wanderings & wonderings

Batuan, central Bali. A Wednesday at the beginning of February. The night’s darkness still blanketing the earth. I awoke cold and shivering, huddled under my duvet with the wind causing my mosquito net to billow over me. I screwed my eyes shut and drew my knees to my chest. Knowing I needed to shut the windows behind the bed and close out the draught if I was to have any hope of more sleep. I ignored it all. Willing sleep to come anyway. It had been a late night, by my stand

Another little piece I have found, also from 2009; an exercise for the writing group I belonged to in Singapore. The task was to write about our favourite smell in less than 100 words. This is my offering - 99 words. Rich, round and yellow this aroma arrives without knocking. A blast of fragrant happiness that makes the limbic system salsa. A trace of spice underlying a big, bold statement of lemon. Or is it? Sherbet lemons, for sure. But lemons off the tree? No. If this aro

This was written in the Funan Food Court in Singapore in 2009. I found it today when I was going through some old notebooks. I remember this encounter as if it were yesterday... They stared at you they did At your difference At your height At your eyes At the curve of your spine They did not see what I did You asked to clear my plate A raised eyebrow and eye connection No words I smiled with you eyes to eyes Said yes please You asked me how my meal was A circle of your thumb

... my mojo hasn't run away, of course. It is firmly here as this image demonstrates - taken on a walk around RHS Rosemoor this past weekend, with the focus on sunlight and shadow for my photos. It would be fair to say I have not written in a while however I need to be kind and honest with myself and say that photography counts as creativity. Why I always forget this when I have my photos for sale on Getty iStock and Shutterstock is beyond me. I was involved in a car accident

My writing muse has deserted me. It left on March 23rd, 2020 - the same day we lost our freedom for the first time. At the start of the global pandemic that has ravaged our planet and all upon it since December 2019. It worried me for a long time that I no longer had any urge to write. However, I have kept up with my walks (my bimbles) every day and in the beauty that surrounds me I have found great solace. I take photographs on every bimble. A focus to my walk and also a way

Singapore awoke yesterday under a pale gray sky, no sign of the sun. Still, humid, expectant of rain. I began the day with a swim ...