I often ponder, as I gently meander down an alley or two of a favoured hobby, that I have a lot to learn. Never has this been crystallised as clearly as when hubby and I went to a Clubman competition at our new to us photography club. I absolutely loved seeing all the photographs and the critique of the independent judge on every single one was just spellbinding. We all sat riveted to our seats, barely daring to breath, lest we miss a comment that one could learn from.  A very memorable evening indeed, especially for one who learns very visually, but also one that left me filled with a touch of anxiety.  I look at my photographs and I think, crap, crap, crap as I toss them mentally into the bin, and really I only have a couple of snaps that I am particularly proud of.  But I just have to take a deep breath, pull myself up by my bootstraps and say to myself, ‘that is the reason we are going, to learn’.

We have a Christmas competition next week, it’s meant to be a friendly and fun.., but by the steely look in some of my new found friends eyes, I can tell, it is going to be fierce, in a Christmassy humorous kind of way, but fierce nonetheless. Only eased by the free wine and nibbles – which might be good, its a mostly male group and I’ve a feeling they have ordered in catering, no bring a plate for them!

So, having looked at my photos and thought  yuck, yuck, yuck, and being full of a cold virus with my head spinning if I walked more than a few paces, so going out was a no go,  it was down to me and the cat to produce something fresh that I could bare to look at.  Fortunately Florence came good and I managed to get a few shots of her. Just after she had killed a feather encrusted stuffed mouse.  There is certain look in those eyes that makes me smile. So we worked on that a little and produced this. Which from a mini vote of my friends, out of the two they liked this one the best, my Auntie coming up with an amusing title of ‘Watching you, Watching me’.

Hubby has been to the camera shop and had it printed to the competition size of A4 and now we are ready. It’s all good, I’ll be fine, after a generous glass of wine and a vol-au-vent.