Merry Holymas

Merry whatever you celebrate. I personally would not mind a little war on Christmas, I hate the holiday and everything it officially stands for (hint- it does not stand for love and family, that is most people’s personal addition). But I love the winter solstice and the promise of longer days and shorter nights again. We had an extremely warm bud muddy and gloomy fall so far, but today, finally, winter has begun for real – we had our first real snowfall of this year. That has cheered me up ever so slightly.

I might have to dust off the snow of the bonsai trees, if it gets wet, it could break them.

The Art of …

… simplicity, by Nailia Schwarz

Nailia is a German photographer, originally from Russia, and this is from her series “Simple Things.” More of her work can be seen at Fine Art America or on her Facebook page.

Simple Things – Christmas, by Nalia Schwarz.Image from Fine Art America

The Wizard’s Manse and Observatory

I have something wonderfully whimsical to share from Avalus,

A wizard manson with an observatory:

All made from cardboard, leftover foamboard and a few bits of fly netting and translucent paper for the windows. I did not make many photos of the building process.

It was really fun to craft models again and over the next month or so I created a handful of different buildings.

When I was younger I was a regular tabletop wargamer. Over the years, the gaming fell away, but the crafting and painting of miniatures and terrain pieces stayed, if somewhat periodically. In the first week of the lockdown, some stuff in my flat broke and I had to order replacements over the internet (something I do not like to do). And then, when I had a few boxes and other carton pieces, ready to be thrown away, inspiration struck.

I am not sure yet, what I will now do with them, as I don’t really play more than once a year. Probably gift them to my gaming friends.

A Glorious Christmas Spider

This incredible shot of a Christmas Spider comes from Sally’s garden, where Winterfest happens in the summertime. (photo is below the fold) [Read more…]

A Cheerful Cardinal

This bright red feathered dinosaur comes to us from the camera of Some Old Programmer, who notes,

Through a kitchen window that, admittedly, needs cleaning. Eastern Massachusetts, US.

All kitchen windows need cleaning by December, but very few have a view this nice. Thanks for sharing.

Jack’s Walk

It’s drizzly and gloomy today, but I don’t mind a bit because the sun is shining in my heart. Finally, after a difficult month, my sweet Bubba is able to walk again. Not far, but he can easily get to the end of the street and back with his tail wagging. His gait isn’t pretty to watch, and we go very, very slowly (think Tim Conway’s old man slow), but Jack is himself again. He wants to go out and explore all the smells and as of yesterday, he’s able to lift his leg again to leave behind a smell or two of his own. The past few weeks Jack has had to pee standing up and he couldn’t direct the stream, which he found frustrating. I found it frustrating, too, because he often peed all over his front legs, requiring a post pee sponge bath several times a day.

We’re very lucky to have a good vet whose clinic is nearby. She has started Jack on an injectible bone-building drug called Cartrophen in addition to an oral anti-inflammatory and Tramadol for pain and collectively they’ve set Jack back on track. He’ll never have his light prancing gait again, and our future adventures will be smaller, but he’s happy and comfortable, and I can finally take a deep breath. I know we’re entering the difficult times in the life of a big dog, but for today the wind is at our backs and life is good.

Bullfinches!

We have no snow yet, but the temps are below 0 °C sometimes, so we are filling the feeder with sunflower seeds. And at least bullfinches are here again, I had four pairs show up simultaneously this week, although I did not, unfortunately, get them all in one picture. I got seven individuals at once, but unfortunately, the focus was not on the tree with birds but on the tree behind them.

Winterfest Photofest

Welcome to the last day of our Winterfest Photofest. I know you’ll enjoy this last set of pictures that all have a quiet, contemplative quality.

First, more delicious photos by Dan Cates, who was introduced to us yesterday. I think Dan’s photos have a lovely, tranquil feel to them, and this grouping is no exception.

Next, two evocative and moody photos from the camera of Marcus Ranum (Stderr)

Finally, a serene and perfectly titled photo from JacqueG.

I’d like to thank everyone who submitted photos and made Winterfest such a success. I’d also like to thank everyone who made donations to our Winterfest fundraising campaign. If you haven’t done that yet and would like to contribute, you can do so here.

I’d also like to remind everyone that Affinity loves getting photo submissions any time of the year, so if you have any photos you’d like to share, please feel free to send them in. Our address is always in the left sidebar, underneath the colourful percolating head.

Winterfest Photofest

Welcome! Today we have 2 submissions that are all about looking at things close up, including a few birds and a wannabe bird at the end who will make you smile. Let’s go take a look.

First, a well-captured, tall bird with beautiful amber eyes from Pieter L. Harreman. It reminds me of the heron who lives in or park, but the white hghlights of this bird make him look more dapper and elegant.

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Next, a set of photos full of pattern and texture from the camera of Dan Cates. (you’ll be seeing more of Dan’s photos tomorrow on our Winterfest wrap-up)

Thanks to you both for taking the time to send these photos in. They all make wonderful additions to our Winterfest collection.

Winterfest Photofest

Welcome back. The first set of photos today is wildly creative and comes from the mind and camera of Avalus. I’ll let him explain,

I don’t have a Christmas tree at home, but in the lab, a reaction I did today provided a splendid alternative. Here are some glittery fotos. Below them, I will go a bit into the details of what you see there.

These shiny metal balls are beads of molten potassium sitting on top and inside of a potassium alcoholate/alcohol compound (the white crystalline, snowlike stuff) that slowly dissolves into the boiling hexane.

What happens here is that the potassium replaces the hydrogen of the OH group of the alcohol, forming a potassium-alcoholate and gaseous hydrogen, so the metal will slowly disappear over the next few days. In the end, the resulting potassium alcoholate will be liquid at room temperature, which is pretty cool, because most alcoholates are solids with high melting points.

This stuff will be used in my PhD research of weird alkalimetal organic complexes.

An accidental self-portrait on a liquid metal surface, warped by passing of hexane, running down the walls of the vessel.

Have a good (and maybe science-y) holiday season, everybody!

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The next set of photos today are all about texture and pattern, and they come from the camera of our own Charly.

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Lastly is a compelling group of landscape photos sent in by Peter Lindsay. Peter lives in southwestern Manitoba (Canada) and tells us that the landscape there is quite unique. Peter does photography in every season but notes that winter is a favourite time of year. They also tell us that they’re fond of loan trees, which I’m sure you’ll note in these stunning pictures. Peter has sent us a link to their pubic Flickr site, which I encourage you to check out. The collection is brimming with delicious landscapes from around the world that are well worth seeing.