My Dad and I were watching the news, in this house, on the 9th August 1974 when Nixon resigned over Watergate. I'd promised the elderly relative that for Bleeding London, I would cover the patch of E13 where he grew…
Those of you who know me will know that I'm surgically attached to my M9. Today, it was packed off to Germany for repair - I checked it in and waved goodbye with a tear in my eye. However, the…
The day was certainly "mooth": 'Of the weather: warm, sultry, close. Of a person: exhausted by heat' (OED). But that didn't stop us snapping Dagenham for Bleeding London. As there are more nail-bars than pubs in the area, we found…
Since many people take up photography later in life, I suspect that the odd "opsimath" ('A person who begins to learn or study late in life’, OED) has passed through these doors. Day #241 of a 365 project, where the…
As it was raining, I thought I'd stand a good chance of finding someone who would "rooster-tail" ('To travel at speed in such a way as to throw up a curved plume of water, gravel, snow, etc. Also (of water,…
And my colour weirdness continued as I searched for something Venetian and these masks were the closest I was going to get to today's word, which is "traghetto" ('In Venice: (orig.) a place on the Grand Canal where gondolas may…
The elderly relative has packed up his "ombrelle" ('A parasol, a sunshade', OED) but it has not yet gone into hibernation as there are rumours that we are going to have an Indian summer. My camera still hasn't recovered from…
A "virtus dormitiva" is 'A sleep-inducing property or effect of a drug. Also in extended use' (OED). After an all night shoot and spending a lot of time on the motorway this week, I have no need of a virtus…
I just love this word! And IMHO, one of the best examples of something that is "non-U' ('Not upper-class; (esp. of linguistic usage or social behaviour) not characteristic of the upper social classes. Also (in extended use): not acceptable to…
This shop in Soho certainly attracted the odd oeillade ('A glance of the eye; a meaningful or knowing look, esp. an amorous look, an ogle', OED).' From our party, the odd glances or looks were not at the hunky man…
An "offendicle" is 'A stumbling block; something that causes spiritual stumbling; a cause of offence; an occasion of sin or spiritual difficulty' (OED). I feel that this piece of graffito has relevance on several levels. Peckham is changing and I…
“Ragery” meaning ‘Wantonness, gaiety, sprightliness; an instance of this’ (OED) should have been an easy one for a Bleeding London day – afterall, we generally eat, drink and be merry. Today our bedraggled band was merry enough in the face…
A “honey trap” is ‘Any type of trap (typically for catching insects) that uses honey as bait’ (OED). Harrods is a honey trap for tourists using the green bag and teddy bears as bait and today, there was some extra…
A double Bleeding London day and I thought I’d taken a security camera for today’s word, which is “qui vive” (‘on (also upon) the qui vive: on the alert; on the lookout’, OED). Downloading and closer inspection reveals a rather…
Our Bleeding London Battleships weekend commenced this afternoon, but I also needed to find something for today’s word, which was “otalgia” (‘Pain in the ear; earache’). This rather grotty looking telephone hand-set killed two birds with one stone. Day #231…
I knew I’d find something for “retiform” (‘Having the form of a net; netlike’, OED) in the elderly relative’s garden. Day #230 of a 365 project, where the daily pic is informed by the OED word of the day.
Well this was a tough one! “Peri” is a noun meaning: ‘In Iranian (esp. Zoroastrian) mythology: a member of a race of superhuman beings, originally represented as evil female demons, subsequently also as benevolent, graceful spirits’ (OED). There was no…
I had the great privilege today of hearing a few tracks from Men Who Climb Mountains. It’s all been very top-secret at Pendie HQ whilst the album has been in the making and very few have heard it. Very few,…
Every noceur ('A reveller; a rake, a libertine; a person who stays up late at night', OED) needs coffee to keep them going. This find also enabled me to add another item to the abandoned coffee cup collection. This has…
"Alterity" means 'The fact or state of being other or different; diversity, difference, otherness; an instance of this', (OED). I could write a treatise on the subject of how recognising otherness reinforces a concept that scholars try to overcome by…