...and my eyes are turning square.

Must be a sign...

A sign I tells ya!

G'night all!

What's the strangest thing you've ever found on a beach? Personally I've found some really odd stuff lurking in the sand... but what about you? I'm eager to find out what you folks have found.

While you're thinking, answer me this....

Why would anyone bring a small piece of ladder to a beach?

Looks to me as though there's something important missing here...

Does it strike anyone else as strange to find a wheelchair and plastic garden chair abandoned together on a beach?

Have you ever noticed how lights reflected on water look different in summer and winter?

I don't know whether it's the water temperature that does it, but I always think there's less depth to the reflected colours in summer.

These were taken while I was in Cornwall recently; they're hand held with long exposures and I make no apologies for the camera-shake.

Do you ever walk past a property and think to yourself, “I wonder who lives there?”

The question ran through my mind some weeks ago while taking photographs in the village of Newland, Forest of Dean.

These houses obviously have some history and judging by the slight differences in stonework and roof levels I assume the construction took place independently.

I love the individuality of stone built properties; no two are ever exactly the same thanks to the irregularities of the stone and whether thatched or slate roofed the appeal is always there.

I digress... who do you think may live in these two houses tucked away in the heart of the Royal Forest of Dean?

I could live inside a tepee
I could die
in Penthouse thirty-five
You could lose me on the freeway
But I would still
make it back alive.

As long as we can sail away
As long as we can sail away
There'll be wind in the canyon
Moon on the rise
As long as we can sail away.

See the losers in the best bars
Meet the winners in the dives
Where the people are the real stars
All the rest of their lives.

As long as we can sail away
As long as we can sail away
There'll be wind in the canyon
Moon on the rise
As long as we can sail away.

There's a road
stretched out between us
Like a ribbon on the high plain
Down from Phoenix through Salinas
'Round the bend and back again.

As long as we can sail away
As long as we can sail away
There'll be wind in the canyon
Moon on the rise
As long as we can sail away
As long as we can sail away.

Lyics by Neil Young

Jacob's Ladder refers to a ladder from Earth to Heaven as described in the Bible (Genesis).

The ladder signifies the "bridge" between Heaven and Earth, as prayers and sacrifices offered in the Holy Temple soldered a connection between God and the Jewish people... but not all ladders point skywards do they?

Bear in mind the term "heaven" originally referred to the sky or the area above the earth where the "heavenly bodies" are placed. As Christians we are taught God and his angels are the heavenly host... they obviously live in the skies above then...

So here's a question for you:

If the ladder doesn't point skywards, is it still possible to make a connection between Earth and Heaven?

Personally I'd answer "Yes" but then I'm just a heathen soul who doesn't believe in the Kingdom of Heaven, God above, etc. I do believe if you have faith it doesn't matter where you stop to pray... or how you go about it... no facing east, bowing of heads, or looking skywards for me!

... but this is very, very funny! Meet Jeff Dunham and Achmed the Dead Terrorist

I keep wondering where his six little chums are?

Hi ho, hi ho...

...and if ham was underground
it'd be ten bob a pound...

So have you all been clicking to see what your blog's worth? Technorati seems to think mine's worth around $8k...

Now all I need to do is multiply that figure by a factor of 1000 or so and move on.

I thought I'd follow up my fish out of water post with a shot of the bridge where the fish live... or at least part of it.

I've no idea if this bridge has a proper name of its own; it'll always be the Fishy Bridge to me!

So there you go, Fishy Bridge at Cardiff Bay.

I guess there are times when we all feel a bit like a fish out of water... it’s a feeling I’ve had time and again in my life, but more especially since I’ve been unwell...

These fish are rather more interesting to look at than the inside of my head though, so I thought I’d share them with you. They decorate a foot bridge at Cardiff Bay.

I've had a really interesting day... assuming anyone could find spending the morning being pre-assessed for surgery interesting that is. Still it's over and done now so all I have to do is to wait for the date to drop through my letterbox and I can look forward to getting my bust-gut fixed.

Mean time, here's another pic of Caerphilly Castle.

Anyone fancying a good giggle this morning might want to have a look at this article on the BBC News web.

Now don't get me wrong I'm all in favour of everyone in the UK having an ultra-fast Internet connection, but since BT is unable to cope nationally with Internet access speeds of up to 8Mbps then the chance of us all having access at 100Mbps is just so much pie in the sky!

Ultra-fast Internet for the UK? Don't make me laugh!

For your delight and delectation this Monday morning, a couple more images of Caerphilly Castle...

Just one more shot from my walk around Caerphilly Castle this afternoon.

Hope you all enjoy whatever's left of Sunday... see you all tomorrow.

Another of my favourite old ruins; Caerphilly Castle.

An incredibly powerful stronghold in its day, Caerphilly's walls were never breached until the advent of gunpowder.

As you know I always find it hard to pass a rusty object, but sometimes I think even the most attractive rusty thing deserves a little extra treatment...

I saw this rusting ring fixed into a wall at the old iron works in Clydach Gorge. Snapping the image was a must. When I was looking at it earlier this morning and considering posting it here, I decided things could be enhanced if the image was given a 'canvas' background; you know canvas prints have that wonderful rough texture and it just seemed so apt for an image like this.

My chum Tylluan posted recently about bird strike and how they test aircraft windscreens by flinging dead chickens at them... not the frozen variety though.

Well anyway I was walking past this pond minding my own business when Gander George here decided I was on his patch and shot out the pond and straight at me!

My first idea was to snap a quick pick... Gander George's idea was have a quick peck... no wonder some people use geese for guard dogs, this bugger had absolutely no fear... I just thank Nature she didn't design geese with teeth!

I tried shooing and shouting, but the goose just kept on pecking and flapping at me so in the end I made off down the path...

The really funny thing was, old George here chased me along the path flapping and squawking trying to nip at my backside... it's a good job for him there were other people about or he'd have ended up in the boot of my car and found himself being roast in the oven for a tasty Sunday lunch!

There's not much meat on it and you might get splinters, but come on over and we'll pick at it anyway.

...a Rusty Usky moment!

Continuing the National Tree Week theme...

Crickhowell Castle, also known as Alisby's castle, is a conspicuous feature of the small market town and occupies a vantage point with commanding views along the Usk valley.

The castle began life as a motte and bailey with timber buildings, probably built by the Turberville family in the 12th century. In 1272 it was rebuilt in stone, still to the basic plan, by Sir Grimbald Pauncefote, who married Sybil, a Turberville heiress.

There's not much left of the castle at Crickhowell, but if you happen to be in the area it is worth a brief visit.

Jack Frost suggested I post some images of lone trees... well who am I to disappoint?

Well ok autumn is giving way to winter, but there are still lots of berries in the hedgerows here... not that I'd recommend picking these for a fruit tart!

Remembering this is National Tree Week I thought I do a quick post that combines a photographic technique with trees.

Whether you learn your photographic skills from books, other photographers, at clubs and societies, or by attending courses, one of the things that is drummed into you is the need to “Fill The Frame!”

Composition of the shot is obviously important and there are certain rules we are advised to follow, like the Rule of Thirds, before making our exposure.

Occasionally we can make use of Natural Framing when setting up the shot, but we should still try to remember our basic rules. Here’s an image of a derelict building.

In this case the angle of the trees more or less follows the outline of the building, creating a natural frame around the subject. The junction of the rear wall and chimney of the derelict house sits on the lower ‘thirds’ line and draw the eye towards the foreground where the front chimney meets the top and right ‘thirds’ lines.

So there we have it. A not particularly interesting subject enhanced somewhat by the use of natural framing and composition.

I rather like this guy. He lives and breathes sincerity and guts; essential qualities for merchantmen on the Russian convoy run back in the 1940s...

If you're interested in those cold happenings in Arctic waters during the crisis years of WW2
you might find this link to Russian Convoys 1941-45 interesting too.

It's kind of night time and time I wasn't here...

Just thought I'd leave you with a last image for the day.

This is the view across Cardiff Bay looking towards Penarth at the end of the day...
Well actually it isn't because it was about 11:00am, but this is how it might look towards the end of the day if you were very lucky...

Anyone up for a bit of fun? Like the title says, here's a caption contest...

1. What is she saying to him?

or

2. Why is the dog so interested in the couple's conversation?

...another Rusty Usky moment...

...for a bright skied Thursday morning.

Another tribute to National Tree Week...

And this time it's all about the tree's ability to grow in adverse conditions...

Who'd have thought any tree could cling to life embedded in the side of a cliff and washed by the sea a couple of times a day...

But this one does and obviously kind of thrives...

Reminds me a bit of some kind of animal...

Arnica informed me earlier that National Tree Week started today; the perfect excuse for me to post a few extra images of some of my favourite subjects then.

I've always had a soft spot for oaks.

Walking through a small, but somewhat remote wood a few days ago a flash of unusual colour caught my eye. Between the trees and among the more usual browns and gold was a patch of brilliant white with a flash of orange.

This floral tribute had obviously been specifically placed, but of course there was nothing to indicate why the flowers had been placed.

I got to thinking about a conversation I had here recently about monuments to death and wondered whether some loved one’s ashes had been sprinkled nearby? Perhaps there was even a body buried here? The latter may seem unlikely, but it was certainly a possibility.

There’s no way I was going to dig or root around for evidence; after all that would be desecration wouldn’t it? But I was and indeed am intrigued. Life is full of little mysteries isn’t it?

Or do these look like some kind of pre-fabricated building blocks for kids?

I know I'm an old fart, but new construction never used to look like this...

There's something about this image that reminds me of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Lost World...

I know, I know... I have a very vivid imagination!

This post is all about perception, but I need your help to complete it; are you up for that?

You are?

Great!

Okay then, here we go.

Look at this image...

...now tell me what you see.

I've always fancied living in a small rural community; this one would suit me nicely, so if any of you guys win the lottery and don't know what to do with the money just let me know and I'll help you spend some of it!

I'm told it's perfectly acceptable between consenting adults...

Though I haven't swung with anyone since I was a kid!

A little while ago Ed asked me if I'd do him a small favour and take a couple of images of Capel Pentwyn in the Forest of Dean; he'd heard it has a terrace that has the most panoramic views.

Sod's Law I suppose, or maybe just the time of year, but I've been up there twice and each time the view over the valley has been obscured.

As the weather is deteriorating now I doubt I’ll get anything better this year, so here is Capel Pentwyn at Penalt.

And this is the panoramic view from the terrace...

Sorry about the mist Ed.

...of having been forced offline for a couple of days is that I've had a chance to organinse some of the images I've been taking recently.

I mentioned to my mate Spicy last week that Autumn wasn't really over here just yet and to prove it here's some woodland you might find interesting.

First of all I’d like to say thanks to everyone who PM’d or emailed me for your concern; I’m happy to report that I’m absolutely fine thanks. So why haven’t I been about? Well...

For some reason best known to them, Tiscali decided to kill my Internet on Friday. I waited a while to see if the net would come back, but no. In the end I rang Customer Services, which just happens to be a call-centre on the sub-continent... pretty good for Europe’s largest Internet service to farm their call centre out to India...

Now let me say right up front I have no problem with race/religion/whatever and am NOT prejudiced in any way. Nor do I mean to sound derogatory when talking about the operatives I spoke to, but the fact remains that in two cases their grasp of the English language was considerably less than adequate... at least in my humble opinion.

So anyway I spoke to some 12 year-old in Calcutta and of course there was nothing wrong with the Internet at their end... yeah, right!

The service was still down on Saturday so I rang again and spoke to a different 12 year-old in Mumbai... we went through all the on-screen questions for a second time... end result? There’s nothing wrong their end... yeah, right!

Anyway after several increasingly frustrating calls to Customer Services and conversations with operatives in Delhi, Jodhpur or various other locations, I eventually gave up yesterday morning and decided I’d wait until office hours today when I figured I could speak to someone in the UK.

Bear in mind of course these calls are all charged at premium rate and last a minimum of 20 minutes... the longest was well over an hour!

Low and behold my connection was restored late last evening (my router records these events, so I have the exact time)... of course nothing had changed at my end, but I’m willing to bet when I complain to Customer Services today there won’t have been an outage problem... yeah, right!

On a more positive note, everything seems to be working wonderfully well this morning and I no longer feel as though I’m a social outcast so I’ll be bothering you all with my mumblings and rumblings once more.

...you just have to get arty with the low autumn sunlight...

A word of warning:
Never look directly into the sun (especially through any kind of magnifying lens). No matter how weak the sunlight may appear, damage to the optic nerve is possible so don’t risk your eyesight!

As you all know I think autumn is a lovely time of year, but it can be a bit cold and may be slippery underfoot so remember to wrap up well and take extra care when you're walking.

The last few nights have been cold and frosty, resulting in crisp mornings and icy windows...
Yeah okay it's been chilly, but it's hardly winter...
Autumn still roams the British landscape...
At least, it does in South Wales...
And dammit, I'm glad that's the case.

Autumn Stream, Whitebrook

Having slept like the dead last night I find I don’t have a lot of time for blogging this morning... still clouds with silver linings I suppose.

Before I shoot off to get on with my day I just wanted to share a couple of images with you all.

Taken last week while I was away these are pictures of the small, but very lovely, harbour at Polperro.

Hope you all have a lovely day today!

I was attracted by these two magnificent trees standing above the small harbour at Polperro.

There's something about trees standing on the side of a hill that always fascinates me... I think I keep expecting them to fall over!

Aren't they lovely?

This is a red thing with a ladder and a very small window...

...but what on earth is it?

I thought I'd get arty with the Banjo Pier at Looe, so here it is in silhouette against the early morning sun-light.

And this here is the pier-end navigation light that guides Looe's fishing boats safely home to harbour.

Well maybe not, but Lucky Usky I guess.

Once again the Sleep Monster paid a visit to my bedroom, stole my slumber and left me sleepless. I did manage a couple of hours sleep, but have been up and about since 1:20a.m.

So why is Usky lucky? Because he doesn’t have to go to work today, so hopefully when sleep does eventually return he can slope off to bed send streams of Zeds towards the ceiling...

Programmers take note; there’s an awful lot of crap on the TV in the wee small hours, so extract a digit please and stick something interesting on for those among us who are awake while you’re fast asleep!

Nothing to share via blog tonight except another image... this one from me few days away last week... Polperro Beach... not a very bright morning...

These appear to be a mixture of Cornish Piskies & Devon Pixies; they were advertising a folklore shop in Polpero.

What do you know about Piskies?

No, I didn't just spell pixie wrong, I really am talking about piskies... Cornish Piskies.

There are a number of creatures particular to Cornish folklore, although their cousins can be found elsewhere in Britain under a different name and guise. One of these strains is the Piskie also known as a Pixie in other West Country counties.

The Piskie is a general name for a fairy race or tribe in Cornwall. In appearance they look like old men with wrinkled faces, and are small in stature with red hair. They dress in the colours of the earth especially green, using natural materials such as moss, grass and lichen.

It's not uncommon to see little chaps like this adorning houses and other buildings in Cornwall...

Generally the piskies are seen as cheerful creatures with a prankish nature. They are said to be helpful but also mischievous, helping the elderly and infirm whilst sometimes leading the more able bodied traveller astray on the lonely moors. Many stories relate to travellers being led into the wild moorland to become hopelessly lost because of the Piskies.

In many ways the Piskies are similar to the Brownies being helpful but also mischievous in nature.

Often places of ancient worship such as stone circles and barrows were avoided as piskie haunts.

There are many legends attached to the origin of the piskies (and other fairies). Some people saw them as the souls of pagans who could not transcend to heaven, and they were also seen as the remnants of pagan gods, banished with the coming of Christianity. In tradition they are doomed to shrink in size until they disappear.

Another theory suggested they were the souls of babies who had not been Christened, a story championed by early clergymen, and one which has often been used to explain fairy origins.

I thouht this worthy of inclusion here...

Morning Sunshine at Looe

Well I don't seem to have been about much today... a blogless day... almost a commentless day too...

No I haven't been really busy, although I have had things to do; I've just been lazy I suppose.

Anyway apologies to all for my absence...

I decided I'd just post a single image this evening with no real purpose other than to celebrate the last bits of Autumn... and because I hope some of you might find it appealing... on this rather blowy autumnal day...

Falling Leaves

It's been a while since the last one of these, so I thought it must be time for a Rusty Usky special.

It seems it isn’t just Mankind who is prepared to fight for next to nothing...

Click to enlarge

While away recently I stopped to read the names on a small village war memorial. I was struck by the fact there were less than twenty names listed, but found myself with tears in my eyes when I realised five names were from the same family.

How devastating the losses must have been for those left at home?

How terrible for any parent to lose son after son in such senseless waste?

I wonder whether the family name lives on; I hope so...

I wonder where they're going, don't you?

I posted Samuel Taylor Coleridge's The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner some time ago. It's a wonderful poem and if you've never read it I urge you to do so. You might want to make yourself a cup of tea first though... and find a comfy chair...

Coleridge lived in Nether Stowey, Somerset when he wrote his rime; his inspiration was found on the quayside at nearby Watchet where he sat on the harbour's side and made his notes.

Today there is a statue of the Ancient Mariner at Watchet Harbour as a tribute to Samuel Taylor Coleridge. The inscription reads:

This morning I posted an image of the reflected sunlight on the water at East Looe beach.

This was taken at 8:30 the following morning. Dawn had broken and the sun was rising; I waited until the light was 'just right' between the clouds and here's the result. No artificial tinting or post-production work, just natural imagery.

Sunrise at East Looe

What absolutely amazing weather for the time of year... well down in the south west anyway. I've returned from a couple of days in Looe, Cornwall, where it was warm enough to be walking around in a tee-shirt and there were even some brave souls swimming on East Looe beach... not having a costume with me I couldn't join them...

I thought I'd share some of the images I took on my short break with you over the next few days. This was taken on Tuesday evening as the sun was setting... isn't it peaceful?

Time to start catching up on some of your blogs now...

I'm really not one for floral tributes at funerals, although I do understand why people want to give/send them. I certainly don't want any and like many others would much prefer people put the money they spend on tributes to good use. Oddly enough, given my liking for graveyards, I don't want any kind of marker when I'm gone either... no monuments of death for Usky.

I couldn't help wondering when I saw this, whether it was just the old tribute that has been thrown away... I certainly hope so...

...shed any light on this? It's set into the wall of an old house.

If any of you have any clue what this is about I'd love to know...

Right. I'm off to bed now. G'night all!

I often wondered as a child why when someone died people said they were resting in peace. It always seemed odd to me... I was too literal perhaps because in my mind if they were dead, they weren't resting... they were just dead...

Now after all these years, I've found the answer!

I know I shouldn't laugh, but this is without doubt the oddest grave I've ever seen...

I posted a photograph of some dewy spider webs yesterday; I know not everyone likes them, but this is really the time of year to catch them if and I thought I'd post another.

I grabbed this image quickly this morning as I was on my way out of the house. I didn't have time to set the shot up at all, so the web here is 100% natural. I mention this because I offered some tips to Tylluan yesterday about photographing webs.

For anyone interested, here are those tips again:

Broadly speaking if you're taking pictures of spider webs in your garden, carry a spray gun and spray the webs with water; this 'thickens' the web strands and gives the web some density. If you're shooting in the wild, early morning dew will do the job for you.

Adjust your shooting angle if possible so available light is reflected back from the web. Alternatively use your camera in 'fill-in' flash mode and 'bounce' artificial light off the web.

Try to ensure you have a some density behind the web; photographing webs against the sky is a mistake unless you have a very clever camera (or quality hand-held light-meter).

Adjust your depth of field (the amount of the image that will be in focus - use a low f number like f2.8 or f4) so the web is in focus, but the background of the shot isn't.

Lastly, adjust the image contrast in your photo editor to 'highlight' the water droplets on the web.

So, this morning's quickly grabbed image...

I used a compact digital camera and photographed the web from the side to ensure a dense background, with a depth of field that ensured the fence would be out of focus. The flash was fired to 'highlight' the dew drops on the web. I hope this demonstrates that acceptable results can be obtained with very little effort if you follow simple rules.

Do you give off the wrong signals when you meet people? I’m sure I do. That is I think I must do. Either that or I’ve got one of those faces that has ‘Mug’ written all over it!

So there I am in the local supermarket... only popped in briefly and am standing in the ‘fast lane’ with some fresh tomatoes I forgot to get yesterday... I’m minding my own business and this voice says “Hello, isn’t it a lovely day?”

Well it is a lovely day and I don’t want to be rude so of course I answer politely and then the voice says, “Can you help me? I’m short of money and need to buy some shopping.”

I turn and give the mid-thirties woman a long hard look. She’s well dressed and has a small trolley with about 20 items in it. I really don’t know what to say; I’ve no idea who the woman is.

“Go on, you’ve got a kind face. I’m sure you can afford it.”

So I just stare and mutter “no, sorry... you’re wrong, I really can’t afford it.”

Turning my back on her and heading towards the till I thought to myself. “What a bloody cheek!”

The answer's easy... get up early and go for a walk.

The morning mists and the nip of frost in the air... the dewey sense of moisture everywhere... even the need for an extra layer of clothing...

...and of course there always seem to be loads of these...

Sparkling Spider Webs

Tintern was once a very famous place... a world famous location... a centre of industry...

Tintern Abbey; the remains of a wonderful old building...

With a little imagination and a thick river mist in the morning, you too can conjure an image like this.

Hope you like it.

When we use paint programmes we all use colour swatches. Sometimes we use them for changing ink colours in the documents we write. They're just there, colour swatches, we don't have to think about them so we tend to take them for granted.

If you have a sophisticated art package on your PC you can probably build your own colour swatches if you want to... not too many of would go to that much trouble I don't suppose. But if we did, we'd need a starting point...

While on my walk yesterday I was impressed by the colour range available in the landscape; one look had me thinking I could build an Autumn Colour Swatch from this view...

It has been a stunningly beautiful day in this part of the world today and I’ve had a lovely time... I think!

I decided last night I was going to visit one of my favourite local places today if the weather turned out bright and sunny; it would mean a nice walk followed by a bit of a climb, but I was looking forward to it. My destination was Gray Hill.

Gray Hill or Mynydd Llwyd is a distinctive hill in south-east Monmouthshire just north-east of Caerwent, overlooking the Severn estuary. The top of the hill offers great views down over the Severn and also over part of Wentwood Forest, the largest ancient woodland in Wales.

Known archaeology on the hill includes a stone circle and standing stones, prehistoric cairns, prehistoric field boundaries and enclosures, and medieval and post-medieval buildings and boundaries.

There is also a large, D-shaped scarp-edge enclosure that may be Neolithic or Bronze Age in date.

So plenty of history to interest me on Gray Hill, but the place is special for other reasons too. I have many happy memories of events on Gray Hill, but I’ll leave you to guess about those here.

I decided on the circuitous route to the top, being less steep if a little longer. Winding around the hillside the footpath takes you through a gully some 6 feet deep and approximately 2 feet wide; quite intimidating for some folk.

Making my way up the side of the hill, the path was wet and muddy making the going hard because I kept slipping. Pressing on I eventually reached the summit, bathed in sweat and with very tight legs. Another indicator if one was needed of how unfit I’ve become over the years...

Breath eventually recovered I took a few images to stitch into a panorama before making my way to the stone circle.

The sunshine was really lovely and surprisingly warm for November. I sat quietly and just contemplated my surroundings. It was so wonderfully warm, I lay back on the stone below with my head pointing to the standing stone, closed my eyes and tried to clear my head of all extraneous thoughts...

...my reverie was shattered by some arse in a micro-light aircraft, but it may be just as well because I’d fallen fast asleep in the sunshine and was drooling like an old bear!

The trip back down the hill should have been easy... or would have been if I’d just sat on my bum and slid on the mud, but no I’d decided to stay on my feet... big mistake! My knees took a pounding on the decline and by the time I reached my car the tightness in my thighs from the climb had been joined by sore knees and aching calves...

I really enjoyed my long, wallowing bath when I got back to the house...

Spotted at the end of a rafter support (is that a buttress?) also in Saint Jerome's church.

One of four green men.

Stumbling around the countryside the other day I happened across a rather interesting church... well two rather interesting churches actually... just half a mile apart... Saint Justin’s and Saint Jerome’s.

As many of you know I’m a bit of a geek for old things and I dare say you’re already wondering why you can’t actually see any pictures of churches on this blog entry... well it’s because the things that really caught my eye were inside one of the churches.

I guess in many ways this post is dedicated to Lonemum; the carving on this screen reminded me so much of her.

A small notice said the screen dates back to the 1600s (17th century) and if that’s accurate, it must be quite a rarity. I thought it was absolutely lovely.

The screen at Saint Jerome's

Careful now...

Don't get too close...

Or you're bound to get yourself all wet and mossy...

Trust me, I know what I'm talking about!

Well all have them don't we? Some lucky people even realise theirs while the rest of us continue to merely dream...

I'm still chasing my pipedream, but I'm not going to tell you what it is...

Anyone out there followed their dream and had it come true?