Blog

lego is not cheap

I have been in Reading for the past few days with a pal of mine. We have been working on my new dive related project (watch this space). J told me that he had recently been on a trip to Legoland in Windsor. Apparently it was…

Tv ads

embrace life

I have recently seen this advert entitled 'Embrace Life'. I think that it's really clever. It does not use any negative reinforcement. There's no blood, no image of a slumping child, in fact nothing shocking at…

used to the heady mix

Since coming back to the UK something that has been really obvious to me is the smell of Spring and Summer. I don't think I have really stopped before to appreciate the smell of England or Kent, in particular. In Lanzarote,…

Arts and Craft, Travel

CallyCo

I went to Cambridge last week. I cannot recall ever having been there before.A shop that struck me is called CallyCo. located on Peas Hill. As a child there was a strong arts and craft focus in our family home. Surrounded…

the astonishing number of paper cups

Artist Chris Jordan shows us an arresting view of what Western culture looks like. His supersized images picture some almost unimaginable statistics -- like the astonishing number of paper cups we use every single day.

Food and Drink, Lanzarote, Meanderings, Travel

windbreaks built from volcanic rock

As I drove down from Famara toward the salt works, I passed mile after mile of small semi-circular windbreaks built from volcanic rock. The windbreaks surround one side of a dell dug from the pecan. The dells and windbreaks are…

CPDRC, Meanderings, Music

the CPDRC dance troupe

This is the first of several dance routines filmed at Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center that I will be uploading. For more information about the CPDRC CLICK HERE (opens in a new window)

Faith, Meanderings

what’s it all about?

A while ago I witnessed a conversation between two maths dudes about the existence of God.The conversation went something like this:A: The question of what exists beyond what we know is a pointless or redundant question.B: How do you mean?A:…

time to change

I went to the cinema a couple of days ago. Whilst in the loo, I happened to read an advert for the 'Time to Change' campaign displayed above the wash basins. I think that for any change to happen more people need to get…

Travel

impressed with the sands of Famara

A few weeks or so ago I hired a car to drive around the island. This is a picture of my Opal; my ticket to freedom! On one of my trips I went to Famara which is best known for its excellent surf. I was struck by the sand dunes which resonated…

an endless floating waste of plastic trash

Capt. Charles Moore of the Algalita Marine Research Foundation first discovered the Great Pacific Garbage Patch -- an endless floating waste of plastic trash. Now he's drawing attention to the growing, choking problem of plastic debris in our seas.

a colonial tunicate that floats in the water

A couple of weeks ago it was very common to see strange objects which looked glass-like translucent and plastic, whilst others seemed softer, more opaque and hairyer. Not only were they littering the sea floor but were also driting in…

Meanderings, Scuba

light from the collapsing cavitation bubble

A month or so ago I met a great bloke called Andy who undertook a diving course with Calypso a couple of years ago. Now he's back for more. Andy and I completed our Rescue Diver course together and became pretty close, having to blow…

my homage to the great

A couple of weeks ago I went to see the house of Cesar Manrique.The Cesar Manrique Foundation is located in Taro de Tahiche (Close to Costa Teguise). It is probably the work that best represents Manrique's artistic and personal ideals.Cesar…

in 2004 the 13th protocol was adopted

An excerpt from Wikipidia following a conversation I had last night. I just thought it was interesting.The last execution on the Isle of Man took place in 1872, when John Kewish was hanged for patricide. Capital punishment was not formally…

he finished playing and silence took over.

THE SITUATION - In Washington , DC , at a Metro Station, on a cold January morning in 2007, this man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them…

Meanderings, Politics

as people on sun loungers have a paper by their side

I have had a number of conversations over the past couple of months with British, mostly English people, who reside here in Lanzarote, about their views of the UK.Its quite interesting how sheltered I have been to the news from the UK…

nature deficit disorder

Really interesting talk by Dennis vanEngelsdorp who is the Acting State Apiarist for Pennsylvania's Department of Agriculture, mostly about bees, but also touching upon NDD.

swaying and dancing backwards and forwards

A couple of weeks ago, I was doing a dive at Puerto del Carmen.As part of the DiveMeister course I have to practice, to demonstration standard, a host of skills, for example clearing the mask of water, removing and replacing the mask, pivoting…

Photography, Travel

the beaches of graciosa

This is the last series of images from my outing to Graciosa.Essentially the images document my walk along the beach and I hope you like them. It was interesting how the beaches changed as I wandered along in the sun.I also collected…

lays like an old elephant carcass

On Tuesday mornings the scheduled dive at Calipso is the wrecks by the new harbour wall at Peurto del Carmen.It requires a boat to travel to the entry point next to the wall which is used as a reference for decending the safety stop and for…

Meanderings, Scuba, TED

the blue heart of our planet

These two TED talks feature the amzaing octopus. I really enjoyed them and hope you do too.Underwater filmmaker Mike deGruy has spent decades looking intimately at the ocean. A consummate storyteller, he takes the stage at Mission Blue…

The LIFE Project

In this stunning slideshow, celebrated nature photographer Frans Lanting presents The LIFE Project, a poetic collection of photographs that tell the story of our planet, from its eruptive beginnings to its present diversity. Soundtrack by Philip…

caleta de sebo

On my trip last weekend to Graciosa we wandered around Caleta de Sebo and took some photos of the village. There is not a lot to say about what I shot other than have a look and see what you think. It reminded me of New Mexico. …

special needs week

I have read on facebook the following statement a few times on people's satus bars this morning:"People need to understand that children with special needs are not sick, they are not searching for a cure, just acceptance. This week…

logorama – I don’t want to set the world on fire

Lolly Borel of the 'Blog till you Drop' variety recommended a glance at the animation Logorama. l have taken a look and love it!If there are kids in the vicinity, send them to bed! The language is a bit rich even for a…

the folk of Graciosa

I thought I should share with you some of the images I took on the island during the day trip and in this case I will show you the people I saw on Sunday morning.As we got off the ferry we were welcomed by this old dude with his traditional…

Travel

an outing to Graciosa

On Sunday I went on an outing to Graciosa which is a small island, a couple of km North of Lanzarote. The ferry trip across the Rio strait was beautiful. The journey really offers some amazing Geology. As the ferry takes…

rubbish

Over the past few weeks I have been really shocked with the amount of rubbish that I have seen in the ocean when I have been diving. I have decided to do something about it. I searched the internet for schemes, projects or prgrammes which I…

the slow rhythm of an aqua-blue sea

Caught for a second, their colours shone and glowed, before they quickly swam into the security of obscurity amongst countless others that looked the same as them.

Drama on The Devil’s island

On Sunday I was having a coffee with Alec before he left for the UK. Alec is a Cornishman who, back in the day, surfed a 14ft wooden long-board, when long-boards were the fashion and not because of the retro calling for them. …

Travel

LagOmar

Last weekend I went with some holidaying guys (Pipa, Big Dave and Anna) to LagOmar. We travelled by taxi from Cotsa Teguise and the journey took about 15 minutes.There is some speculation about the circumstances surrounding his…

Up and down I was sent and hauled

Today I learnt about rescue whilst observing the instruction style and participating in two elements of the BSAC Ocean Diver rescue dive, namely the 'air assisted assent' and the controlled buoyancy ascent.I was asked to be the 'casualty'…

Meanderings, Scuba

fields of garden eels

Arriving early at work, today was spent doing two dives.Two former members of the dive school staff, Marina and Jason joined us. Jason is a qualified instructor and Marina worked as a Divemaster.Back in the UK Jason now works as a forester…

I turned into a one man kitchen disaster – 25 03 10

Today was a busy day.It started with me learning the opening up procedure for the centre.Essentially three cohorts of divers move through the school each morning and again after lunch.At 8:30 experienced divers come in a get their kit, at 9:30…

the fish was impossible to see – 24 03 10

Today I did a double dive at Puerto del Carmen.I buddied Derek again who is completing his PADI Advanced course. We have swum together all week and he is a really nice guy whose occupation enables him to identify gliches in the configuration…

amounts of exposed wrinkled flesh – 23 03 10

During lunch, it was explained that from hereon it is my responsibility to put the oxygen, spare regulator and mask into the van we are to use (my second tranche of responsibility). Mala is to the East of the island.On the way from base at Costa…

light from below my feet – 22.03.10

I started today. I am going to be working 6 days a week. On average I will be having Sunday off making an average of 2 dives per day. Pretty hard core I reckon, and brilliant.The morning was spent, completing paperwork and…

ropes trailing upwards toward the light – 23 03 10 – Morning

Got up early following dreamless heavy sleep. I took the time to make a few cheese and salad sandwiches for packed lunch before I heard my 7:30am 'wake-up' alarm go off.I was dressed and outside the gate for 8:30 and Laurence, the dive…

The day I bought a bike

Today i bought a bike from Babs. She had offered to rent it to me for €12 per week. I said I would think about it. I already knew that the bike was for sale for €100, I ate my sandwiches for lunch and when I had nearly finished,…

Today I got off the merry-go-round

Today I got off the Merry-go-round.It was pretty tense in the morning and time just flew away with itself. A zillion little loose ends, just not done.My late Dad's wife who from now I will refer to as 'Fni' has been so supportive;…

Meanderings, Politics

Susan Winehouse

My smoking experiment seems to be going well and I can now inhale without choking. Of late a friends grown-up daughter has been popping round. Ernest Winehouse' daughter, Susan, has been popping round. A month or so…

Meanderings, Music, Scuba, Travel

I wrote to razor but he did not write back

I sent a letter to Razor care of the Sheppy Prison Cluster the week before last. I enclosed his glasses and asked if he could complete a visitor order, which I now know is the protocol. To date I have heard nothing back anf my…

Your ideas

If you have any feedback about my blog and want to give me an idea about what you think I should experience or photograph. If you know about an event which is happening that you think I should attend, or, if you know someone and think…