new every time. A quick six second fascinated stare, and then it flips to another beauty.
Maybe it is the camera genius of these photographers, or maybe it is simply the magnificent beauty of that amazing land. For those of you that call it "home" I do hope that from time to time you look about, and take in those scenes that you see every day, and somehow, try to see them as if for the first time, so you can more fully appreciate the wonders of the views. If only you could look about yourself through my eyes, and you would see marvelous things. Take time to "smell the roses."
I am grateful for Ransome for his having introduced me to that part of this world, so that I became so motivated to see more of it, and to really get into the enjoyment of the place.
It was delightful to see that stone bridge at Potter Heigham and see for myself just how close the clearance was when the Cachalot slipped through towing the Death and Glory. How delightful that Ransome used so many REAL places.
Even if you do drive on the wrong side of the road... I would not survive one week of driving there without a head-on horror. I would not want to drive, as I would want my eyes to be free to flit about and take in each new vista as some other driver handles the car.
Just don't forget to appreciate where you live. To you, whatever part of the world you live in, it is just every day ho-hum; to me, it would be the adventure of a lifetime.
Look about, and see your own place, see it again, for the first time.
And tomorrow, hopefully, I will add around another dozen photos to that collection, to ooh and aah over, and marvel...
I get to look at the "beautiful" big 14 foot lizards in the Everglades, within walking distance of my home, which incidentally, is about 3 miles away from MARGATE. Small world, what?
Ed Kiser, South Florida