A Four Letter Word - Sepia Saturday

When I saw Alan's picture

my heart sank again. To me 'shop' is a four letter word.  So I am surprised to see that shops and shopping have been recurring themes on my blog here, here , and here.

The nearest I could get to a shop like Alan's was this one in that last post.

Dalton Bros Grocery Shop, c1910, Ipswich, Queensland

However I have some exterior shots in my archive - I'm not sure how old they are.

Robinson's Newsagents, Yarm

They wouldn't be allowed to show those smoking adverts today - if they still existed!

Last week I showed a picture of a clock in Yarm Hardware Shop (A Clock for Marilyn). I don't have a picture of that shop but 'fork' is another four letter word so sit back and enjoy

This is a more modern view on Yarm High Street.

Black Bull between Feet First and Strickland and Holt

Will that man keep his feet walking straight by the pub?

I couldn't walk on by this square in Copenhagen.

Copenhagen in the sun

That's the sort of shopping I like - sitting watching someone else have all the hassle.

Now it's your turn to hustle over for a wider shopping experience at sepia-saturday-143

At an Angle - Thematic Photography.

Angles creep into shots without you always being aware. I have several to meet Carmi's 'At an Angle' theme this week. I may have shown some of these before so let's see how many you can recognise.

Tall Ships - Hartlepool 2010

I'm sure that the angle of of this plane was not intended - did someone let go of the tail?

Nosedive - Mediterranean WWII

Cables on the Clifton side of Brunel's famous suspension bridge are at an angle too it seems.

Clifton Suspension Bridge - 2010

This big beast needs to have its jib at an angle when lifting heavy loads.

Balder - Heavy Lift Crane

The picture was taken during the construction of the Statfjord 'B' deck at Rosenberg Verft, Stavanger in the 1980s

This anchor is at an angle on the quayside in Copenhagen,

Anchor - Nyhavn, Copenhagen

Also at an angle because it was built that way is this Condeep test leg in Stavanger.

Troll test leg - 1980s.

Finally a picture that's out of this world.

Aurora on Jupiter  taken by the Hubble Telescope

Now that's an 'at an angle' shot that I would have loved to have taken.

For more angular momentum, please visit Carmi's blog at Thematic-photographic-212

Four Dogs from Korea - Sunday Stamps

This is the latest set of dogs that I have managed to acquire from my market trader.

DPR Korea

These are the only Korean stamps I have.

By coincidence today I also found a blog about Airedales which is well worth a visit even although it has nothing to do with stamps - The-best-dog-of-all

Of course don't forget to check out other dogs and pets at Viridians Sunday-stamps-87.

The Man in the Bowler Hat - Sepia Saturday

Having looked at a variety of hats before (hold-on-to-your-hats) and top hats (here) I decided it was time for the bowler.

Self Portrait with Bowler Hat - Paul Cézanne - 1883-87
(Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Dantes Plads 7, Copenhagen, Denmark.)

 I wonder whether Cézanne saw himself like this:

A bowler is a sturdy hat with a rounded crown. The brim of the hat extends out a few inches and is similarly rounded. The origins of the hat date back to approximately 1850. The bowler hat got its name from the makers of the hat – Thomas Bowler and William Bowler. 

The hard felt hat with a rounded crown originally created in 1849 for the  politician Edward Coke.The bowler  was popular with the working class  in the Victorian times it came to form the official work uniform of bankers. Later in the United Kingdom, it has been worn as work dress by the officers of the Queen's Guards.

 Foremen in various industries also took to wearing bowlers before the advent of hard hats. Once  considered a British Icon, the bowler was also part of the American Urban culture of the 19th Century.. One of the gangs that roamed the streets of New York City, around this time, were called the Plug Uglies. The Uglies were never without their bowler which they wore as their signature piece and to protect their heads during scuffles with rival gangs. 

Charlie Chaplin and Laurel and Hardy were famous in their bowler hats and Oddjob's razor-edged bowler was a lethal weapon in Goldfinger. 

I've never worn a bowler; the nearest I can claim is to have been a leg break bowler in my cricketing days. I've also resisted taking up 'old man's marbles' - well so far anyway.

Bowlers at the East Brisbane Bowling Club - 1906

I have however had a go at the tenpin variety.

Lone Bowler (not me) - UK Superbowl, Hartlepool

Lately I seem to have spent a lot of time in the garden digging holes which brings me Bernard Cribbins.

Now I guess, like Barbar, it's time to tip my hat ans pass you on to others at sepia-saturday-142

 

A Clock for Marilyn

Arising out of last Saturday's Sepia Saturday Marilyn issued a challenge on the Group's Facebook page.

I think I failed but at least I tried.

Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupery

(By edwin11 on Flickr - 6 May 2008 - CC By 2.0 generic license)

I know, I know they are not pocket watches but today, much closer to home, I came across this clock.

Gare de Lyon - Station Clock

What's more it's for sale at Yarm Hardware Shop.

Weathered and Worn - Thematic Photography

Two of these 'weathered and worn shots' are fairly recent, but one was taken some (unknown) years ago.

Overgrown lawn - 2011

This shot was taken to show the height of the grass after a holiday away. With the camera almost at ground level it accentuated the worn appearance of the patio slabs which are 18 inches long - and there is no step in them.

It was the wind and waves that have given this cliff a weathered look at Mawgan Porth in Cornwall.

Mawgan Porth - 2011

In Gloucestershire I came across this old farm shed along the side of the road between Gatcombe and Awre.

Farm shed - 2008

The roof has gone from one side and ivy is beginning to take over, increasing the worn look. You could not see through the window to find out whether the other half is in use.

I'm not sure who took my last picture which is definitely the oldest and possibly the most interesting.

Empty stables - North Yorkshire

The stables have been 'mucked' out; bags have been filled with what looks like horse manure; the back wall is shored up with timber. The place has seen better days.

Today the buildings have gone to be replaced by a modern monstrosity of a housing estate.

A battle is currently in progress to prevent the building of a further 500-700 houses on the adjacent green belt and school playing fields along Green Lane, Kirklevington on the outskirts of Yarm.

For more weathered and worn contributions please visit Carmi who sets the theme each week at Thematic-photographic-211

Music and Dance - Sunday Stamps

The theme this week for Sunday Stamps is art, music, or dance.

After a lot of searching to avoid showing repeats I've settled on three stamps this time.

The first I know nothing about although it seems to depict a dance and possible some form of instrument as well.

China

 Then I found a composer on a stamp.

Germany

A stamp which commemorates Carl Maria Von Weber and if I've got it right this stamp is postmarked 1976, the 150th anniversary of his death in 1826. Weber (1786-1826) was the founder of the Romantic School of German Opera and a pioneer in modern piano composition. In 1813 he served as a conductor at Prague and later reorganised the Royal Opera at Dresden. In 1824 he accepted an invitation from the Royal Opera, London to compose and produce the opera Oberon. In 1826 , already suffering from TB, he went to England where he finished the work and conducted its premiere on 12th April. He died in London in June 1826.

I'm sure that one of you will be able to tell me about the instrument in my third stamp.

Greece

Is it a mandolin?

For further music and dance skip over to Sunday-stamps-86