The next morning, as soon as the sun was up, they started on their way, and soon saw a beautiful green glow in the sky just before them. “That must be the Emerald City,” said Dorothy.

My folks have had a pretty tough year. But things are starting to look up a little. Not really the right kind of pic for Instagram but this is a visual diary for me as much as anything else.

Morning Trinket. Do people only still make black and white photographs to seem cool and sophisticated? The answer’s a little complicated. Knowing why you’d prefer a picture in black and white means you’ve spent a little time thinking about photography - which makes you a more ‘sophisticated’ appreciator of photographs. So then, in a sense, yes. But I can give you that ‘sophistication’ in not many words: Eliminating colour makes you more conscious of form, light and shadow, and detail. So, like any abstraction, it shows you things that that the full set of information may conceal. It helps you see the trees for the wood. ...

The eerie bread of serpent gods. Eaten by mortals, the effects are strange and preternatural. This slow growing desert cactus has been so lovingly cultivated over decades that it could set up a great many ultra-long-distance calls with personal space coyotes - if it hadn’t become too much of a pet to be consumed, that is. Taken some time ago in a hidden location.

@withoutaleaf merrily teaches T to break the laws of God and men on our outing with @goflow42 and @jason66c to Kirstenbosch for a bit of apocalypse relief.

Having the house thoroughly cleaned is a deep joy for us but a nightmare for Trinket for whom the vacuum is a combination of the devil, Godzilla, and Voldemort. She’s fled the house for most of the day.

Kane pauses to punch some navigation data into the hyperdrive.

This wonderful chap took me out onto a sea of teal glass in which every denizen of the kelp gardens was clearly visible. We drifted past dozy seals on sea rocks otherwise speckled with cormorants, gulls, and oyster-catchers. Strange little barrel jellies hovered in space. Just one of the best outings I’ve ever been on.

We were in Walmer Estate yesterday to pick something up. It’s such an attractive neighbourhood - #notaninvitationtogentrifyit This hair-dresser, corner store is a reminder of the vanishing corner stores that used to be ubiquitous in Cape Town. We call them Cafés for some reason - although we often pronounce it ‘Kaif.’ I have no idea why. You couldn’t buy coffee in them usually when they were everywhere when I was a kid. This hairdresser has supplemented its advertising with a graffito of a very strangely proportioned young man.

@withoutaleaf enjoying some well-deserved time off after over a 100 days shooting long hours. Convenient being able to stay home during the SA third COVID surge too. We’re both half vaxxed now though.