Welcome to the August collection of my Photo a Day pictures. Chantelle, who writes the Fat Mum Slim blog and started the FMS Photo a day challenge, has decided that this month should be a month of Gratitude. We did one of these during April 2020 when we were in the first lockdown and that became quite tricky to consider find many different things to be greatful for and photograph. We shall see how I do with this time around.
August 1st
I planted this Japanese Wineberry a number of years ago and I am always grateful that it is enjoying itself enough to produce enought fruits to keep me in fresh fruit for a couple of weeks.
August 2nd
I am grateful that I am doing a job that I love, and working in a space I love (this is Clerkenwell).
August 3rd
I am grateful that the Walthamstow Wetlands are within walking distance, a place I can feel like I escape to somewhere with a tiny bit of wildness.
August 4th
I am grateful that my mother introduced me to a wide range of cuisines (Italian, Indian, Chinese, South East Asian) when I was growing up. And also teaching me to cook, in this case Nasi Goreng (or my interpretation of it).
August 5th
I was grateful for the reminder that even on the grey days, there is blue sky behind.
I was trying to photograph something each day, and post late in the day, but also a different thing from previous days (which is tricky when you’re working in a job you love).
August 6th
I am grateful to have a safe place to lay my head each night.
I was surprised, and delighted, that this was chosen as one of the Notable Nine for this day of Gratitude.
August 7th
I am grateful to the FMS Group, as they taught me about freezing slices of lemons to use in your G&Ts, and also making sure you don’t waste the lemons.
August 8th
I am grateful that it is sweetcorn season, but especially grateful to the farmers that grow the food I eat, and the weekly Farmers’ Market where I buy direct from the growers.
August 9th
I am always grateful to TfL and the staff that allow me to travel around London. I will admit that the day I took this I was feeling very frustrated with TfL as there were problems on my journey home. But I am very grateful to them, as I don’t need to own a car because of them.
August 10th
I am grateful that I have legs that don’t hurt too much (as long as I don’t go running) and that they are able to let me take the 194 stairs at Caledonian Road Station (not my normal route)
August 11th
I am grateful for good design, and pizza (for which this pizza wheel was about to be used)
August 12th
I am grateful for books, and the authors that create them. Magical portals that can transport you to so many wonderful places.
“A book is a dream that you hold in your hands.” – Neil Gaiman.
August 13th
I am grateful for Myofascial Release, to John F Barnes for teaching me his techniques, to Ruth Duncan for starting my MFR journey.
Also very grateful to these two wonderful therapists who I saw as part of a JFB MFR Study group.
August 14th
I am grateful for my garden, an oasis (sometimes jungle) of green I can step out into.
August 15th
I was grateful to my SO and friends for being part of a choir who were singing the Choral Evensong at Westminster Abbey, and I got to go and listen to them sing.
August 16th
I am very grateful for having clean running water on tap.
August 17th
I am grateful for bees, and all the hard work they do.
August 18th
I am grateful for roses, the time to smell them, and the people who plant them.
August 19th
I am grateful for this bunch of flowers that have brightened the house for a couple of weeks prior to this photo, and to the person who sent them to my SO. We don’t tend to buy flowers as we love them in the garden or on a plant.
August 20th
I am grateful to have electricity available, and the light it can bring at the flick of a switch, bringing light to the dark.
August 21st
I am grateful for chocolate, especially the stuff that surrounds peanuts. I am also grateful that the calories don’t immediately settle around my middle.
August 22nd
I am always grateful for friends, gin, and a laugh. This was taken on a grey damp day at Mother’s Ruin, my local gin palace: heaven.
August 23rd
I was grateful for a wonderful day at work that also finished in time for me to catch a favourite building (one of the Barbican towers) in Golden Hour.
August 24th
I was grateful to receive a tray and half of victoria plums from my parents as they’re dealing with a glut. We also got a tray of damson, some stewed, some are going to be steeped in gin.
August 25th
I am grateful for alcohol. Yes, I do enjoy a drink, but rarely to excess.
This is a companion piece to yesterday’s photo: plums in brandy.
I was delighted that this was chosen as one of the Notable Nine for today.
August 26th
I am grateful for the National Health Service (the NHS). They are a huge part of life in the UK, with a tremendous number of amazing professionals and support staff. They have been keeping us all safe, and I am very grateful that other than routine check ups (dental) I have not had to use their services for many years.
August 27th
I was grateful that this Friday marked the start of a long weekend.
August 28th
I’m always grateful for coffee. Grateful to the people who worked out that taking this bean, drying and roasting it, grinding it, and steeping it in hot water leads to a wonderful drink.
I don’t really function without it, and most people don’t want to meet me before I’ve had a cuppa. But then I don’t have any after about midday if I want to sleep before 2am.
August 29th
I was grateful that the weather was warm and dry enough to hang my washing out. There is nothing nicer than line dried bedding.
August 30th
I am grateful that I have strong, healthy teeth. I wore orthodontic braces and had five teeth removed due to over crowding, and that’s led to my TMJD (read more here) but I’m glad I have them.
I will also admit that I was getting slightly desperate about things to photograph for Gratitude Month (trying to come up with something photogenic and different each day)
August 31st
I knew how I was going to finish this month of Gratitude.
I am so grateful to the Photo A Day groups that I belong to: they are places of community, fellowship and support that bring light to the dark days. Yes, there are days when they can be a chore, but I’ve been a member of the FMS group since 1st January 2017 and I’ve managed to post each day.
I am also grateful to these groups as they’ve exposed me to the work of some amazing photographers, which has challenged me to improve my photography skills.
I am also grateful to the admins who keep the groups a positive place, and also have the task of selecting a small selection of photos from all those posted on a single day from around the world. I am also blown away each and every time one of my photos is selected.
So that’s it for this month, I hope you enjoyed the photos. It is remarkably hard to take a photo of something you’re grateful for, especially if you are trying to photography something different each day (I am so grateful to have a job I love and spaces I enjoy working at, but I couldn’t just keep that each day). I will be quite glad to return to a different prompt for each day.
I am also so grateful to my SO for being there, he just hates having his photo taken.
I was stunned to have two photographs chosen as notable, especially for such a wide subject.
There will be a constant (some might think endless) stream of photos on my Instagram feed, so if you can’t wait until next month then follow me there. There will be another summary of my photos next month.
Thanks for reading this, my lovely interonauts,
Tim
