Could this be the last “proper” cold front to come through this winter? It’s definitely on its way, with the skies looking threatening, and the wind on the rise.
My feeling is no. There’s still plenty of time for a couple more Cape storms to round off a very wet and cold wintertime here.
So, some sort of hat is probably in order.
That said, after this one and its hangers on, there does appear to be a bit of a window of distinctly springlike weather in the medium-term forecast.
Let’s not count our chickens.
Actually, chicken counting might be a good idea before the worst of the weather comes in tonight. There’s a real danger that your chickens might get blown away by a wind which is expected to gust well into the 90s. That’s kph, not the best decade for music.
50 knots. 58 Swedish miles per hour. Hectic, bru. Those numbers fall squarely into the Force 10 Storm on the Beaufort Scale, which I’m told is the goto scale for all things wind-related. So yes, count your chickens and make sure you tape down your beagle’s ears firmly to prevent excessive flappery.
So yeah, another few days of cold, wet misery to get through before we can even think about getting rid of these “hospital tans” and enjoying the sunshine.
A first horseriding lesson (not me) for what seems like a lifetime, all because of that weather.
And we’re sneaking this one in before the next cold front comes in tonight.
But it’s already making itself known with a cold northwesterly barreling in off the ocean.
There’s a Feels Like temperature of 3Β°C.
I’m trying to shelter, but the henhouse shed that I usually hide behind got blown away by the storm last week and has yet to be reinstated. It’s not great, but I get it: why mend stuff ahead of more horrible weather when it’s probably just going to blow away again?
The grooms have been making hay (no pun intended) by painting the jumping poles and turning one of the barns into a storage unit for giant drinking straws. A lovely juxtaposition to the drab, grey conditions outside.
On the drive over here I was once again struck by the signs of damage all the way over the mountain. The only people who have benefited from the last fortnight have been the Cape Town woodchip and sawdust cartels.
So. Many. Branches.
So we’re braced for another 18 hours of heavy rain and nasty wind.
My legs. They still work. And football was a lot of fun, despite the result. I’m giving myself a day off gym and other exercise today, but I’m both happy and mildly surprised to say that I could probably actually possibly do stuff if I wanted to*.
Talking of football, I’ll just repeat myself on this one:
Never bet against Real Madrid in the Champions League*.
An amazing game last night, which I almost ditched in favour of bed with 10 minutes to go, but then (wisely) chose not to. Because you never bet against Real Madrid in the Champions League*.
And, I have to say, VAR even added to the drama. [oi – stop throwing things at me!] Incredible tension when that second goal went in and was disallowed. Incredible scenes when that second goal was confirmed…
It’s a beautiful day outside, but wow, it’s chilly this morning. It looks like it will be dropping into single figures this weekend after another cold front due tomorrow. The last one didn’t really deliver on its promises, with just 6mm of rain. Still, taking no chances, I have checked all the gutters are clear and I’ve got the firewood ready. Also, for the first time this year: socks. [Audience gasps]
Anger at Adobe. Anger at James Popsys.
Wow. Photographers can get angry. But it’s justified this time, I think.
Adobe, who charge us many, many Rands for the use of their software (which is obviously fair enough – it’s my choice to subscribe), are embracing AI to the point where they actually use the term “Skip the photoshoot” on their Generative Background menu.
Yeah. Why bother employing a ‘tog?
In a world where AI is replacing many jobs, not least in the creative sector, this feel like a real kick in the teeth.
This did not go down well with his viewers. There were comments like:
James a couple of weeks ago – embrace imperfections in photos. James now heβs being paid – use AI to remove power lines.
and:
Yay, a new video from James….. oh, it’s a 12 minute ad for AI π
and:
Why not just sell your camera and start making photos with an AI image generator?
Which is exactly what Adobe seem to be suggesting above.
Look, there’s likely a place for AI in many aspects of our lives*. And there’s definitely a place for it in photography. But to go in this heavy-handed (and I’m looking at you both, Adobe and James Popsys), well, that’s not the way to put it out there.
…of this springlike weather before the next cold front comes through and spoils things for the weekend.
This was from this morning, and although it’s yet to make landfall, things are definitely changing already.
Still a chance to head out to horseriding (not me), so we’ll do that before the rain comes in.
Also always a chance of sharing a Kruger pic.
Hard to believe that this was just 10 days ago.
We were reliving some of the (many) great moments last night over a post-match celebratory beer, and there was talk (or at least testing-the-water talk) of another trip.