The SNB on the move

and it certainly caught a lot of people on the wrong foot. However, with the ECB about to embark upon a full-blown QE Program, it didn't make too much sense for the Swiss to stand there and fill their pockets unnecessarily with overly-expensive Euros. There will certainly be a period of "price sticker shock" and hopefully that won't be so long or so painful. Things will begin to move again when the ECB starts pushing Euro rates with some force... it does still remain to be seen where the CHF will end up after all of that.
Had a good catch-up with Paul today and we are going to organise another trip to one of those dark places to take some photos... that will be fun as always.

Tune of the Day:  Roger Over    by  Klopfgeister

G'day Kev

I hope that the wine bottles tidied themselves up and that Campbell got out of bed to sort the pool before lunchtime  :-) Still wintry here- and I was out this morning to shoot a few pics before the snow disappears again.

I'm getting hungry.

Tune of the Day:  Ashpipe   by Klopfgeister

It has been a frustrating week

but it was nice to speak with Mike and decide that we really need to sit down and have a proper drink. It has been far too long.

My Oktoberfest photography challenge is moving along nicely and I am reasonably happy with my work thus far. It is always difficult to produce a good shot each day and the pictures do look quite mismatched, but that is the nature of the beast.

Maybe we can get a few things sorted around the house in the next few weeks and start to enjoy the place.

Tune of the Day:  Lass die Sonne in dein Hertz   by Klopfgeister

Off to Lucerne in the morning

to have a look about and take some more photos. Meeting a mate in town nice and early for a wake-up coffee before heading off to try our luck. It should be fun and as I haven't been to Lucerne in a little while, it will be good to try to get some more shots.

I am planning on taking a big, old camera and a tripod..... so if you see me out there, please be kind.

Not a lot of news- caught up with some friends this morning for a very interesting chat about photography and I'm looking forward to seeing Big Dan for a beer on Thursday evening. Christmas is getting closer!

Tune of the Day:  Orange Claw Hammer    by Captain Beefheart

Not a lot to report

but Tricky is getting closer, lunch with Ralf and the lads is looming and Carina's new magazine is going to be released next week as well. Look out!

Plenty to do with Week 50 on the horizon as well- that will mean taking plenty of photos with a 50mm lens (I have a few to choose from) and sharing one daily on Nikoncafe. It is always great to see what the others are able to produce and there will definitely be some inspiring stuff.

Tune of the Day:  Can I Sit Next To You Girl    by AC/DC

Foto Museum Winterthur is well worth a visit

and it is nice to find somewhere else to spend a cool December day. I really enjoyed having a look around there today and even became a member. They will see me again soon!

Thanks to Catherine for a fantastic dinner (yet again). We enjoyed a great beef and vegetable pie topped with mashed potato and accompanied by a bottle of Il Bruciato. Brilliant!

Tomorrow is back to work. No! Wait! Hahahahahahahahaha.....


Tune of the Day: Out Of The Blue   by Roxy Music

A weekend of not getting much done

is not a bad plan from time to time. We each did our own stuff on Saturday but met in town for an early dinner of tacos. They were pretty good and better than Catherine remembered from last time, so it should be easy enough to convince her to go back to that restaurant.

I developed a roll of film this morning and shot some more digital stuff for my Oktoberfest Challenge. It is coming along nicely and with only another week and a half to go, I'm pretty confident that I should be able to bring it home in good shape.

Tune of the Day:   Spanish Key    by Miles Davis

Living it up in London

Hawksmoor, Scott's...... how are you left? It's nice for some!

I enjoyed a good night's sleep last night after a couple of days on the road and with the place to myself again this evening, I am hoping for a repeat performance. Heading off shortly to take some more photos and sort out a few things in the city.

Tune of the Day:  Brass Neck    by DJ Food

A couple of spots of rain, a little lightning and thunder

hasn't yet added up to a thunderstorm. Things have cooled down somewhat but I'm sure that it will start to rain when I walk out the door in the morning.

I'm really looking forward to our visitors coming over in September- it will be great to catch up with them all and take it easy together for a week or so. We will certainly drink some of the better stock from my cellar and may even go crazy and cook something special as well.

Tune of the Day:  Rock Lobster   by the B52s

It's been another busy week

and with not enough sleep, it was easy to grab a quick nap this afternoon after a few beers with lunch  :-) I took some photos in town, dropped the colour film off for developing and then shopped before coming back home. The great weather continues and I will be out and about again tomorrow.

Went to another great Viewfinder event on Friday night. Pedro was not only impressive for his photography but also turned out to be quite the musician as well. Bravo!

Catherine is away and won't be back until tomorrow afternoon. I can play the Dead Kennedys as loud as I like.


Tune of the Day: California über Alles   by Dead Kennedys

What a beautiful weekend

Very pleasant weather, a couple of barbecues, plenty of photography and generally relaxing. I could live like this all of the time  :-)

Nice work Mr Murray on picking up the Wimbledon title- now he is going to start to be considered as one of the greats. Much better to be a British Champion than a Useless Jock.

Tune of the Day: 16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought-Six     by Tom Waits

The new camera is a winner

and I really like the first set of negatives which came out of it. They were certainly enough to tell me that the metering and other parts are all in order. It will be a much more compact and lighter package to carry about than my other film cameras and the manual functions mean that I still need to concentrate to take good shots.

Looking at hats again. Does the word optimo mean anything to you?


Tune of the Day:  Unfinished Sympathy   by Massive Attack

Very nice to be home again after a couple of days away

and I'm really looking forward to sleeping in my own bed this evening. Catherine had a good trip to Poland and was happy to receive a phone call half an hour back saying that her missing suitcase had been located and will be delivered this evening.
We sat out and had a drink on the balcony this evening- it was beautiful and not too warm. I could get used to summer like this  :-)

Tune of  the Day: Mood To Burn Bridges      by Neko Case

It has been a good couple of weeks off

but that all comes to an end early tomorrow morning. The alarm will go off at some silly hour and we will be wakened and hopefully ready to get moving.
Read a news report earlier about the flood waters arriving in Budapest- lucky that we were there last week and not now. It is a shame and I hope that the poor people in the way of the flood waters are not too badly knocked about.

Tune of the Day: Great Balls Of Fire  by Jerry Lee Lewis

On holiday, at home for the past week but very slack on the blog front

at least I have been out taking a few photos!

We had some friends over for a bbq on Tuesday evening- lots of laughs, good food and wine and an enjoyable evening and we will be lighting the bbq again tomorrow night. It appears that, for this week at least, we may be having a little summer after all  :-)

I am planning on shooting some more colour film tomorrow and then continuing with my b/w work in the hope of getting something worthwhile to add to the selection for my upcoming show.


Tune of the Day:  Rock Lobster   by   The B52s

It has been fun catching up with Stu and Kate

and I'm sure that they are as tired this evening as I am. Fingers crossed for a little sunshine tomorrow so that they can get out to see some mountains.
I have worn my new hat a few times and I really like it- when the weather improves, I will be able to wear my straw one as well!
May 1st coming up; which means rioting and action here in Zürich. It will be interesting to see what sort of trouble people are able to get themselves into this year.

Tune of the Day:  Paint It Black   by     The Rollling Stones

On-line shopping is great

but we really need to find a better way to transport stuff. At least when I buy music, I can download it and satisfy my need for instant gratification. It's driving me nuts waiting for my new hats in the post! :-)

What's up in your part of the world?


Tune of the Day: Pachuco Cadaver   by Captain Beefheart

Another movie night and we have

been catching up on come classic stuff. Popeye Doyle last night and then Llewellyn Moss this evening made for some action-packed viewing. The weekend has been pretty steady- I managed to grab a few photos and generally took it easy.
The pasta and Entity Shiraz combination last night will certainly take some beating!


Tune of the Day:  Born To Kill   by The Thermals

Not a hugely productive

Sunday, but we at least managed to get a couple of things done, went for a walk, had a nice dinner and watched a movie. I'm hearing that it is even going to be warmer this coming week. Look out!


Tune of the Day: Four Sticks   by Led Zeppelin

Put up your hand

if you are not happy that it is the weekend again! I am looking forward to taking some more photos, doing a little shopping, eating a nice meal or two and getting some sleep.
Oh! Is that the time?


Tune of the Day:  Man In A Garage   by Coldcut