Amsterdam Russ

No obvious hints of the changing season in your part of the world, Dave? None of those classic red, brown and golden hues, or is it all a near-permanent state of summer? Looking out the window, the horse chestnut trees flanking the canal in front of us are a lovely coppery gold colour now. Although the leaves are rapidly dwindling, some foliage will remain for a few weeks yet. Thinking autumnal thoughts yesterday, and admiring the colours of an almost dead bouquet of flowers we have indoors, I took some time out to set up a still life of them on the dinner table. The last remaining spotlight I had in a softbox set died as soon as I turned it on, so that wasn't a good start. The only option was to use a couple of floor/reading lamps for lighting. I wanted to try and get a subdued, autumny feel and at the same time portray that even though the flowers are faded and almost dead, they still have a beauty about them. Here's one of the results...

First new comp I've done in about a year or so! This one contains a mix of classics, obscurities, oddities (radio ad for a 1970 Dells/Joe Bataan/Hector Rivera concert), a few unidentified tracks taken from acetates, a bit of Gospel and R&B and a number of the best new "Old Soul" releases of recent months. https://www.mixcloud.com/LomaRuss/hang-loose-northern-soul-new-soul-unknown-soul/

A fiver is nothing for postage these days. Is the email address you've given in the first post the one to use for Paypal?

Thanks, Gary. Sounds like it should be a very good read. Can you let me know what the postage will be to the Netherlands, please? I wonder if this is the best place for this. Might be worth asking Mike or one of the Mods if it would be better off somewhere it can get more exposure - just a thought...

Have you got a bigger cover scan - and any info you can give about how the subject's tackled? For example, is the book broken down by year, artists, musical styles, decades…?

How about Swifty… Swifty Swallow!

You can download the audio from the videoclip as an mp3. Just go here... https://www.youtube-mp3.org …copy/paste in the web address of the vid and click on download. Sorted.

Now there's a Disney film in the making. Let's hope the little critter makes it!

Interesting... A friend in the UK was complaining just the other day about chips nowadays being served in cups/jugs/bowls, etc. Basically anything that's smaller than the usual portion on a plate. Sounds like a trend that needs stopping - and quickly!

Payment sent - thanks!

What's the total cost for that and the Panama 45 (x1 copy each and shipping to EU)?

Couple of pics of a jackdaw preening itself. There were taken a little while ago through the window of our second floor apartment - the bird is standing on top of a street lamp post.

I've had yhis in my bookmrks for ages and refer to it when needed. You might find it helpful, but as said, it all depends! https://tipnut.com/25-helpful-items-to-remove-sticky-adhesive-goo/

It worked for me - although when the page opened up, I had to click on the YouTube link so that I could actually get it to play.

Stunning footage. Nice one!

Yup, I vaguely recall having read about this before, but it's one if the countless bits of info that have gone in one ear and out the other. Ask me in six months and I'll have forgotten again!

I'd presumed that the equinoxes played a part, Steve, but didn't know what - until now... Ignore the bit about Canada and apply the lesson as a general principle and there's the answer. Source: http://rooseveltsuw.blogspot.nl/2012/10/why-are-autumn-sunsets-so-vivid.html

Took this pic from the balcony this evening. Yesterday's sunset was also stunning, but not as much as this one. Seems we always get them at this time of the year although not sure why exactly.

Fantastic flipside! You can get an 'Outta Sight' copy for a tenner. https://www.northernsoul45s.co.uk/product_detail.asp?id=17377

And an excellent flip, too. Just thought I'd branch out a little as I couldn't resist dropping the word "pollard" into the conversation. I hope you all twigged it. Enough of the puns. Time to leaf them out or they'll only splinter the thread. I'll now take a bough…

In memory of long-remembered cats and cut back trees...

Wikipedia told me that straight after you'd named what type of snail it was! And now I know.

I didn't get that close.

Great stuff, Dave. Much appreciated. Didn't connect that the second pic was of Spindle as I've seen them elsewhere in the woods, but with more of a luminescent magenta colour. And now I know what a snail looks like...

I cycled to the woods of Amsterdam today — armed with camera — on what was a very grey and quite damp afternoon. My destination was a little place in the woods called Vogeleiland (Bird island), which is a small nature reserve. There are no signposts to tell you where it is, so if you don't already know, you're unlikely to find it. Here's a few pics from the trip... I'm useless at id'ing flowers, so if anyone feels inclined to tell me what they are, I'd be delighted.