Just realised something. As of the 26th February, this blog has been going on for a year.
And why I should think that's significant, I don't know.
Unfortunately I have no stats to show for this sort of thing, as I only started using a stat tool in October. So no Month-on-Month, Quarter-on-Quarter or Year-on-Year figures to show you. Which is no fun really. No Powerpoint slides. Hurrr. What would we do without Powerpoint slides to justify our existence?
What may have changed over the year is the raison d'etre of this blog. While I had originally started it to keep a record of bonsai shows we attend, the reality is there isn't always that much newsworthy (by my definitions) to say. Post photos of the trees on display? A pure line-up of bonsai tree photos is one of the most boring things I can think of to do, and if you're looking for these, then there are bazillions of other websites already doing them. For nothing am I going to run a blog to bore myself to tears.
And while it may be amusing and controversial to do a 'Hello' magazine type reportage on bonsai personalities, there really isn't anyone in the bonsai world that I can think of who is on par with Paris Hilton for this type of 'newsworthiness'. Underwear notwithstanding. (And please - if you do know someone who fits the bill, please don't tell me. Oh. Wait. Hmmm....)
So this blog has evolved into something a bit more like a personal record of events. What have not changed are the tools I use: all my photos are still taken on my Sony Ericsson phone, most of the staged photos are either taken in my kitchen or in the front room. I don't use any professional photographic equipment as I can't be bothered to do any complicated set-up. Little or no manipulation is done to the photos, the most I will do is try to enhance brightness or contrast; again as I have neither the time nor the inclination to learn how to use the software.
So to the old friends who have been on this journey with me for the past year, thanks for sticking 'round. To the new friends who have bumped up my stat numbers, thanks for dropping by. Don't bother looking for the stat analysis, do you really think I'm going to get up off my bum to look the numbers up? Hmpfh.
Looking forward to another year with y'all. Yeee-hah.
Sunday, 28 February 2010
Bonsai Streaming by on Twitter
Over the last couple of days, I've followed several interesting 3-way Twitter discussions on various bonsai-related topics: the use of colour and glazes of bonsai pots, choosing a bonsai pot, the position of a tree in the pot, soil contour in a pot to complement the flow of the tree, etc. Protagonists of these discussions were @MoKusa, @bonsaibanter and @ExtremeWork. A minor and boring detail called the day job prevented me from joining in tweet streams that sometimes spanned a couple of days. Unfortunately I don't have software that allowed me to copy and archive the streams either.
But, Plan B - I haz one! Iz called a blog! Dis blog here, even!
So here is my version of coming late to the party, but sticking my oar in nonetheless. Mixed metaphors, I haz dem too.
One of the early discussions reminded me of a lively interchange between TOH and myself over the right pot for our Satsuki Azalea 'Kinsai'. We are pretty much agreed on the (approximate) shape, depth and other dimensions of the pot but where our opinions diverge (and boy do they diverge) are on what we consider a suitable colour and texture for Kinsai's new home.
So backtrack a bit to where we are coming from: TOH's visual composition background is rooted in photography; mine is in a traditional Western Art education, particularly painting and illustration; as for the Kinsai, it's coming out this pot:
I'm also coming from the standpoint of a person who doesn't like the colour of Kinsai flowers. TOH utterly loves it. So my choice of pot colour is driven by a desire to mitigate an effect, TOH's goal is to emphasize and provide a frame to that colour. Damage Limitation vs Enhancement.
Most people would say Kinsai has red flowers (and that would be true); but I would like to qualify that this is a warm red, i.e. veering towards orange rather than towards violet. Whether you can see that from the photo will very likely depend on your screen resolution.
My point of view is that our interpretation of colour is very subjective, even though quantifiable (so to speak) definitions exist for various pure spectral colours, for example. So the definition of the colour 'red' in approximate frequencies (in terahertz) and wavelengths (in nanometers) would be a frequency interval of ~ 430–480 THz and a wavelength interval of ~ 700–635 nm. (Source: Wikipedia)
But that doesn't quite tell my brain and naked eye if they should be looking for the red of a postbox, the red of a child's crayon or the red of (fresh) blood, for example. So my brain tends to refer to the crayons of my childhood when I envisage the primary and secondary colours. Because really, who can see all of the 7 colours of a rainbow with their naked eye anyway?
So back to our Kinsai and its warm-hued red spider flowers (because yes, the great majority of its flowers are the thin spidery kind - at least it's doing one thing right) and our colour choice for a pot. My damage limitation tendency leads me to balance off the 'orange-red' with its colour complements, i.e. a glossy two-tone glaze of blue-green. TOH, with a 'if you've got it flaunt it' attitude, is leaning towards a contrast using a matte black glaze. Our compromise? We asked the potter to make 2 pots, one in each glaze and we'll decide come re-potting day by holding each one up against the Satsuki. Not quite the dramatic flair of the wisdom of Solomon, but a practical solution that was arrived to in less than 5 seconds. We've obviously had disagreements like this before.
What we haven't agreed on either is whether a high-gloss glaze will advance visually so much that it would overpower a tree, no matter how strong the visual weight of said tree. My contention is that a balance can always be achieved, TOH feels that would be unlikely and the extreme gloss would always call attention to itself and overshadow the tree. But, until we have the physical evidence before our eyes, we'd never really resolve that one, would we?
Just to make things more difficult, the political question of who the potter should please becomes a tricky one: I paid for the Kinsai but I also gave it to TOH as an unbirthday present. So the tree is technically TOH's but I am also very likely going to pay for the pot. So as far as customer satisfaction is concerned, who is the potter's customer anyway?
That aside, if you are on Twitter and are inclined to follow more erudite discussions on the art, craft and science that is bonsai, then add these guys to your follow list.
PS: What's an unbirthday present? If you can't be bothered to read Alice in Wonderland, there's always Google :D
But, Plan B - I haz one! Iz called a blog! Dis blog here, even!
So here is my version of coming late to the party, but sticking my oar in nonetheless. Mixed metaphors, I haz dem too.
One of the early discussions reminded me of a lively interchange between TOH and myself over the right pot for our Satsuki Azalea 'Kinsai'. We are pretty much agreed on the (approximate) shape, depth and other dimensions of the pot but where our opinions diverge (and boy do they diverge) are on what we consider a suitable colour and texture for Kinsai's new home.
So backtrack a bit to where we are coming from: TOH's visual composition background is rooted in photography; mine is in a traditional Western Art education, particularly painting and illustration; as for the Kinsai, it's coming out this pot:
I'm also coming from the standpoint of a person who doesn't like the colour of Kinsai flowers. TOH utterly loves it. So my choice of pot colour is driven by a desire to mitigate an effect, TOH's goal is to emphasize and provide a frame to that colour. Damage Limitation vs Enhancement.
Most people would say Kinsai has red flowers (and that would be true); but I would like to qualify that this is a warm red, i.e. veering towards orange rather than towards violet. Whether you can see that from the photo will very likely depend on your screen resolution.
My point of view is that our interpretation of colour is very subjective, even though quantifiable (so to speak) definitions exist for various pure spectral colours, for example. So the definition of the colour 'red' in approximate frequencies (in terahertz) and wavelengths (in nanometers) would be a frequency interval of ~ 430–480 THz and a wavelength interval of ~ 700–635 nm. (Source: Wikipedia)
But that doesn't quite tell my brain and naked eye if they should be looking for the red of a postbox, the red of a child's crayon or the red of (fresh) blood, for example. So my brain tends to refer to the crayons of my childhood when I envisage the primary and secondary colours. Because really, who can see all of the 7 colours of a rainbow with their naked eye anyway?
What we haven't agreed on either is whether a high-gloss glaze will advance visually so much that it would overpower a tree, no matter how strong the visual weight of said tree. My contention is that a balance can always be achieved, TOH feels that would be unlikely and the extreme gloss would always call attention to itself and overshadow the tree. But, until we have the physical evidence before our eyes, we'd never really resolve that one, would we?
Just to make things more difficult, the political question of who the potter should please becomes a tricky one: I paid for the Kinsai but I also gave it to TOH as an unbirthday present. So the tree is technically TOH's but I am also very likely going to pay for the pot. So as far as customer satisfaction is concerned, who is the potter's customer anyway?
That aside, if you are on Twitter and are inclined to follow more erudite discussions on the art, craft and science that is bonsai, then add these guys to your follow list.
PS: What's an unbirthday present? If you can't be bothered to read Alice in Wonderland, there's always Google :D
Tuesday, 23 February 2010
Bonsai Trompe l'oeil
We once had a prominent bonsai professional stay over during a workshop we were running during our club's Summer Show many years ago, and he did his utter best to persuade us to downsize on the number of trees we were growing. While he may have made many salient points, this past winter has also shown me that having a very wide selection of bonsai on hand means that pulling out a half-dozen or so for a winter display means neither headbanging nor panic.
So here is the line-up I dragged out of the garden for the Swindon Winter Image Show, warts and all. My first post on prepping a display for a show is here. The only thing that's changed for me in 2010 is that, due to the really hard winter, we still aren't able to say what trees (and accent plants particularly) will be likely candidates for future shows this year. So you could probably say that this is my 2010 starting line-up.
This shohin Kiyohime maple on rock has been shown previously on this blog and is in a shallow white Walsall pot; over time the white has faded to a very light grey, with a tinge reminiscent of celadon. The tree has come out of the winter without incident. The moss, on the other hand, is way more than manky. Prepping this type of composition is a real pain, as I try to use as much of the old, established moss as possible.
So I took 2 different types of moss, trimming off the back soil / leaves / crud to have as flat a moss 'sheet' as possible. Then I broke it all up into randomly sized patches, some of them maybe only 2 mm wide, others several centimetres in length. Then, using a toothpick, I 'patchworked' the pieces together onto the old moss. The effect I was looking for was an established planting rather than a freshly laid-on topping. The final result is this:
Work still needs to be done to this shohin to improve the trunk line and shorten some of the branches.
And in this post is this Chaenomeles japonica just after Swindon show last year. Fast forward to 2010 and just a few days before this year's show, the moss decided to give up the ghost and crumble off the pot, leaving this:
Again out with the toothpick and the mossy bitty bits. A whole evening spent in a crate indoors brought out a bit more colour in the flower buds. And just so you know, the plant cost a fiver about 4 years ago:
Here's a close-up of the moss 'weave'. You can clearly see the 3 different types of moss used:
This Ivy was dug out of our last garden over 15 years ago and is planted in what we call the dragon's egg (potter is unknown, unfortunately). In this post is what it looked like in the summer last year, and below is how it's come out of a winter in a cold greenhouse heated to 0 degrees Celsius.
Later in the spring I'll try a bit of defoliation on the Ivy so I get some nice spring colour (and possibly smaller leaves). Again, some patchwork retouching had to be done to the moss on this guy.
This Satsuki Azalea (damn if I didn't lose the bloody label somewhere so don't ask me what variety) lives outdoors all year long and had its head buried in snow like the rest of these guys. It's come out of that with tons of new growth as you can see from its back...
...and from its front. How do I tell the one from the other? It's hard to tell from these photos, but the tree actually does 'bow' pronouncedly to you from this angle.
This is one of TOH's earliest Japanese White Pines and it started life as a formal upright. Unfortunately the wrong instructions in a bonsai book led to the loss of both lower branches and it is now a literati. It has also been knocked out of its pot twice in the past year, so it is now slightly overpotted. And in what to me is one ugly, clunky drum pot.
This view is not the precise front of the tree, but IMO it illustrates best how the trunk line runs up and 'bows' toward the viewer.
I'll also have to say that my fave way of prepping a tree for display is straight akadama as it is dead simple. I've now gone off the half-akadama (or soil) / half-moss look as I find it can look rather contrived. So I either go whole hog and do a full moss weave thing or I do pure soil (like when I'm fed up of prepping trees and just want to get it over and done with). I tend to let myself be guided by what the tree looks like before the blackbirds get to it. Hurrr.
So here is the line-up I dragged out of the garden for the Swindon Winter Image Show, warts and all. My first post on prepping a display for a show is here. The only thing that's changed for me in 2010 is that, due to the really hard winter, we still aren't able to say what trees (and accent plants particularly) will be likely candidates for future shows this year. So you could probably say that this is my 2010 starting line-up.
So I took 2 different types of moss, trimming off the back soil / leaves / crud to have as flat a moss 'sheet' as possible. Then I broke it all up into randomly sized patches, some of them maybe only 2 mm wide, others several centimetres in length. Then, using a toothpick, I 'patchworked' the pieces together onto the old moss. The effect I was looking for was an established planting rather than a freshly laid-on topping. The final result is this:
And in this post is this Chaenomeles japonica just after Swindon show last year. Fast forward to 2010 and just a few days before this year's show, the moss decided to give up the ghost and crumble off the pot, leaving this:
Again out with the toothpick and the mossy bitty bits. A whole evening spent in a crate indoors brought out a bit more colour in the flower buds. And just so you know, the plant cost a fiver about 4 years ago:
Here's a close-up of the moss 'weave'. You can clearly see the 3 different types of moss used:
This Ivy was dug out of our last garden over 15 years ago and is planted in what we call the dragon's egg (potter is unknown, unfortunately). In this post is what it looked like in the summer last year, and below is how it's come out of a winter in a cold greenhouse heated to 0 degrees Celsius.
Later in the spring I'll try a bit of defoliation on the Ivy so I get some nice spring colour (and possibly smaller leaves). Again, some patchwork retouching had to be done to the moss on this guy.
This Satsuki Azalea (damn if I didn't lose the bloody label somewhere so don't ask me what variety) lives outdoors all year long and had its head buried in snow like the rest of these guys. It's come out of that with tons of new growth as you can see from its back...
...and from its front. How do I tell the one from the other? It's hard to tell from these photos, but the tree actually does 'bow' pronouncedly to you from this angle.
This is one of TOH's earliest Japanese White Pines and it started life as a formal upright. Unfortunately the wrong instructions in a bonsai book led to the loss of both lower branches and it is now a literati. It has also been knocked out of its pot twice in the past year, so it is now slightly overpotted. And in what to me is one ugly, clunky drum pot.
This view is not the precise front of the tree, but IMO it illustrates best how the trunk line runs up and 'bows' toward the viewer.
I'll also have to say that my fave way of prepping a tree for display is straight akadama as it is dead simple. I've now gone off the half-akadama (or soil) / half-moss look as I find it can look rather contrived. So I either go whole hog and do a full moss weave thing or I do pure soil (like when I'm fed up of prepping trees and just want to get it over and done with). I tend to let myself be guided by what the tree looks like before the blackbirds get to it. Hurrr.
Sunday, 21 February 2010
Swindon Winter Image Bonsai Show
By now there are probably lots of photos and write-ups out there floating on the Web on the Swindon Winter Image Bonsai Show; and a rather precise synthesis done by @ExtremeWork on Twitter. So I'm not going to try and duplicate any effort here. But I will share what photos I took. And tell you what I did (other than stuffing my face).
So of course I will mention the cakes at this point. Top of the list. Because anyone who is in the know will agree that Swindon Show is also about the cakes. As the show is a fund-raiser for the club, the cake sale is one of our favourite ways of showing our support.
After that show of team spirit, the bulk of my time today was spent catching up with people; some were at the Noelanders show last month but most of the local club people I hadn't seen since last year. So it was good to catch up with the Welsh lads again (nope, no karaoke this time) and the guys who got back from Japan, although not to the depth of detail that I would've liked. Also met up with @grumblemouse, and we had a good natter during the day.
I also need to mention that John Pitt got snowed in and didn't make it to the show, so I didn't get my dose of annoying the Pitt-boss which is also part of the show ritual for me. Snow nearly prevented the Walsall lads from getting there,which would've been a right freak-out as they had made the trophies.
Food in general (and Japanese food in particular), being one of the big loves of my life, I always used to spend a great deal of time talking to both Bob of Dai Ichi Bonsai and Ken of Windybanks about food. During this show, that important part of the ritual got chopped down so drastically I didn't even get to grill @AntiqueNetsuke about the nosh during his very recent trip to Japan (nor did we talk about the Kokofu show either). So if I didn't get to do all that bit, you can imagine that taking pics fell way down in my list of priorities today.
Lots more snowdrops in today's show than last year. Examples from the Phoenix Bonsai Group display and from Chie-san's Kusamono display:
An accent plant on the Artistic Bonsai Circle display. As the owner wasn't around, I wasn't able to ask what plants were in the composition but it looks to me like Ajuga, Ophiophogon, Equisetum and a rush.
Bulbs are big at this time of the year. A fine set of Irises was on display at the Phoenix stand (sorry, missed that opp) and some yellow Crocuses were on the Eastleigh Bonsai display.
Here is a Chinese Juniper (AKA Shinpaku) on a rather unusual display table. The owner got it in its raw state at the Westonbirt Festival of Wood - for a fiver. A bit of elbow grease (and just a little bit more dosh), transformed it into an unusual bonsai accoutrement. He reckons a total of 20 quid spent. Not bad...
And more from the same person, a mame Lonicera (about 3 in / 8 cm high) that was dug out of a hedge.
Going up in tree size, here is a Trident maple on rock. If you look closely, there's a dragon nestled in the interior of the cave. Over the years I've seen this bonsai displayed alone as well as with all sorts of figurines inside the cave, possible a tiny beer can even, if I recall correctly. Proof that you don't always have to take everything seriously. But you can if you want to.
And this is the winter image of this Alder. I have heard varying views on this particular tree at this time of the year, and I will confess to having a preference for the tree with its summer foliage on. Simply because I find it particularly impressive then.
And yes, I need to be impressed. So I'm shallow. Sue me.
But as I am of a generous and giving nature (coughing fits at this point) I will leave you with @ExtremeWork's beautifully compact summary that went out on Twitter earlier this evening. My thanks to the author for allowing me to use their text. And if you're not familiar with how the Twitter timeline goes, you'll need to start reading from the bottom and work your way to the top. Otherwise, feel free to read this synopsis backwards.
- Swindon & District Bonsai Society as always were excellent host & made all welcome. Cake was up to usual high quality and met expectations.
- Chie-san had a very nice selection of kusamono on display and was taking bookings for her workshop on 16 April
- Ken from Windybanks had some very nice material and small trees to show and is expecting new stoock imminently.
- Dai Ichi Bonsai had imported Japanese pots and stands on offer with a few very nice Satsuki Azalea.
- Chris Thomas had some fine Larix and his usual collection of accoutrements on offer.
- Andy Pearson had a range of his pots including some unusually large pots from his kiln.
- Paul Goff had a very nice range of scrolls and was gathering interest for the Bonsai Review that he publishes.
- David and Mark from Walsall Ceramics Studio made early calls to check weather in Swindon and arrived with some very nice pots.
- Weather up North seems to have hampered some from arriving. John Pitt (John Pitt Bonsai Ceramics) was redirected with heavy snow.
- Phoenix, Solent, Newbury, Cotswolds and the Splinter Group had good society displays. Artistic Bonsai Circle's trees to their normal high standard on display
- Dragon Bonsai and New Dawn Bonsai had some exquisite trees and some old friends on display to very high standard.
- British Shohin Association and ABBA's displays were well presented.
- A good show of very finely ramified Chinese Elms, Ian's Hornbeam group has recovered well from its trip to the Noelanders Trophy in Belgium
- Some of the really nice exhibits at the Swindon Bonsai Show were the mame There was a good range of varieties & the trees were small.
- Back from Swindon. Bonsai were of the usual high standard. Met lots of friends and caught up on the gossip. Great day of bonsai ...
So of course I will mention the cakes at this point. Top of the list. Because anyone who is in the know will agree that Swindon Show is also about the cakes. As the show is a fund-raiser for the club, the cake sale is one of our favourite ways of showing our support.
After that show of team spirit, the bulk of my time today was spent catching up with people; some were at the Noelanders show last month but most of the local club people I hadn't seen since last year. So it was good to catch up with the Welsh lads again (nope, no karaoke this time) and the guys who got back from Japan, although not to the depth of detail that I would've liked. Also met up with @grumblemouse, and we had a good natter during the day.
I also need to mention that John Pitt got snowed in and didn't make it to the show, so I didn't get my dose of annoying the Pitt-boss which is also part of the show ritual for me. Snow nearly prevented the Walsall lads from getting there,which would've been a right freak-out as they had made the trophies.
Food in general (and Japanese food in particular), being one of the big loves of my life, I always used to spend a great deal of time talking to both Bob of Dai Ichi Bonsai and Ken of Windybanks about food. During this show, that important part of the ritual got chopped down so drastically I didn't even get to grill @AntiqueNetsuke about the nosh during his very recent trip to Japan (nor did we talk about the Kokofu show either). So if I didn't get to do all that bit, you can imagine that taking pics fell way down in my list of priorities today.
Lots more snowdrops in today's show than last year. Examples from the Phoenix Bonsai Group display and from Chie-san's Kusamono display:
An accent plant on the Artistic Bonsai Circle display. As the owner wasn't around, I wasn't able to ask what plants were in the composition but it looks to me like Ajuga, Ophiophogon, Equisetum and a rush.
Bulbs are big at this time of the year. A fine set of Irises was on display at the Phoenix stand (sorry, missed that opp) and some yellow Crocuses were on the Eastleigh Bonsai display.
Here is a Chinese Juniper (AKA Shinpaku) on a rather unusual display table. The owner got it in its raw state at the Westonbirt Festival of Wood - for a fiver. A bit of elbow grease (and just a little bit more dosh), transformed it into an unusual bonsai accoutrement. He reckons a total of 20 quid spent. Not bad...
And more from the same person, a mame Lonicera (about 3 in / 8 cm high) that was dug out of a hedge.
Going up in tree size, here is a Trident maple on rock. If you look closely, there's a dragon nestled in the interior of the cave. Over the years I've seen this bonsai displayed alone as well as with all sorts of figurines inside the cave, possible a tiny beer can even, if I recall correctly. Proof that you don't always have to take everything seriously. But you can if you want to.
And this is the winter image of this Alder. I have heard varying views on this particular tree at this time of the year, and I will confess to having a preference for the tree with its summer foliage on. Simply because I find it particularly impressive then.
And yes, I need to be impressed. So I'm shallow. Sue me.
But as I am of a generous and giving nature (coughing fits at this point) I will leave you with @ExtremeWork's beautifully compact summary that went out on Twitter earlier this evening. My thanks to the author for allowing me to use their text. And if you're not familiar with how the Twitter timeline goes, you'll need to start reading from the bottom and work your way to the top. Otherwise, feel free to read this synopsis backwards.
- Swindon & District Bonsai Society as always were excellent host & made all welcome. Cake was up to usual high quality and met expectations.
- Chie-san had a very nice selection of kusamono on display and was taking bookings for her workshop on 16 April
- Ken from Windybanks had some very nice material and small trees to show and is expecting new stoock imminently.
- Dai Ichi Bonsai had imported Japanese pots and stands on offer with a few very nice Satsuki Azalea.
- Chris Thomas had some fine Larix and his usual collection of accoutrements on offer.
- Andy Pearson had a range of his pots including some unusually large pots from his kiln.
- Paul Goff had a very nice range of scrolls and was gathering interest for the Bonsai Review that he publishes.
- David and Mark from Walsall Ceramics Studio made early calls to check weather in Swindon and arrived with some very nice pots.
- Weather up North seems to have hampered some from arriving. John Pitt (John Pitt Bonsai Ceramics) was redirected with heavy snow.
- Phoenix, Solent, Newbury, Cotswolds and the Splinter Group had good society displays. Artistic Bonsai Circle's trees to their normal high standard on display
- Dragon Bonsai and New Dawn Bonsai had some exquisite trees and some old friends on display to very high standard.
- British Shohin Association and ABBA's displays were well presented.
- A good show of very finely ramified Chinese Elms, Ian's Hornbeam group has recovered well from its trip to the Noelanders Trophy in Belgium
- Some of the really nice exhibits at the Swindon Bonsai Show were the mame There was a good range of varieties & the trees were small.
- Back from Swindon. Bonsai were of the usual high standard. Met lots of friends and caught up on the gossip. Great day of bonsai ...
Saturday, 13 February 2010
First Bonsai Re-potting Day of the Year....
... and it was bloody cold. Whatever body parts that could've frozen off - did; or at least it felt like it.
Teacher-san came down and we worked on whatever trees we could. It should have been a mega re-potting day but we were slowed down by a lot of frozen rootballs. Several got started on in the morning, put into the cold greenhouse to thaw, then picked up again in the afternoon.
Never realised either what a funny sound a frozen rootball makes when you thunk it (to check if it's really frozen, not just for the sake of thunking, OK).
Anyway, here's one of the smaller guys that got re-potted. A Lonicera nitida (normally a hedging plant here) which is one of TOH's WIPs. This was bought at a club auction for a couple of quid last year. The horizontal jin was shortened by about 6 inches (15 cm) and I believe TOH has plans of re-working the jin at the front to make it look more naturally weathered. This is a shohin-sized tree, probably about 7 in / 18 cm from base of the pot.
The other bonsai we worked on yesterday are a bit too big for me to photograph at home, so if they're ever taken to a show later in the year, maybe I'll post photos here. The long cotoneaster cascade will have to wait until we find a better pot for it, though.
So, on to other smaller stuff.
This is an overpotted Cristata Davallia fern, which I got last year. I was told it goes dormant in the winter but it's held on to its one frond despite the cold.
Here is a group of cyclamen in flower, plus a moss accent. To give an idea of scale, the moss in the thimble pot is less than an inch (2.54 cm) high. The cyclamen self-seeded in the greenhouse about 3 years ago and this is the second year they've flowered. Their corms haven't grown much bigger, nor do their leaves get any larger, or any more numerous.
I'll tell you what I should've taken a photo of, though - TOH's Peach Cobbler, which was an absolute delight. We did linger over lunch with Teacher-san, talking about pots and going over the latest issue of the Nippon Bonsai Association's magazine. Anything to stay out of the cold, as far as my interests were concerned...
Teacher-san came down and we worked on whatever trees we could. It should have been a mega re-potting day but we were slowed down by a lot of frozen rootballs. Several got started on in the morning, put into the cold greenhouse to thaw, then picked up again in the afternoon.
Never realised either what a funny sound a frozen rootball makes when you thunk it (to check if it's really frozen, not just for the sake of thunking, OK).
Anyway, here's one of the smaller guys that got re-potted. A Lonicera nitida (normally a hedging plant here) which is one of TOH's WIPs. This was bought at a club auction for a couple of quid last year. The horizontal jin was shortened by about 6 inches (15 cm) and I believe TOH has plans of re-working the jin at the front to make it look more naturally weathered. This is a shohin-sized tree, probably about 7 in / 18 cm from base of the pot.
The other bonsai we worked on yesterday are a bit too big for me to photograph at home, so if they're ever taken to a show later in the year, maybe I'll post photos here. The long cotoneaster cascade will have to wait until we find a better pot for it, though.
So, on to other smaller stuff.
This is an overpotted Cristata Davallia fern, which I got last year. I was told it goes dormant in the winter but it's held on to its one frond despite the cold.
Here is a group of cyclamen in flower, plus a moss accent. To give an idea of scale, the moss in the thimble pot is less than an inch (2.54 cm) high. The cyclamen self-seeded in the greenhouse about 3 years ago and this is the second year they've flowered. Their corms haven't grown much bigger, nor do their leaves get any larger, or any more numerous.
I'll tell you what I should've taken a photo of, though - TOH's Peach Cobbler, which was an absolute delight. We did linger over lunch with Teacher-san, talking about pots and going over the latest issue of the Nippon Bonsai Association's magazine. Anything to stay out of the cold, as far as my interests were concerned...
Wednesday, 10 February 2010
Yes I Haz Moar Pot Piccies
Haven't blogged for awhile, as I'm still having problems getting Firefox 3.5.7 to talk to Blogger. I can edit stuff, just can't see the finished product. Have been getting around it by viewing these pages in another browser, but that is just a drag. Trawling through Internet fora (forums, whatever) for an answer is also a drag.
So what isn't a drag? Possibly the thought of spring and re-potting? Despite the intermittent snow that keeps coming down my head whenever I go out to check the trees...
I have plans for the round black pot I purchased from Morea at the Noelanders show last month. She was kind enough to send me a better picture than the one I had, so here it is:
... on the upper right hand side of the stand. I'm thinking a certain Satsuki Azalea could go in there, as its pot recently got trashed by the blackbirds. Well, the culprits could have been the neighbourhood cats, but for some reason I always blame the blackbirds. Heh. Go figure.
So what isn't a drag? Possibly the thought of spring and re-potting? Despite the intermittent snow that keeps coming down my head whenever I go out to check the trees...
I have plans for the round black pot I purchased from Morea at the Noelanders show last month. She was kind enough to send me a better picture than the one I had, so here it is:
Monday, 25 January 2010
A Belgian Bonsai Weekend: Show....
There are a couple of things that stick in my mind about the Noelanders Trophy XI this weekend; one of them would be the Saturday crush. The doors opened at 10:00 and we decided to arrive late to avoid any queueing. We got there at 11:00; all the convenient parking spots were gone, plus there were still over 100 people waiting outside to get in. Marc Noelanders told us apparently some people had been there since 09:00. I'm totally pleased for him, as they put in so much hard graft into this show. (More on that later.)
I mentioned on Twitter that the Noelanders show seems to have become the unofficial landmark opening of the European bonsai show circuit. I recognised Eastern European, UK, French, Italian, German, Spanish & of course BeNeLux visitors (you do see many of the same faces year on year) as well as the occasional Americans; I'm sure there were other nationalities there, I just don't know them all so apologies if I missed you. Lots of cards and show flyers were exchanging hands. What seems to happen is that people make a point of catching this show to invite enthusiasts from other countries to attend or display at their local shows later in the year. TOH got no less than 3 invites to display our trees on the Continent this year: fitting them all in will be something of a logistical - and financial - challenge. But I'd love to do it.
That said, I know you're gagging to see the trees. So here goes. But my usual caveat applies - these are my photos of displays that I found interesting, for all sorts of reasons; but this is not an indication of my personal preference for or an indication of merit (or not) in the trees, unless specifically mentioned. Most of the time I do try to refrain from any sort of technical or artistic critique; I'm sure the owners are already more than aware of the strengths and limitations of their bonsai.
This is a very large Pomegranate: Punica granatum 'Neji-kan' in a Chinese pot, by Graham Potter. Notable of course were the fruit on the tree.
And another large tree, Lino Pepe's Olive: Olea europaea in an Isabelia pot.
I first saw this shohin Jasmine in a calendar about two years back. This was the accompanying accent for Udo Fischer's display of a large literati Pinus nigra.
A shohin Itoigawa Juniper (about 8 in / 20 cm high from base of pot) by Mario Komsta, in an antique Chinese pot. This tree received a Special Mention. Note the evenness of the foliage.
I think I may have seen this tree at the Swindon Winter Image show last year: a very large Carpinus koreana raft in a Gordon Duffet pot, belonging to Ian Stewardson. A very striking display, this also received a Special Mention.
A Larix decidua - both pot and tree by John Pitt. This is a smaller tree, probably would be in the chuuhin size category.
There weren't as many purely shohin and mame displays this year, from what I can recall. Most of the smaller trees that were there were often in accompaniment to bigger trees. In what I believe was the only mame display: a Lonicera nitida by Ruud Simons.
One of the larger accent plantings: a Sempervivum and moss creation, which accompanied a Pomegranate belonging to Joerg Derlien.
This is a very large Scots Pine raft in a Derek Aspinall pot, by Richard Chambers. Richard will probably remain in my memory for helping us out at the EBA convention last year with a whole load of wire, but that is not why this photo is in here. He also had another Scots Pine in the show (a large literati I think) but maybe I just have a preference for groups of trees...
This Silver Birch (Betula pendula) in a Tokoname pot by Hermann Haas had quite an interesting deadwood feature at the back of the trunk.
A Japanese Yew (Taxus cuspidata) with prominent deadwood by Josef Valuch; pot by Isabelia. It seemed like there were more entries from the Eastern European countries this year, which I personally appreciate as we have so few opportunities to see what's going on over there. I remember the EBA convention in Poland in 2006 and it looks like things have moved forward in leaps and bounds since then.
And of course, I will always mention the Suiseki that Gudrun and Willi Benz go through so much trouble to bring out for our enjoyment. I could have photographed them all as the standard is always excellent, but taking down the details of all the photos is one heck of a drag.
This one is a Colour Stone from Anhui, China.
And this unusual (for me, anyways) piece of geology is a Chalcedony pattern stone from the White Water River, a tributary of the Yangtze River in China.
And everyone wants to know the winners. There were several trees that received Special Mention certificates, but I didn't have the time to go hunting them all down. Just because the attendance was lower on the Sunday didn't mean that it wasn't busy in the exhibition hall. So what I did manage to take were:
Mario Komsta's Itoigawa Juniper in an antique Chinese pot. This took the prize in the Kifu category, which I understand to be a newly created size category, one up from the chuuhin size. (Let's not get into a discussion on category dimensions, I don't agree with precise measurements of trees when entering them in a size category. I will mention measurements from time to time on this blog, but that's just to give an idea of scale.) I overheard a 'big' bonsai artist commenting on this tree - and the detail wouldn't show on this photo - saying that the foliage was both very even and very green, a remarkable achievement given that Mario is currently living in a very hot and dry part of Spain.
The winner of the Noelanders trophy: another Itoigawa Juniper, this time by E. Savini and F. Mantovani. My understanding is that this tree was a favourite among several showgoers. I didn't manage to take a photo of this tree when it was on the main show bench, so it was practically impossible to get up close for a detail shot. The tree is actually larger than it seems to be in this photo.
One thing I've always liked about this show is that there are no restrictions on the public taking photos. Not that Joe Public walks around with professional quality kit anyway, plus the light is really not ideal for taking detail shots. And you can't get far back enough without bumping into another person taking photos. If you are interested in purchasing the show book, go to their website here.
(No, I do not take commissions for plugging things on this blog. Sod off.)
Four years ago, my mate Bob insisted that we come to the Noelanders show; his selling points were the lack of politics, the friendly atmosphere and the quality of the trees. The former is probably something you can never get rid of in a human congregation, but it has never affected me at my level; the latter two are very definitely true and I look forward to going back each year. I've already decided on which hotel to book....
I mentioned on Twitter that the Noelanders show seems to have become the unofficial landmark opening of the European bonsai show circuit. I recognised Eastern European, UK, French, Italian, German, Spanish & of course BeNeLux visitors (you do see many of the same faces year on year) as well as the occasional Americans; I'm sure there were other nationalities there, I just don't know them all so apologies if I missed you. Lots of cards and show flyers were exchanging hands. What seems to happen is that people make a point of catching this show to invite enthusiasts from other countries to attend or display at their local shows later in the year. TOH got no less than 3 invites to display our trees on the Continent this year: fitting them all in will be something of a logistical - and financial - challenge. But I'd love to do it.
That said, I know you're gagging to see the trees. So here goes. But my usual caveat applies - these are my photos of displays that I found interesting, for all sorts of reasons; but this is not an indication of my personal preference for or an indication of merit (or not) in the trees, unless specifically mentioned. Most of the time I do try to refrain from any sort of technical or artistic critique; I'm sure the owners are already more than aware of the strengths and limitations of their bonsai.
And of course, I will always mention the Suiseki that Gudrun and Willi Benz go through so much trouble to bring out for our enjoyment. I could have photographed them all as the standard is always excellent, but taking down the details of all the photos is one heck of a drag.
And everyone wants to know the winners. There were several trees that received Special Mention certificates, but I didn't have the time to go hunting them all down. Just because the attendance was lower on the Sunday didn't mean that it wasn't busy in the exhibition hall. So what I did manage to take were:
One thing I've always liked about this show is that there are no restrictions on the public taking photos. Not that Joe Public walks around with professional quality kit anyway, plus the light is really not ideal for taking detail shots. And you can't get far back enough without bumping into another person taking photos. If you are interested in purchasing the show book, go to their website here.
(No, I do not take commissions for plugging things on this blog. Sod off.)
Four years ago, my mate Bob insisted that we come to the Noelanders show; his selling points were the lack of politics, the friendly atmosphere and the quality of the trees. The former is probably something you can never get rid of in a human congregation, but it has never affected me at my level; the latter two are very definitely true and I look forward to going back each year. I've already decided on which hotel to book....
... and Tell (Noelanders Trophy XI)
I mentioned in an earlier post that, while I go to all these shows to see bonsai trees and related material, I derive a great deal of enjoyment from some of the people that I have met over the years. So let me tell you about my people-watching last weekend.
I can't go on enough about the number of people that were there on the Saturday. I believe the total show attendance was 3,500 people, the bulk of which were there for the opening. The good bit about the queue was that we were forced to go exploring around the neighbourhood (no way was I queueing for hours in the cold. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt). Found a great wine and beer merchant that also had an impressive stock of liquor. More Japanese, Irish and Scottish whiskies than I have ever seen under the same roof, even taking into account the big boys in Calais.
This year at the Noelanders Trophy, I was privileged enough to grill Marc Noelanders on the logistics of and his plans for the future of the show. As with the UK, the cost of hiring a hall is very high in Belgium. And an impressive amount of work - and expense - go into producing a show of this level. Set-up starts several days before the show and tear-down goes on until the Monday after closing. The expense they rack up is rather gob-smacking but I guess it does show in the end result. I've heard lots of people clamour for a big national show in the UK but I wonder if, when it comes down to it, they would be willing to put up the same amount of commitment, effort... and money.
The Noelanders show takes over the 2 levels of the Cultural Centre in Zolder, Belgium. The top level is the auditorium where the demos take place (which I totally missed this year), and a sales area. Most traders have the same spot year on year, so I just tend to make a beeline for the same people as soon as we clear the doors. But sorry, no photos this time of Walsall Studio Ceramics, Harukaze, Bryan Albright or Klika (to name but a few). TOH and I got caught up for over an hour-and-a-half just saying hello and catching up with bonsai acquaintances. At one point I did wonder if we would even make it to the cafe (also on the same floor) for my regular mid-morning caffeine fix; well, lunchtime actually. The crowd was so dense 4 of us were jammed between sales tables as we tried to make conversation and buyers tried to get a better look at either Walsall's pots or the huge yamadori specimens next to them. Very good of the traders not to mind, really.
Downstairs (when we eventually got there) has two sales areas, a cafeteria, a photography area and the exhibition hall.
This part of the sales area shows Morea Pubbens' work in the foreground. Right in front of the tulips and obscured by the kusamono is a large round black ceramic pot which came home with me. Yes, the big smirk is still on my face.... :o)
Another end of the same sales area, with Windybank Bonsai on one side and John Pitt on the opposite side. At the far end is a sales display of mame and shohin trees.
We also got to comparing photos with Mario Komsta of the past winter - a sort of 'my snowfall was bigger than yours' thing. Mario said the drive to Belgium took him 16 hours. Marc's reply being that of course he had to go and live in the middle of nowhere.... Yes, sympathy is alive and well in the bonsai world :D
I think Mario is best known for a chuuhin Red Pine that was entered in the Kokofu-ten and was also featured in Bonsai Focus. If you ever get a chance, try to catch one of his talks; I attended one at EBA 2009 and thought it was very well put together as he takes you through the development of a tree. Q&A sessions in English can also be rather lively as he has a good command of the language. Mario told us about a bonsai show coming up in Poland sometime in May, I think, at Castle Książ. So if you've got time on your hands and bonsai on your mind, Poland is always worth a visit, especially for the food....
And this here is Václav Novák of the Czech Republic, trying to get in the way of my taking a shot of the Suiseki. And succeeding. Václav had a couple of entries in the Noelanders show, and some of you may also have heard of him in conjunction with the EBA New Talent Contest.
And this here is not a person, but I thought you'd like it anyway. I believe this is one of Marc Noelanders' trees - a pine in what I think is an Isabelia pot. This wasn't an official show entry as it was completely unlabelled (hence the conjecture). Last year he had a similar one, much smaller and tucked away in a little corner; if I recall correctly it was a Juniper, which was what inspired me to try something similar with this rose. As you can see, absolutely no comparison! But give it a few decades.... :D
I can't go on enough about the number of people that were there on the Saturday. I believe the total show attendance was 3,500 people, the bulk of which were there for the opening. The good bit about the queue was that we were forced to go exploring around the neighbourhood (no way was I queueing for hours in the cold. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt). Found a great wine and beer merchant that also had an impressive stock of liquor. More Japanese, Irish and Scottish whiskies than I have ever seen under the same roof, even taking into account the big boys in Calais.
This year at the Noelanders Trophy, I was privileged enough to grill Marc Noelanders on the logistics of and his plans for the future of the show. As with the UK, the cost of hiring a hall is very high in Belgium. And an impressive amount of work - and expense - go into producing a show of this level. Set-up starts several days before the show and tear-down goes on until the Monday after closing. The expense they rack up is rather gob-smacking but I guess it does show in the end result. I've heard lots of people clamour for a big national show in the UK but I wonder if, when it comes down to it, they would be willing to put up the same amount of commitment, effort... and money.
The Noelanders show takes over the 2 levels of the Cultural Centre in Zolder, Belgium. The top level is the auditorium where the demos take place (which I totally missed this year), and a sales area. Most traders have the same spot year on year, so I just tend to make a beeline for the same people as soon as we clear the doors. But sorry, no photos this time of Walsall Studio Ceramics, Harukaze, Bryan Albright or Klika (to name but a few). TOH and I got caught up for over an hour-and-a-half just saying hello and catching up with bonsai acquaintances. At one point I did wonder if we would even make it to the cafe (also on the same floor) for my regular mid-morning caffeine fix; well, lunchtime actually. The crowd was so dense 4 of us were jammed between sales tables as we tried to make conversation and buyers tried to get a better look at either Walsall's pots or the huge yamadori specimens next to them. Very good of the traders not to mind, really.
Downstairs (when we eventually got there) has two sales areas, a cafeteria, a photography area and the exhibition hall.
I think Mario is best known for a chuuhin Red Pine that was entered in the Kokofu-ten and was also featured in Bonsai Focus. If you ever get a chance, try to catch one of his talks; I attended one at EBA 2009 and thought it was very well put together as he takes you through the development of a tree. Q&A sessions in English can also be rather lively as he has a good command of the language. Mario told us about a bonsai show coming up in Poland sometime in May, I think, at Castle Książ. So if you've got time on your hands and bonsai on your mind, Poland is always worth a visit, especially for the food....
And this here is not a person, but I thought you'd like it anyway. I believe this is one of Marc Noelanders' trees - a pine in what I think is an Isabelia pot. This wasn't an official show entry as it was completely unlabelled (hence the conjecture). Last year he had a similar one, much smaller and tucked away in a little corner; if I recall correctly it was a Juniper, which was what inspired me to try something similar with this rose. As you can see, absolutely no comparison! But give it a few decades.... :D
Saturday, 9 January 2010
P could also be for Poinsettia...
We aren't so far from the holiday season (well, just a hair's breadth-ish after the 6th January, heheh) that I can't post a pretty pic of a pretty Christmas cake:
This was a friend's gift (completely home made!) to TOH and I've set it up against the new kitchen tiles that TOH has put so much hard graft into sealing.
Ain't it all pretty?
This was a friend's gift (completely home made!) to TOH and I've set it up against the new kitchen tiles that TOH has put so much hard graft into sealing.
Ain't it all pretty?
... or it could be for Parallels...
No, we aren't out of the woods yet in all the household travails.
The kitchen isn't quite finished, as my pretty toy (AKA the integrated espresso machine) has yet to be delivered. The kitchen suppliers have an ordering/distribution system that sucks donkey balls. Big time.
TOH's software woes had gotten to the point that it was simpler to junk the computer. Exit stage left. Hard-learned lesson #35 of 2009: don't expect a Helpdesk to sort you out, much less hold your hand.
Enter stage right - a new computer which was delivered late in the afternoon today. TOH has spent the entire evening putting the hardware together and is now in the process of loading the software. With multiple pitfalls including being sent the wrong disks. And recovering the data from the old box? The saga continues....
Taking down the old kitchen and prepping it for the fitters (i.e. boxing up all the stuff) was a simple matter of several hours' work between TOH and myself, with the help of all the boxes that several kind friends had donated to us for the effort. A very big 'Thank You' to you lot. Coffee and cake coming your way once I actually get a coffee machine. :o)
Now, putting back the stuff we took out - finding homes for everything, getting things organised... that's taken like flippin' days. Although the bulk of the work is over, I'm still fiddling around, testing out how best to make a well-oiled machine out of one little (OK, slightly large-ish) workroom.
Teardown's a piece of cake. Building / repairing / finessing something so that it works - that's a much harder job. And where am I going with this? Sometimes we charge full steam ahead with our actions without completely considering the consequences. And when the latter has a destructive effect.... well, rebuilding bridges isn't so hot, izzit? That could be someone's hard-learned lesson of 2009, or maybe again they may never learn their lesson.
The kitchen isn't quite finished, as my pretty toy (AKA the integrated espresso machine) has yet to be delivered. The kitchen suppliers have an ordering/distribution system that sucks donkey balls. Big time.
TOH's software woes had gotten to the point that it was simpler to junk the computer. Exit stage left. Hard-learned lesson #35 of 2009: don't expect a Helpdesk to sort you out, much less hold your hand.
Enter stage right - a new computer which was delivered late in the afternoon today. TOH has spent the entire evening putting the hardware together and is now in the process of loading the software. With multiple pitfalls including being sent the wrong disks. And recovering the data from the old box? The saga continues....
Taking down the old kitchen and prepping it for the fitters (i.e. boxing up all the stuff) was a simple matter of several hours' work between TOH and myself, with the help of all the boxes that several kind friends had donated to us for the effort. A very big 'Thank You' to you lot. Coffee and cake coming your way once I actually get a coffee machine. :o)
Now, putting back the stuff we took out - finding homes for everything, getting things organised... that's taken like flippin' days. Although the bulk of the work is over, I'm still fiddling around, testing out how best to make a well-oiled machine out of one little (OK, slightly large-ish) workroom.
Teardown's a piece of cake. Building / repairing / finessing something so that it works - that's a much harder job. And where am I going with this? Sometimes we charge full steam ahead with our actions without completely considering the consequences. And when the latter has a destructive effect.... well, rebuilding bridges isn't so hot, izzit? That could be someone's hard-learned lesson of 2009, or maybe again they may never learn their lesson.
... or for 'Perspectives'...
I can take no credit for this lovely piece of craftmanship, which is @lilmissmaya's weaving final:
And although I was completely in admiration of the juxtaposition of colours, she told me that her professor hadn't seemed to like it that much, with the criticism that the colours didn't shift gradually enough.
I will admit to knowing bugger-all about weaving or the use of dyes. On the other hand, I do know how to recognise when a lot of effort has gone into creating something. And I do know what I like - which may or may not be in tune with what an expert would like. Nonetheless, my view is that the opinion of the beholder - however valid - does not take away the inherent merit of the work.
And at the end of the day, surely - whatever the perspective - what should count is the fruit that the action bears. After all, a criticism is just a comment, isn't it? But then, what effect did it have - did it do more harm than good? Was the end result a learning experience, some sort of epiphany or grand revelation of truth?
And it's not just about making comments, is it? There's the spirit behind the comments. And whether clarification came with them. Or whether they were just a series of terse, snappy one-liners or - worse - insincere flowery platitudes.
No, this isn't about getting at the professor at all. What this does tie up with is all the seemingly disjointed rants that I've been littering this blog with over the past couple of months. Baffled? Oh well, perhaps reading on is the answer? Hur, hur, hur.....
But I would like to thank @lilmissmaya for the use of her photo and for introducing me to her work. Want to see more? Go contact her via Twitter.
And although I was completely in admiration of the juxtaposition of colours, she told me that her professor hadn't seemed to like it that much, with the criticism that the colours didn't shift gradually enough.
I will admit to knowing bugger-all about weaving or the use of dyes. On the other hand, I do know how to recognise when a lot of effort has gone into creating something. And I do know what I like - which may or may not be in tune with what an expert would like. Nonetheless, my view is that the opinion of the beholder - however valid - does not take away the inherent merit of the work.
And at the end of the day, surely - whatever the perspective - what should count is the fruit that the action bears. After all, a criticism is just a comment, isn't it? But then, what effect did it have - did it do more harm than good? Was the end result a learning experience, some sort of epiphany or grand revelation of truth?
And it's not just about making comments, is it? There's the spirit behind the comments. And whether clarification came with them. Or whether they were just a series of terse, snappy one-liners or - worse - insincere flowery platitudes.
No, this isn't about getting at the professor at all. What this does tie up with is all the seemingly disjointed rants that I've been littering this blog with over the past couple of months. Baffled? Oh well, perhaps reading on is the answer? Hur, hur, hur.....
But I would like to thank @lilmissmaya for the use of her photo and for introducing me to her work. Want to see more? Go contact her via Twitter.
... or it could even be for Popsicle Bonsai
In this post I showed you pics that Stef took of our bonsai in the summer. Well, scrub that from your mind and replace it with this:
The big freeze has been upon us, and the garden hose broke just before the snow fell. Which of course happened overnight without anyone knowing anything about it until we looked out the window and saw these:
and this:
The big freeze has been upon us, and the garden hose broke just before the snow fell. Which of course happened overnight without anyone knowing anything about it until we looked out the window and saw these:
Frozen accent plants
Frozen shohin Picea, Chinese Juniper and a White Pine
And another frozen Chinese Juniper. All the popsicle shohin have been moved into the cold greenhouse and have started to thaw out. Fingers crossed.
Everyone else (of the bonsai, that is) is sitting outside in the snow. Ah, the joys of the holiday season...
Everyone else (of the bonsai, that is) is sitting outside in the snow. Ah, the joys of the holiday season...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
