flickr photo updates

Just a few more flickr photo updates. We now have 2,309 photos online with thousands of individual picture views. This was really pushed along by our Rolling Stones pics. I've also joined the nearby Drogheda Photographic Club in the hope of enhancing my skills!
So these photo folders all had major updates in the last week or so:
Photo Link: <2007... A year in Annagassan>
Photo Link: <Aviation at DUB Airport 07>
Photo Link: <Clare's USA Trip 99> (getting lots of comments on these)
Photo Link: <New York, Oct 03>
Photo Link: <Our Top 20 Most Interesting Pics>
Bye.

The rain

I've been watching a dam. Well I call it a dam anyway. It's right next to the M1 motorway, nestled into a hill on the northern side on the Boyne Valley, on my way to work. The water level was pretty high over winter. Then the fishing season started and every morning keen fishermen were evenly spaced around the edge with their rods dangling in the water. Then, at some point, someone let the plug out, literally, and the dam drained away to nothing (I have no idea how you pull out the plug in a dam!) Overnight, the water was suddenly gone, and grass took over. Now June has seen some serious rain in Ireland. Heavy, heavy rain in short bursts, but lots of them. Not soft rain like usual for Ireland, but more like the way I remember how it rained in Brisbane in the 1980's, when you got soaked in 3 seconds. So every day, the water level in this dam is getting higher and higher, and I think soon it'll be back to the level it was over winter. So, this dam has gone from full, to empty, and is getting close to being full again in a matter of weeks. Silent Valley Reservoir, in the Mourne Mountains has an amazing spillway like a giant plughole too. A huge concrete tube leading down a channel carved into acres of carefully levelled green slopes, ready to take the spill that might just happen one day when it doesn't stop raining. I for one want to see the water flowing down that massive plughole. It'd be a pretty incredible sight. Not sure if they'll send me a "spillway alert" on my mobile though, so I'll probably miss it anyway. Just up the road in Northern Ireland, we saw playing fields and ASDA carparks completely submerged. Fenceposts cutting through paddocks where cows would need snorkels. This is a wet, wet place. You get used to it, you don't notice it, but you just think of how much Australia (and lots of other places) need this rain so, so badly. The sort of rain where you've gotta pull out the plug in your dam then let it fill up again. You wish.
Took a few more pics at Dublin Airport on Sunday too, against very stormy skies (and rain of course). Geeky I know, but something I don't think I'll ever tire of.

(please click on any of these photos for a larger version)

Finnair OH-LVC A319, Sunday Afternoon

My Travel G-OMYA A320, in stormy skies

Ryanair EI-DHI B737, with nice wing vapour

Girjet EC-JTN B757, charter operator based in Barcelona

Life & Times in Annagassan

Irish Pub of the Week #6 - The Glyde Inn, Annagassan, Co. Louth. Established in the 1700's. This is "our local", about 3 mins walk from our apartment. They pour a nice pint of Guinness!

A pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, Co. Louth

A bit of aviation spotting, American Airlines Boeing 777

Pigsy, our local dog at The Saltings, Annagassan, waits patiently for a dog biscuit
(please click on any of these photos for a larger version)

Photo Link: <Annagassan photos>

Hello all. Not much to report this week. Clare & Joe have both been busy at work. Clare had an overnight trip to Berlin on Tuesday (3am start), and enjoyed our favourite sushi restaurant in Europe. Joe did his DHL stuff! Just another week to go before we head across for our holiday in Tuscany. It's still spring in Ireland, although the weather conditions can change, quite literally, minute by minute. It might be spring in the morning, summer at lunchtime and winter on the drive home. No shortage of rain of course, as always. They've just started some Friday night trad music sessions at our local, The Glyde Inn, so we'll have to check that out soon. Bye for now.

Latest News & Dublin Airport

Here we are again. Just enjoying a little smoked salmon breakfast on a Saturday morning, and looking out at the Cooley Mountains. As much as we love the "North End" of Dundalk, with it's abandoned pubs & cracked windows, our view will be different from next weekend, as we've secured our new 2 bedroom apartment at Annagassan! So we'll be loading the DHL Jumbo Boxes back into our cars, and heading off for our new home. Please email Joe at jf1969@optusnet.com.au or Clare at straddiegal@optusnet.com.au if you'd like our new address/phone details. We'll also have a new phone number, etc. Eircom have promised to connect our phone & broadband straight away, so we will see! And, much to contrary belief, Annagassan isn't a stomach complaint, it is in fact a tiny fishing village with 1 shop and 1 pub, where we hope to become "locals" over the next 2 years...! So, again, we extend the invitation to anyone heading this way at any time - you are most welcome to come and stay at Annagassan any old time. We will post some photos when we're all settled.
Clare is off to Norway for work meetings tomorrow, on a boat cruise (yeah sure, they call it work!) The latest temp there is minus 12... That's why they drink vodka over there. Better wrap up warm Clare!
On a completely different subject, I'm still being an aviation geek over here, and have discovered that Dublin Airport is a great spot for aviation photos. So, this will still be my hobby every now and then. Here are some of my photo results from last weekend... Enjoy!

Windy Wellington

Photo Link: <Wellington Family photos>
Photo Link: <Wellington Airport photos>
Joe went over to windy Wellington on the weekend of 18-22 August to visit Guy, Kerstin, Daniel & Patrick... Had a great time. Over on Air New Zealand (sweet) and back on Pacific Blue. Very smooth flights both ways, Air NZ better of course as you get a meal, a drink and a movie (The Sentinel). But of course you pay for the difference (and had 3 seats to myself both ways). Was a pretty wet and wild weekend (the weather, not the nightlife), with mega wind chill Phil... (say that in strong Kiwi accent). Saturday went for a drive in the Hutt Valley, then in the evening went to a great Asian fusion restaurant Chow in Petone (Clare would have died for the blue cheese wontons), followed by the funny movie Confetti at the little Lighthouse cinema down the street - great fun! Sunday went for a drive to Martinborough and had another nice cafe lunch (NZ is just chockers full of great food, and really reasonable). Then stopped at Kaitoke Regional Park (setting for Rivendell, LOTR trilogy), for a walk on the swing bridge. On the Monday rain kept falling making it hard to get around on the streets, especially as I was trying to keep a new camera dry (Pentax K100D), and it wasn't even mine! Took a look at the city, quick stroll through Te Papa, and wanted to take some photos in the airport/Mt Victoria area, but as the rain kept falling I decided to get a small car from Thrifty, then got some good pics of Air NZ planes from the seawall at the southern end of WLG Airport with the windchill burning my face. The car ended up being pretty convenient as I had to leave Lower Hutt about 4.30am on the Tuesday morning in the pouring rain, to get in the Pacific Blue queue (that's Blues Queue, not to be confused with Blues Clues), to catch the plane to Brisbane (usual tiresome Virgin high jinks on the plane, "in the cockpit today, we have Captain Kirk and Mr Spock", etc, etc...), to get collected from Brisbane International and be at the office 15 minutes before my start time at 10am... Brought home a lovely cold too. Cheers. Family photos and Wellington Airport photos from the weekend.