Winter days

Today is the 1st of July, so that's one month of winter gone; two more to go (sigh).

Friday was a beautiful day - a light frost in the morning, followed by 

clear blue skies, and virtually no wind. 

Manu and I decided we had to go to the beach:

Reflections

Thematic Photographic 410: Reflections

Carmi's prompt this week is one I can't resist! 

Reflections in the almost-dark:

And reflections at the beach at dawn:

Latin reflectere = to bend back

Bodies of Water - TP 329

Serendipitous Thematic Photographic!

On Sunday and Monday the eastern coasts of New Zealand were visited by the remnants of tropical cyclone Pam, which earlier caused huge damage and a number of deaths in Vanuatu and nearby islands. (See here)

Where I live we had a lot of rain but luckily, not the damaging winds we had been promised.

This morning I got up and drove out to the beach before dawn, to see if I could get some shots of the sunrise, and of the big surf which is always a legacy of easterly storms. The surf doesn't look very big in these - the scale is deceptive.

Here are some of the photos I took:

 

 

See some other bodies of water at Written.Inc

Sunday Snapshots

It's late autumn - a beautiful clear blue windless day, so I just had to take Manu out to the beach. 

To heck with the schoolwork, and the housework, and the catching-uppery...

Driving through the "village", the beach shopping centre, I saw that this cool little shop was closed - a good opportunity to stop and take a photo:

The Secret Garden

 We walked part of the way around the Estuary, but the tide was way out:

 There wasn't much going on, except the mangroves growing...

 So we went across the sand dunes, crossed the road, and walked along the ocean beach instead:

 There was a little more happening there -

 

It's Mother's Day in this country. If you're a mother, I hope you're having a splendid day!

March

 


I saw this idea today on Jilda's latest post and thought I would like to do one too - although it should really be posted on the 1st of the month.

March ... Three days into official autumn in this downunder country. Maybe the drought will end soon? We have had no rain for two months, and none to speak of for two months before that. The ground is brown, we are not allowed to water our gardens, and the farmers (and their stock) are suffering.

March ... the new school year is well and truly under way. It is so BUSY!!! We are understaffed and that means huge classes. In my Year 12 English class (age: 16-17) I have 29 students. That is far too many for a top academic class where the pressure is on them, and me, to achieve excellent results in national examinations. The marking load is going to be horrendous. My Year 11 and Year 13 classes are a more realistic size (26 and 16 respectively).

March ... in a week my little granddaughter will turn 4 - unbelievable. I can't wait to go and visit them in April. We talk often on the phone or Skype, but I can't believe how much I miss her and her little brother since they moved to Australia last September. It was wonderful to have them all back at Christmas.

March ... March was my mother's birthday month too. It is 12 years since she died, but the 16th of March never passes without my thinking gratefully of her strength and determination.

March ... the last month before Daylight Saving ends on the 1st of April. I feel sad when the evenings are darker earlier :(   I am a summer person, and I dread the winter's arrival. At least winter in our new house will be warmer than we have been used to in the past, with our double glazing and efficient insulation.

My northern hemisphere friends will be greeting the onset of spring soon...  Come visit our beach! (picture from here)