mexican fleabane

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 28 August 2026].}

Oddly, the Royal Horticultural Society includes 'Australian fleabane' as another common name for the Erigeron karvinskianus, which is most commonly known as 'Mexican fleabane', despite the plant being considered a weed species in Australia, according to Wikipedia.

In this instance, in the London garden of one of my pet-sitting clients, it was not considered a weed, but a welcome and cultivated part of the garden.

I like that it appears to bear both white and pink flowers on the same plant (please let me know if I'm wrong!)

the sun above, death below

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 10 August 2026].}

endres cranesbill

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 9 August 2026].}

the antichrist

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 27 July 2026].}

fresh. frozen.

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 2 February 2026].}

I hope to share a "proper" update tomorrow, but for now, here's a photo I took of a fresh grave, littered with frost, in January 2025, in Pinner New Cemetery.

It's not that cold in London at the moment, but we're not expecting temperatures above ten degrees at least until Monday (the forecast only shows me until Sunday).

(For Stranger Things fans, the family name on the grave is Hawkins.)

with bells on

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 21 December 2025].}

holly wreath

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 20 December 2025].}

A day late and posted late in the day.

I'll be back on track for tomorrow's instalment!

forever in our hearts at christmas

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 16 December 2025].}

how do you like them apples?

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 9 December 2025].}

a hessian-bound christmas bouquet

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 7 December 2025].}

a wreath with all the trimmings

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 6 December 2025].}

lily of the incas

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 29 November 2025].}

A cluster of Alstroemeria, commonly known as Peruvian lily or lily of the Incas, that I photographed at Helmingham Hall during a visit with my parents in summer 2017.

red roses and reindeer

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 1 December 2025].}

It's that time again.

As has become something of a custom, life is "all change" again this December (well, at least on the work front).

Despite that, I'm aiming to share new images from my season's grievings series every couple of days between now and Christmas and make them public approximately two days later.

I hope you enjoy!

I photographed this grave in Abney Park Cemetery in February 2012. The inscription is hard to read through the plant life, but it could be for Thelma Marie Lucas. Alas, I haven't been able to find anything to confirm that or to inform me more about the interred.

I hope that those who love you miss you this much and more after you're gone.

(Though, without the requirement of it being so physically visible. I personally don't want to be buried, so there would be nowhere specific like this for those who love and miss me to show it in the same way.)

uplifting

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 25 November 2025].}

angel, impatiens, elephant's ears

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 3 November 2025].}

As mentioned in a previous post, the tammerkoski on a slow day, I developed large blisters on my pinky toes during my first day wandering around Tampere with Pia.

As a consequence of that and us indulging in a much-needed lie-in (well, not that late a lie-in for either of us, really!), we had to forego our planned walk in the forest by the lake with Max.

I had hoped to see some of the beautiful natural landscapes Tampere has to offer, which I'd seen from photos and videos Pia has shared from her walks. I guess that gives me a reason to return to Tampere ;)

So, on my third day in Finland (my second and last half day in Tampere before heading back to Helsinki), Pia took me to Kalevankankaan hautausmaa (Kalevankangas Cemetery) for a quick wander with my camera before my train departed, and she went to collect her children.

The cemetery is extremely well-maintained, as is Hietaniemen hautausmaa (Hietaniemi Cemetery), which I visited on my last day in Helsinki.

There's a lovely natural parkland feel to the cemetery, without it falling into the 'managed neglect' of many of London's cemeteries (which I also love), and all the colours were beautifully saturated after the morning's rain.

Notably, few (if any) plastic flowers adorned the graves. There were live plants in and around the graves, which I believe are predominantly maintained by the cemetery groundskeepers.

It was a lovely way to spend our morning together, except for the mild panic attack I had, which led us to scarper to the station without locating Pia's favourite grave. Though I guess that's yet another reason to return to Tampere!

where the lilies bloom

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 22 July 2025].}

I have a feeling of déjà vu, wondering where June went, just as I did in mid-May, wondering where April had gone.

I mean, I know where it went. I lived it. But life took me away from sharing work here.

Since my last "life" update, I've completed the two-week sitting with Chilli in Moulsecoomb, Brighton, that I mentioned in that post.

I have never been happier to travel during a heatwave because I learned from the Met Office app before heading away that Brighton was a good few degrees cooler than London for the following week. Not as good as Scott and Shirley's experience in Cornwall, where it was a case of "Heatwave? What heatwave?!" I think I only had to turn their fan on while I worked two to three times during the whole stay.

I arrived on Friday evening in the middle of a heatwave to find it was one of the select few nights within the past three years that the Bella Ciao pizza van wasn't in the vicinity. They were doing a roaring trade at a music festival, instead. I replaced my usual homemade pizzas (not every night!) with their tasty fare.

Chilli was such a lovely kitteh to hang out with, spending most of each morning into the early to mid-afternoon lazing on the dining table within arms' reach for comforting, sensory pets whenever I needed it (which was often; it was a stressful couple of weeks).

In the afternoon, he would wander off into the yard. Sometimes hanging out with other neighbourhood cats. Who I photographed, of course, where I could.

In the evening and breaks during my work day, he would settle on my lap or legs as I lounged on the sofa. Never settling for long, but purring with approval while I pet him.

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I hibernated during the day after my arrival, as it was still about 30 degrees. But the following day, I set off with my camera across Bevendean Down Nature Reserve towards the village of Falmer.

Scott introduced me to the Outdoor Active app before I set out and shared a recent walk he'd taken across the downs, so I had some sense of where I was going. I tracked my walk so you can see it if you're interested.

I took a lot of photos with my D700 and some with my iPhone during the walk. It was a pleasant way to clear my head, passing by a mixture of overgrown paths, open fields, cows, sheep, woodland-type environments, a quaint village, a busy motorway and ending in a rabbit-warren of a pub (and somehow completely missing the model train above the bar - I blame my height).

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The following weekend, I coaxed two friends down from London to visit Lewes. My primary knowledge of the town was from Scott's photos of their Bonfire Night parades, which I still haven't managed to experience firsthand.

We visited Lewes Castle and Museum, wandered the streets, traipsed across town to the former village of Cliffe and the Snowdrop Inn (named after a deadly 1836 avalanche, which was, unfortunately, shut for a private function), and wound up in the Beak Brewery, under the looming chalk cliff face of Cliffe Hill.

The following day, I climbed another hill (Brighton is not short on hills - Encyclopedia Britannica explains why hills are "downs" in that part of England, which I admit somewhat confusticated me until I read why) to visit some of Brighton's cemeteries. As Scott observed, almost all of Brighton's cemeteries are in his vicinity, the exceptions being Hove and Portslade Cemeteries.

Despite setting out late in the day, I visited the Brighton Jewish Cemetery, Woodvale Crematorium, Woodvale Cemetery and Extra Mural Cemetery before popping into The Gladstone pub and The Bear Inn to quench my thirst and get a reprieve from the sun on my way back to Scott's.

With Brighton's unofficial recognition as the LGBTQIA+ capital of Britain, I was disappointed that The Bear Inn wasn't full of bears. Maybe I was there at the wrong time of day.

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Ironically, having spent two weeks there, I didn't manage to visit Brighton proper at all during my stay.

I had entertained the thought of attending a screening of the 1920s film version of Nosferatu with a live score at the Duke of York cinema. But life worked against me on that one.

I also thought I might have a chance to do some long-overdue clothes and shoe shopping, and perhaps even seek out some collage materials. But, alas, no luck.

In my week at home between sittings, I managed to catch up with the lovely Sarah Jansen for a sedate but verbose (on both sides!) evening in a couple of Camden pubs while she was briefly in town. It was lovely to see her on my side of the world for the first time since 2011, although we have managed to meet up twice in Australia in the interim.

As I write this, I recall that I have some charming portraits I took of her on her last visit to London that I haven't yet edited, for some inscrutable reason (well, mostly due to a lack of time).

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Earlier in the month, I had my first sitting with my regulars since early May. It was lovely to have cuddles with Lily again while I rewatched season one of The Deuce before catching up on the second and third seasons (the third season is still in progress). The season one soundtrack is brilliant.

In addition to hanging out with Lily, Sammy, Poppy, Oscar (all cats) and Charlie (a hamster), I popped in to feed their neighbours, George and Lottie, for a few days. I fed Sabine's new fish in her pond, navigated Ollie's varying moods when he came to visit, and was hissed at by Ollie's sister, Lola (she was a showgirl... 🎶) when I dared say hello to her at the patio door.

I arrived home to a letter from the hospital that confirmed the probable diagnosis a registrar gave me in November for a health issue I've been dealing with for about three years. It's something of a relief to have a definitive answer, finally, but the psychological impact of living with the symptoms for such a long time will take more time to resolve.

And, in but a few days, I get to spend a couple of weeks with my favourite doggo, Frank! I can't wait to share in his excessive emotional response to my arrival (it's very much mutual), savour his cuddles, chuckle at him playing dead when I return to the bedroom after my shower, and share his contagious happiness with others.

The summer silly season of sittings is about to start. I'll have two nights at home between sitting Frank and my regulars and another two nights between my regulars and my excitable puppers in Bishop's Stortford, before the post-holiday lull.

I'm looking forward to the mental health benefits all the cuddles with my feline and canine pals bring. I'm not as keenly anticipating the potential heat the rest of summer will bring. But at least the homes I'll be staying in are better designed to handle said heat than my cosy loft studio.

And I have a five-night stay in Finland to plan, as a treat for myself at the end of my crazy summer of sittings.

In the meantime, I hope to get back into the swing of regular posting. Thank you for staying with me x

bearded iris

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 27 May 2025].}

I photographed this Iris × germanica at Knebworth House on Sunday while visiting as part of a day trip out of London for my good friend Sophie's birthday.

It may not be evident in the photos when saved for the web, but they shimmered like the frosted flowers you might find on a wedding cake. I thought perhaps I imagined it in the moment, but you can see it in the high-resolution photographs I took, and Wikipedia mentions 'sparkling whites' amongst the colours they may be.

Bearded irises are commonly grown in Muslim cemeteries, according to Wikipedia.

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china rose (pink)

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 17 May 2025].}

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china rose (white)

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 1 February 2025].}

A very belated Happy New Year to you, my dear patrons.

I'm sorry (once again) for the radio silence.

The end of 2024 was voraciously consumed with move-related activity and kittehs, leaving me no time to assemble my usual end-of-year wrap-up blog.

I still intend to write and share one, but I have many photos to edit to bring it together, and January has somehow already disappeared into the rearview. How is that possible?

I hope 2025 will be a better one for me. And for you, if 2024 was hard.

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The state of the world worries me deeply. In case you haven't heard, the Doomsday Clock ticked one second closer to midnight with the swearing-in of Drumpf as the 47th US President, the ongoing wars around this globe we call Earth, and the continued inaction of many world leaders in tackling climate change.

I'll be honest: it's hard to have hope some days.

But I do have hope. And plans. And I continue to see the beauty in the world and the people in my life despite everything.

I hope you do, too.

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I would tell you all about the plans and inspiration whirling around my head. But I feel like, every time I mention my creative plans, I must push them aside while I fight another personal metaphorical fire.

So, instead, I will simply promise to share as much as I can when I can and hope you'll stay with me.

In the meantime, hopefully, these photographs of China roses I found in the front garden of a home in Grove Park last June will remind you of the beauty in the world.

When it all feels overwhelming, stop, take a deep breath and smell the roses.

DOLLY

^{[I originally posted this entry as early access for my Patreon patrons on 13 December 2024].}