24th February 2005, somewhere in the Sale wetlands.

I’m time stressed. I know some people would laugh. My big job for tonight has been to do the dishes - about three days worth. Which still isn’t much - I’m a minimalist in the kitchen.

I’ve been researching cameras, digital slr cameras and lenses. If I had a spare $4,000 I’d be really happy.

There’s lots of things I should be doing: income tax return, putting stuff away, house work, maintenance on my car and bikes, emailing some friends, sending the camera that my sister left behind (about two months ago now).

Popularity: 24% [?]

4th November 2004, my garden in Sale, Victoria.

Joh has met this guy, Durwood, and has known him for three weeks. I’m talking on the phone to her right now. she’s doing a lot of swearing.

At me.

Already, she has changed all her plans for Durwood. But, she is really happy. And Tom and all his friends like Durwood too, which is pretty impressive.

Joh’s family and Joh’s best friends like him.

Everybody likes him, and they all think Joh has never been happier.

Joh and Durwood have been spending all their spare time together - they live one or two minutes apart.  They can’t get enough of each other’s company.

I’m laughing. I was kind of making fun of her while we were on the phone, but I am really happy for her

Popularity: 25% [?]

Christmas Eve 2004

This is on the outskirts of Sale.

There were often huge, long trains travelling through, keeping all the traffic stopped for ages.

The longest, and slowest of these, were the log trains. They were a terrible sight. Carriage after carriage, seeming to pass by for ever at not much more than walking speed, with huge, old, mountain ash logs on their backs.

During the Summer, when the nights were warm and it was just great to be out, I toyed with the idea of jumping on one. Riding it for a couple of hours, perhaps into the city, if it went that far. Then catching a passenger train back.

I should have done it. It isn’t good to have regrets like that, and now I don’t have the opportunity.

If I get back to visit Joh though….

Popularity: 17% [?]

24th February 2005.

This is from wetlands on the outskirts of Sale.

I wasn’t going to post tonight; I’ve got home late and have to wake up early (0340) in the morning. But, I thought of a good name for this picture, and couldn’t resist.

I don’t think this is a particularly great picture. I have been spoilt with sunsets and sun rises. I think I’ve seen them as good as they get.

When I lived in Sale, I was often out with Ella in the evening. Nearly always, we would be walking back through the bush, or riding this insane little bike, with Ella sitting in the front, in the dark. It is one of the reasons I bought a white car - because they are easier to see in the dark.

We got to see lots of magnificent sun sets. Not so many sun rises - Ella didn’t like to get up too early.

I love summer evenings.

Popularity: 19% [?]

4th and 5th November 2004.

For a while in Sale, I used to work in town. During this time Ella stayed at home, or with a friend (thankyou June). In earlier times, her friend Saffy used to stay over.

If she’d been home alone, and it was winter (short days), we’d walk around the streets, or go for a run, or take the scooter out for a quick spin (the cause of many injuries), or walk into the supermarket and do shopping. These pictures are from one of those walks.

I can see the similarity to my grass shadows photo taken not so long ago. I seem to work on styles, or types of pictures, and this has been one of them.

Popularity: 16% [?]

9th February 2002, Sale, Gippsland. 

Saffy, the one nearest the camera, used to stay over when Kathy was working or playing. Ella (aka ”the weasle”) used to stay at Saffy’s when I was working or playing.

They had a strange relationship - Ella always chasing Saffy. Saffy was a social girl, Ella was discerning, and other than Saffy, didn’t associate with dogs. Saffy taught Ella to jump things, and use her sense of smell, which came in handy when I used to hide from her on walks. Ella taught Saffy road manners; not to cross the road until I was with them, not to walk in front of me, to stop when I stop, stuff like that. I could ride my mountain bike with them, fast, stop so hard that the rear wheel would lift off the ground, and they would stop with me.

Ella had a sense of humour. If I was riding on the road, she had to run along the footpath. One of her favourite tricks was what I called the flyby. If there were people ahead of her on the footpath, she would pick up speed and zoom past them, usually brushing their legs. I used to wince, seeing innocent old ladies throwing up their arms in fright, or kids yelling out in surprise then laughing. It was really funny if we were in town, where there were lots of people on the paths along the shopping strip. I would be riding down the road with parked cars between me and her on the footpath. She would keep up, catching glimpses of me between the parked cars. I would see the reactions of all the people as she ran through their legs, with purpose. It was kind of like a Mexican wave moving down the shopping strip.

The above shot is of them sitting on a huge median strip, at night time, with a car driving by. It is blurred because of a slow shutter speed. I used a canon two megapixel point and shoot; I still use a more recent offering of the same model.

(c) Andrew Calder

Popularity: 16% [?]

“This was taken 5th Oct 2003, about 30km from Sale in East Gippsland. I lived in Sale at the time. Ella (my whippet) and I would go exploring around the area: through Summer, we’d often go after work. This picture is from one of those trips.”

(c) Andrew Calder

Popularity: 19% [?]