Friday 21st December 2018

The Winter solstice.

Ring out the bells.

After today, light will conquer darkness, as the hours of daylight get longer day by day.

And that meant it was Solarcan day. More of that in a minute.

It is the last working day of the year, just about, so much to celebrate. Jools only has four hours to do before the factory closes, and I have an overflowing inbox to sort through and deal with before I log off for the day. And there was a steam tour due to snap too.

Jools make coffee, I get up and move carefully until my back reports in. Each day it gets a little better, but sometimes it still smarts.

I check online and I realise that it is the solstice, I had it in my mind it was the 22nd this year, but the actual moment was just before eleven that evening. Some six months ago I bought a product from my friend, Sam, a camera in a can, that records the arc the sun takes each day, and the pinhole is so small, and the paper so insensitive, it can record six months, or more, movements.

Once it was light enough, I go out to take the can down from its place on a leg of the car port, I use a can opener to take the top off, take the photographic paper out and go to quickly can it before the image faded. Some jiggling about in Photoshop, invert the image, crop it, and I get a fine result for a first time.

I post it on FB and Twitter so Sam can see the results.

But, on to work, and I had a stack to do. All of Thursday afternoon's mails, then that morning's, and a stack of communication notes to send. This would take a while.

So, I get down to it, working away through the morning, through lunch to one, when my friend Dary comes round to take me out to see the steamtour. Just before he arrived, I had finished the mails I needed to send, just travel expenses to do now.

Gary and I chat, then go out to a spot between Walmer and Martin Mill, a foot crossing he had used before. But when we arrived, there was already people waiting, so in order to get a place in the limited area, we grab our cameras and go to stand at the edge of a ploughed field at the crossing.

At least it was sunny.

But it was cool in the strong breeze.

It was then the old bloke arrived, and latched on to me, talking at me. On and on he went. And me too polite to tell him to bugger off.

The train was ten minutes late, giving old motormouth more time for his train related stories.

A Javelin zoomed by, allowing us to do some practice shots, and more waiting.

Then there was smoke.

I could just see where the line curved as it went through Walmer station, from there the line starts to climb at the bottom of Martin Mill Bank, meaning it would be steaming well as it came by.

We watched it get closer in our viewfinders, then we could hear it, working really hard up the bank. Once it had filled the viewfinder, I try to swap to my other camera, but the train was upon us, passing so close by I felt the air move, all hot and filled with smoke. I rattle off a few shots as the train heads off into the setting sun.

And it was over.

Gary drove us back home, I made us a brew and cut a slice of cake, then I put on some tunes as we sat and ate.

But, I still had work to do, so Gary left and I went back to work, filling out my travel expenses. And I was still doing that when Jools came home having been into Canterbury for some last minute shopping.

In half an hour, I am done. Set my out of office message, and just like that it was Christmas.

We put on the radio and I write blogs, edit shots until it is time for dinner.

Then it was time for Uckers.

Uckers is a military game, like ludo, but with attitude. We played it all the time in the RAF, and some ex-matelots.

And in a close game, I win by a piece, but for a first game, it was pretty good.