Tag Archive | Ballou

The photographer’s assistant

To photograph the vintage jewellery I sell in my Etsy shop, I use the windowsill in our bedroom as my studio. It faces south-west, so gets the best of the sun on offer to our dark old cottage. I prefer photos that are taken in natural light, and so am limited by our gloomy winter weather in the times I can successfully take photos. But whenever I do, there is always one constant: Ballou, my photographer’s assistant.

Ballou in her natural habitat: on her (our) bed.

As soon as I get the gear for my photographing together (the board from an old flower press, some sheets of A4 white paper, some blu tack and an old kilt pin), she’s alert and ready to go. She’ll jump on to the windowsill next to my set-up, and oversee proceedings. Every single time.

Had enough now.

Thank goodness for the cropping facility in my photo editing software, because there’s often a paw (or even a sniffing nose) in shot.

She’s even managed to sneak into a couple of the shots I have used in my shop. Here she is reflected on the back of a fabulous N E From amethyst necklace:

Someone needs a pedicure …

Sep19

Ballou, to be precise:

We have bank voles (Myodes glareolus) living in our lawn and in our flower beds, and this is the result of Ballou’s particularly vigorous attempt at excavating one out of the lawn.

(The little critter got away, I’m pleased to report).

Mmmm, comfy: Part 4

May8

Ballou often sits like this:

Mmmm, comfy.

She can spend long periods perched in this way. Strange creature.

Sad cat news – please help if you can

Apr4

Ugh, this is so horrible and upsetting. I’ve just found out that the Gillingham charity shop run by the Mere and Gillingham Branch of Cats Protection was burnt down in an arson attack a few days ago. The shop was badly damaged and all the stock destroyed. The branch relies on the income from this shop to provide for helping all the stray and unwanted cats it takes in, vaccinates, microchips, neuters, rehomes, and generally cares for.

Andrew Hamilton-Muspratt, the manager of the Cats Protection charity shop in Gillingham, in the burnt-out shop. Photo by Blackmore Vale Magazine staff.

Cats Protection has set up a JustGiving page for donations to help with looking after the cats that the shop provided for. This is an urgent appeal. Please give whatever you can to help—no amount is too small. The branch is absolutely devastated, and as a result of this awful, thoughtless act, the cats are now in dire need.

Our little Ballou came from the Mere and Gillingham Branch 12 years ago, and she has brought us so much joy.

A little about Cats Protection, from their website: Charity Registration No. 203644 & SCO37711. Cats Protection is the UK’s leading feline welfare charity. We help over 230,000 cats and kittens every year through our network of over 250 volunteer-run branches and 30 centres. We find homes for cats, promote the benefits of neutering and produce a wide range of cat care information for owners.

JustGiving donations page for the Mere and Gillingham Branch charity shop appeal.

Cats Protection website.

Favourite websites: Kittenwar

Aug21

Kittenwar is another of my favourite websites. It’s a real time sink if you are a cat lover (like me): once you start looking it’s hard to stop.

Basically photos of two kittens/cats are shown side by side, and they ‘do battle’ as you vote for the cutest. The ‘winningest’ kittens and their stats are listed (hint: take a photo with your kitten’s paws and tubby tummy in full shot and you’re in with a chance), as are the ‘losingest’ (hint: if you have a sphinx or angular-headed Siamese, your darling is going to be on this list …)

I put up a photo of one of our two fudsies, Ballou, on 12 January 2006, and in those eight and a half years she has done battle 4,235 times. Her stats are a pretty steady 49% won, 39% lost and 13% drawn. I think she’s the cutest thing ever in the photo I entered, but that’s because I know she’s enjoying having her ears rubbed and is not being tortured, as it rather looks like …

Ballou. Kittenwar warrior. Not being tortured, honest.

Mmmm, comfy: Part 2

Jul4

Here’s Ballou. I know it looks like she’s being tortured, but she’s zenning out while she’s having her ears scratched. This photo was taken about 9 years ago, and she hasn’t sat like this since. Strange creature. I love the way she looks like she’s kicking back in an easy chair—beer and takeaway just out of shot to the right.

Ballou. She was enjoying this, honest.

Making space for nature: Orchids in the allotments

Jun21

The top part of our village allotments has been left as a small nature conservation area. About eight years ago I seeded it with a calcareous soil wildflower mix from Emorsgate Seeds, on behalf of our local conservation group. The area had been overgrown with rank grasses, which grew so strongly that other wildflowers were not able to get a proper foothold. In the seed mix was yellow rattle, a plant that parasitises the roots of neighbouring plants and so weakens them, and which is used as a natural method of controlling the rank grasses. It has been interesting watching the development of the meadow area. In the spring we get a fantastic show of cowslips, followed by black medic and yellow rattle and white and red clover and ox-eye daisies and all sorts of pretty flowers.

The conservation area of the allotments – a beautiful wildflower meadow, photographed this morning. If you click on the photo you can just make out a small clump of pyramidal orchids in the centre of the grassy area. The white drift behind them is a patch of ox-eye daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare).

Even before we sowed the seeds there were wild orchids growing on the allotments and in the conservation area: mainly pyramidal orchids, with a few bee orchids and a couple of common spotted ones. The orchids have ‘on’ years when they flower well, and ‘off’ years when they sulk and don’t bother to flower. This year is a ‘so-so’ year for the pyramidals, but there is no sign of the bee or the common spotted ones.

Bee orchid (Ophrys apifera) on the allotments, 16 June 2008.

The well-named Pyramidal orchid on the allotments, 16 June 2008.

The well-named Pyramidal orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalis) on the allotments, 16 June 2008. Black medic (Medicago lupulina) lurking in the background.

Common spotted orchid in our garden, 14 June 2006. The spots on the leaves, from which it gets its name, are visible.

Common spotted orchid (Dactylorhiza fuchsii) in our garden, 14 June 2006. The spots on the leaves, from which it gets its name, are visible.

We went for a walk there this morning and Ballou came with us. She adores Chap and howled pathetically when he wandered out of sight. While we were up there we met Charlie, our neighbour, with one of his cats.

Ballou on the lookout in the conservation area.

Despite its name, the common spotted orchid isn’t at all common in our conservation area. We have a lone specimen growing in our garden, bought from a favourite local nursery, Nadder Valley Nurseries (they don’t seem to have a website so I can’t link), many years ago.

Inglenookery

West Country witterings