Crazy Cocksfoot and Confused Cats

The lawn mowing man called in again late this afternoon but fortunately this time I had my clothes on. He is coming to knock back the half of the lawn we couldn't complete either this week or next with promises of weed eating the edges as well. Ever the country girl I just think it's a terrible waste of good grazing.


The garden is morphing from late Spring into early Summer which means most areas are looking a bit tatty/weedy. However there are still quite a few poppies blooming and the hollyhocks are beginning to show. The slight rain we've had over the past couple of days has made for wonderfully easy weeding which makes for easily overdoing it. I have been hauling out cocks foot from the corner garden and throwing it out into the paddock for the sheep before replacing them with a few wilted cosmos seedlings and delphiniums.

My furry helpers keep watchful eyes on me from the overgrowth with the occasional helping paw. They've been excited by some unexpected visitors to the garden. A female pheasant has been sending the blood pressure of the roosters sky high while two magpies have been taking their morning perambulations about the front lawn. Demelza and Kit sit in rapt admiration, especially when they up and fly away. I was a bit confused as to why until this morning when I realised that these two black and white cats think the magpies are kindred spirits who are in fact flying cats.

And the poppies and orbs go on

One day we broil, the next morning there is a frost. Such is December in Central Hawkes Bay. But the poppies continue to amaze including a wonderful fluffy pink individual behind the hen house. I have taken so many shots of this I can see a series of very cliche paintings. Meanwhile the lawn had grown and grown as I waited to see if I can get extra money to get it knocked back. The quote I was given was $100 which at Christmas was too much to cobble together but I was lucky that Glenys and her husband came down a week ago and mowed half, the part you can see from the road thankfully. Arthur took half an hour to ride the mower down the road from their house while Glenys looking pretty snappy in t-shirt and shorts pulled up in a quad bike pulling a trailer containing rakes and wheelbarrow. While Arthur spent two hours trying to tame the grass Glenys and I raked before she threw it over the fence. By the time lunchtime had arrived we had turned into three grease spots. Poor Arthur was then faced with a weary and extremely slow trip back home.


I continue to go outside some nights orb hunting. One evening I followed Mishka up the drive photographing all the way and in each shot there was a white orb floating in the air just above the fence before settling beside Mish. I wonder if it's a dog lover? My paranormal photography adventures inspired my brother to try taking photos at the end of his garden. After a particularly spectacular shot of a white orb which turned out to be some one's soccer ball he managed to capture a couple of large ones in a photo. My friend John however had no luck whatsoever until his wife photographed him with his two grandchildren outside during the day and the resulting photo showed a large grey cloud coming out of his head. Unfortunately he's now convinced himself that this means he's going to die. So if you're wandering around Napier at night and see bright flashes coming from various gardens you'll know what's happening. There is a whole lot of orbing going on.

Paranormal Photography

Being brought up in a family of mixed Anglican/Spiritualists there has always been some interesting conversations regarding the afterlife, ghosts, spirits, and all the other ephemera of New Age philosophies. However having a brother and friends who are Atheists I always try to have a slightly sceptical attitude to some areas of spirituality. I want to be open minded but not the extent that my mind is downright draughty. Trips to the library always begin at the "Spirituality/Metaphysical" section where I usually find a couple of books to keep me going. Last month I discovered "How To Photograph the Paranormal" by Leonore Sweet PhD which contained some pretty startling photos of orbs that she had taken. I decided to have a go myself since I now have a digital camera and am not wasting valuable (and expensive) film.

First night I turned off my bedside lamp and shot blindly around the room. At first there were just some photos of startled cats but out of ten pictures there were three showing unexplained round "things". I could see where the flash was reflecting and this was nowhere near the round orbs. Second night Mishka and I went outside and I blindly shot around the garden before my camera batteries went flat after just a few photos. This picture shows a large gold orb hovering just over the fence and following Mishka. There was also another later on of an orb following him back up the driveway.

One evening I turned off the lights inside and then hung my arm way out of the window facing away from the house shooting into the darkness. There was no moonlight that night and I wasn't near any reflective surfaces so this picture came as quite a surprise.

I have spoken of what I have been doing the last few nights with several friends. One, an Atheist, does not believe "in that sort of thing", one was bemused and one tried to work out what these objects are, whether they're energy forms or spirits. As for myself I have ruled out bugs as they show up as white flecks, I don't photograph in the rain and the atmosphere is calm so there wasn't any dust. I am now encouraging everyone I know with digital cameras to try photograph around their own homes to see what shows up.

Poppies

There are triffids growing in the garden. Well humongous sized weeds and I have the allergic welts to prove it. With all the rain we've had recently everything has sprung away and as soon as I finish one patch of garden I turn round to see a jungle behind. It would be quite depressing if it weren't for all the beauty about me. A friend told me today that it must be the year for poppies. Certainly I have a surfeit of rumpled gorgeousness from the common old red Soldiers' poppy to ruffled pink jobbies to PINK and purple artists' dreams that I have photographed to distraction. Now I just have to get the lawn mowed before there is a fire and I will be halfway towards a sort of paradise.