2006-05-01T16:04:42Z tag:my-expressions.com,2006:109957 2005-12-09T18:29:49Z 2005-12-09T18:29:49Z jamesk Dear all

It is with great sadness that I have to announce that this will be the last post on thePeaSoupFiasco. I'd like to thank all of you for your support, encouragement and down right enthusiasm which has carried this blog on for almost 400 posts. Sincerely, thank you. Old friends have seen me improve and grow as a photographer, as for my new friends in the photoblogging community, it has been, and will continue to be, a pleasure learning from you guys.

This has come as unexpectedly to me, as it is to you, and I do not really wish to elaborate too much. Suffice to say, I have paid a price for the openess with which I prided this blog on and for which I believed photoblogging allowed.

But fear not, this is not the end! I plan to set up a new photoblog in the near future. I am not going to announce it's name, but I will send an email to as many of you as possible. If you would like to make sure I email you, then please email me, tell me who you are, and I will send you a link to my new domain.

Once again, a huge heap of thanks to everyone. Goodbye for now. ]]> tag:my-expressions.com,2006:109951 2005-12-09T17:50:23Z 2005-12-09T17:50:23Z jamesk My mate JJ always used to say (and probably still does) real men don't eat quiche. A little harsh I thought, I always liked quiche. I even make a pretty mean quiche. I'm not sure where this puts me in his mind.

Anyway, that saying popped into my head as I was in Superdrug, stocking up on the above. Real men don't need tissues. When you get to the checkout armed with this many 'cold repellent' products, you can actively see the checkout assistant try and take three steps backwards, until she realises she can only take half a step in her booth.

So far this winter, I've taken pride in the fact that while people around me have been dropping like flies from the first effects of winter viruses, I have stayed strong. Well, you know what they say about pride. The back of my throat and my, now incumbent, cold virus have been battling it all week and I can confidently say the cold has one.

It's what the Irish call Murphy's law. The only worse time it could have come is Christmas day. And that may have not been so bad, I'd be looked after by my family and get to stay in bed all day. No, it's come now. The day before I'm doing my second wedding shoot and the day before our Christmas party, where a cornicopa of attractive friends will be present. There's nothing more gutting than buying a large bunch of mistletoe, knowing you have a honker that could outshine Rudolph from 200 metres. Which coincidentally will be as close as anyone dares come tomorrow night!
]]> tag:my-expressions.com,2006:109881 2005-12-09T10:28:21Z 2005-12-09T10:28:21Z jamesk A sad day in London. For one of the most famous of the city's icons, the Routemaster bus, is to be removed from service. The bus has been gradually withdrawn from service over the last couple of years and now only operates on one route - the 159. I'm pleased to say this is the route I used to use when I lived in Brixton. The last bus leaeves central London at midday.

Apparently they are no longer viable as they do not have access for diasbled paasengers. But I also heard that they were withdrawn because too many people were running to jump on the back of one, but ending up eating tarmac. Either way, it's a sad day.

I've posted this shot before, but it's my only routemaster shot. I didn't even take it, but it's become one of my favourites.
]]> tag:my-expressions.com,2006:109661 2005-12-08T11:50:38Z 2005-12-08T11:50:38Z jamesk Dan inspired today's post - check out his post and story. Funny.

Currently fighting off a cold which has started waging war at the back of my throat - taking zinc, vitamin c and that Echinicea stuff (however spelt) and exercising lots. Can't get ill - have Christams house party on Saturday and shooting another wedding during the day. Crikey, I haven't even posted the shots from the first one I did.
]]> tag:my-expressions.com,2006:109287 2005-12-06T10:07:16Z 2005-12-06T10:07:16Z jamesk I'm house-sitting this week for some friends. And I'm loving it. Home alone. It reminds me that there is another way.
]]> tag:my-expressions.com,2006:108807 2005-12-04T12:03:58Z 2005-12-04T12:03:58Z jamesk Another test shot from my Fed-4, admittedly I'm not sure exactly what I was testing here, but I like the effect. My best guess for this one is a shot of one of the bridges on the Thames while sitting on a double decker London bus. But any other guesses are welcome.

Last night was the Cambridge Univesity Blind Wine Tasting Christmas party. Oh yes folks, oh yes. Hard to explain but it was great fun! Lots of wine, nice food and great company - there's a crowd of us who now go each week and have dusted off any cobwebs of formality that may have once been present. There was even a wine quiz which Gillian, Kate and I romped home to win, receiving a fine bottle of '88 German Reisling. Followed by clubbing in town, lots of merriment and dancing and a live MC called Othello who turns out to be on Syntax Records and has really made it, because you can by his forthcoming album at Tesco. Only in Cambridge: fine wine tasting followed by hiphop.
]]> tag:my-expressions.com,2006:108590 2005-12-03T13:55:42Z 2005-12-03T13:55:42Z jamesk Over 350 posts into this blog and this is the first cat photo I've posted here* - not bad going considering the frequency with which you see pet photos on blogs. I make no apologies for using such cliched subject material.

This is Pinny, our twelve** year old Welsh cat. We found her as a tiny kitten, the runt of the litter in fact, while walking in Wales. She appeared with her brothers and sisters at a remote farm near here. All the cats followed us for ages on our walk - when we repassed the farm on the way back down the mountain we managed to leave all the kittens behind except Pinny, who, despite are best efforts to shoe her away, followed us for two miles back to our cottage. We later drove back up to return her to the farmer, but when we arrived he said if we wanted her, we could keep her. And now here she is, twelve years on.

The reason I post was not actually to tell you about my cat. Who cares? Really it was to tell you this was taken as part of a test roll using a Fed-4 I bought off ebay. It's an old Russian rangefinder camera, basically a cheap copy of a Leica. And it's really marvellous - shots have a stunning depth to them (unfortunately some of that was lost here with scanning).

*At least that I remember
**Approximate age
]]> tag:my-expressions.com,2006:108434 2005-12-02T10:09:59Z 2005-12-02T10:09:59Z jamesk The Cam, one foggy October morning, 2005.

Today is race day, the biggest rowing event of the term; Fairburns. It's the longest race of the year in Cambridge at 4.3km and I think the second longest race in the UK except for the Oxford-Cambridge boat race (which I think is over 6km). We're taking part, and I'm in charge of our boat once again as the Captain is away. I'm very excited, it's going be so hard but so much fun. Let's kick some...

For most of the tourists to Cambridge, this is the view of the river they remember - some punts, some overhanging trees, pretty bridges and pretty colleges. The image for many students is different - rowing boats, blades, the backside of the guy in front of you in the boat, some ordered chaos and lycra. Yikes.
]]> tag:my-expressions.com,2006:107862 2005-11-30T10:43:29Z 2005-11-30T10:43:29Z jamesk Taken a few weeks ago, back in Bath.

It was so cold this morning when we rowed, that the river had frozen over in parts. We were one of the first boats out on the water and as it had been a really cold, clear night with not a drop of wind, the surface of the Cam had frozen over. Each time we put our blades in the water they were met with a satisfying crunching sound of sheet ice breaking. When we stopped, the waves from the boat moved underneath the ice forcing it to break apart all around us making an intense shimmering, shattering sound.

Damn cool.

Update: 11.12am - I took Claire's advice and cleaned up the image. Now much happier with it.
]]> tag:my-expressions.com,2006:107395 2005-11-28T07:24:53Z 2005-11-28T07:24:53Z jamesk I took this photo a while ago, maybe even a year ago, but never found reason to post it. I still haven't really found a reason to post it, other than I quite like it and I haven't had time to scan any more shots from Canada. This is Magdalene College, with St John's Chapel in the background.

Off to London today for a two day conference on mental health entitled The Child is the Father of the Man. Sounds like a good'un.

And I'm feeling much better than I was last week. Stress levels are almost back to normal! Thank god.
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