Huzzah for weekends!
Jun. 5th, 2010 01:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gnommiI've been suspected that I'm getting too old for DramaTM for some time now, but last night just confirmed it. It was initially really nice to see some folks that I now seem to see very little of, talk and catch up... just not so good to get embroiled in muck-raking, see the fallout of less-than-legal recreational activities and end up piggy-in-the-middle of some kind of feud as the evening went on. Sometimes I wonder if it's me? Do I unknowingly trigger some of this rubbish when I end up in close proximity to certain individuals, or when I'm amongst a certain density of aquaintances? Either way, it's not pleasant and I don't want to do it any more. It certainly doesn't happen when some individuals aren't present (alone or in combination), nor when I'm out with small groups. I have to say I did like the Southwestern Arms, however, I think it may well be my Dolphin replacement now that management there has changed and it's been yuppified.
Wierd evening altogether. 4/10 must try harder.
Anyway, I saw this immensely impressive fellow yesterday, rampaging in the shrubbery next to my bus-stop. Pyrochroa coccinea, a cardinal beetle. This one was pretty much as big as they get, at about 2cm long.
This is the least blurry of 8 shots: wind and bendy brambles + cheap compact camera do not make for good macros! The Hobbit said something about cheap compacts having slow shutter speeds or something and that I need an digital SLR; not sure I can cart that around in my bag like I do my trusty Mu-1 Mini though? Also, hmmm kinda expensive.
I've been toying with buying watercolour pencils this week. I finished my Pseudoscarabeus architeuthis with some extra colour pencil as the watercolour by itself seemed a bit wimpy, maybe aquarelle pencils'd beef it up a bit? I also REALLY want one of these black gothic monstrosity picture frames for this particular beetle painting to go in, but the Hobbit pronounces it "huge, grotesque, NO, only when you finish your beetle book" etc. So therefore Chiz.
Wierd evening altogether. 4/10 must try harder.
Anyway, I saw this immensely impressive fellow yesterday, rampaging in the shrubbery next to my bus-stop. Pyrochroa coccinea, a cardinal beetle. This one was pretty much as big as they get, at about 2cm long.
This is the least blurry of 8 shots: wind and bendy brambles + cheap compact camera do not make for good macros! The Hobbit said something about cheap compacts having slow shutter speeds or something and that I need an digital SLR; not sure I can cart that around in my bag like I do my trusty Mu-1 Mini though? Also, hmmm kinda expensive.
I've been toying with buying watercolour pencils this week. I finished my Pseudoscarabeus architeuthis with some extra colour pencil as the watercolour by itself seemed a bit wimpy, maybe aquarelle pencils'd beef it up a bit? I also REALLY want one of these black gothic monstrosity picture frames for this particular beetle painting to go in, but the Hobbit pronounces it "huge, grotesque, NO, only when you finish your beetle book" etc. So therefore Chiz.