Hello 2017, Goodbye 2016

Well it's that time of year, i.e. the start of brand new one, when I produce a post that is more words than photos. Time to reflect on the past twelve months (photographically speaking) and to peer groggily into the uncertain depths of the new one.

At the beginning of 2016 I set myself the goal of developing a primarily random photo blog. I think I managed that, by and large.

In January I posted birds and words. February saw the cover art for my (then) forthcoming poetry collection, Years Ago You Coloured Me. March was a touristy, photographic tour of central Cambridge. In April I had a breather and then, in May, there was a flood of posts: the industry of farming, spring words and images, books and words plus an update on things that had been keeping my busy at the time and images of the stunning Willington Dovecote. June saw another quartet of posts: 2016's Strawberry Fair, Cambridge's Mill Road Cemetery, a plethora of poppies and Rousham Gardens in Oxfordshire. July saw a further lull in activity and then August, well August produced twelve posts including rural South Cambridgeshire, another tour of Central Cambridge, scenes of North Norfolk and six nature posts. September concluded the nature photograph posts with a rather queasy photo and threw in Audley End House and some mighty fine buzzards for good measure. October was quiet, November had cute cats, I hibernated in December and here it is, January 2017 already. I managed 27 posts in total during 2016, only 2 less than 2015.

So, January 2017 and the fourth year of this blog. I have no idea what I'm going to be doing this year. Photos, I guess and maybe some words. I'm just going to go with the flow. Care to flow with me...?

Before we are engulfed by the waters of 2017, however, here are some more images from 2016 by way of a farewell to the old year.

January 2016

 February 2016

 March 2016 (and no, I didn't take this one myself)

Oops, looks like I really didn't take any photos in April. Moving on then...

May 2016

 June 2016

July 2016

August 2016

 September 2016

 October 2016

November 2016

And yes, December was another fail. Clearly I must do better in 2017. Maybe I need to make a New Year's resolution...

Seven Day Nature Photo Challenge - Day Three

Over on that there Facebook, I have been challenged to post a photo of nature every day for a week (seven days), and to nominate others to do the same. I've accepted the challenge and to make matters more difficult for myself (why do things easy, when you can make it hard) I'm going to try to post only genuine seasonal photos (i.e. seasonal as of now).

Day 3: Yesterday there were three (three!) buzzards soaring over my house. This is one of them.

It is moments like these which have led to buzzards insinuating themselves into my poetry quite so often, as in the poem Replacing Helicopters With Buzzards. Here is an extract to show what I am talking about:

From "Replacing Helicopters With Buzzards" by J.S.Watts

Across the empty sky spread

above my roof, the hollow mew

of the buzzard calls out now.

Steady feathered fingers reach

towards the chimney, but do not touch.

The buzzard is intent on the fields

behind the house, hovering

to snatch a rabbit,

or other small creature,

living and dying out there.

The heavy beat of large wings clearing

the sky of smaller birds.

"Replacing Helicopters With Buzzards" appears in the New Ulster anthology, "Voices For Peace".

Sky High, Sky Wide

"It is the moon who tells me what I am"

From "Lycanthropist" by J.S.Watts