Jason Thompson's Blog

Stuff what I have done recently

Last weekend I gave in and photographed a wedding. Not an ordinary wedding, obviously. The couple in question had bought some of my photography previously, and wanted a paparazzi style to the shots, so I rose to the challenge and went along and did it. I really enjoyed doing it - I much prefer photographing people in real situations, rather than posing groups. The reception was really nice, and the evening do was such fun I stayed till the end and photographed it all - which included a Shirley Bassey and Tom Jones tribute show and world class Irish Dancing performances. All this together with free sparkly spelled a fun evening and some lovely photographs.

This weekend we traveled as a family to Dumfries to see Toni's Uncle Bill who lives there in a house he designed himself 20 years ago. We had lunch expertly cooked by Bill himself, and picked up a kayak he was giving away, which really excited the kids. It was certainly exciting trying to get it home on the roof of our car, as the strong crosswinds made it thrash about all over the place at times, but we arrived home safe and sound, and the kids now want to paint it and get it ready for the sea!

Yesterday has to count as one of the most dramatic I have encountered for quite a while. many ups and downs concerning friends and family - mostly phone calls supporting friends through very traumatic experiences - and in the evening, the time came to sell my little Blue Beetle on eBay.

I ave owned BUT716B for 8 years, and during that time grown very very attached. Unfortunately, the car now needs major weldng to get it back on the road after the next MOT. So with a heavy heart I lovingly prepared an eBay listing at 8.30 last night. By 9.15 I had receieved 7 offers and had accepted one from a lady in Staney, County Durham whose husband restores VWs, and they want this to go with their split window camper van. I couldn not have been happier that it was staying in the region, and going to a loving home of people who understand how to care for it, and restore it to it's former glory. Sad and happy all at once - bittersweet as I think Shakespeare said once about sherbet.

And only a couple of hours later, still on eBay I saw what I think might be the perfect replacement to my beloved little Beetle. It's a blue Beetle. Very much like my last ne, except this one is a 1972 model (rather than 1964) so a bit younger than me, and it's 12 volt, so I'll be able to see at night and start in the winter etc. Luxury. Still in talks with the current owners at present, but it's in Staffordshire, not a million miles away from where we're on holiday next month, so if all goes to plan I'll pick it up then.  Watch this space.

I've lso just finished reading a great book - The Stars Tennis Balls by Stephen Fry. It's a tale of loss and revenge, based on the Count of Monte Cristo - which I haven't read but certainly want to now. Thank you to Peter Allsopp for recommending that book. I'd tried to read it a few years ago and put it down after a few pages because it didn't grip me. But if I'd only read on a little way, the whole book would have changed into something much darker and more thrilling. A lesson learned there - give a book a decent chance.

These are a few of my favourite things.

I have an idea for a photography project. I'd like to take portraits of people with a favourite object. The sort of possession that you would be very sad to lose or which has some special meaning or one you particularly enjoy, or maybe it defines you somehow.

I've already had a few takers. What's your favourite thing, why, and can I photograph you with it please when I gave a chance.

I have thought long and hard about mine and I think it might be my Taylor guitar. I also love my iPhone and if I was to think of something irreplaceable it would probably be my Beetle. Over to you...

Rainy wainy

There is a particularly lovely feeling associated with being snug and dry inside whilst it is violently pouring with rain just on the other side of the window. I have just enjoyed watching a powerful downpour accompanied by lightning and loud thunder.

My dryness and safeness is made all drier and safer by knowing how awful it would be to be - in my case six feet to the left - outside. I am claiming the same principle is at work when I am Reading and thoroughly enjoying my current book. It's a biography of Antarctic explorer Sir Earnest Shackleton. He is sort of a hero to me, and many others. Mainly because of his incompetence. I can really relate to him. The book recounts his life and expeditions to conquer The Antarctic for Great Britain. He failed heroically, and his attitude and achievements are spectacularly British. At the time, and some would say even now, the British Way scorned preparation. Any kind of adequate training or equipping for such a massive and dangerous venture was frowned on for not quite doing things the British Way.

Adequate preparation was pretty much seen as cheating in a way, and surely being British was all the preparation any true hero needed? As a result the likes of Scott of the Antarctic died being popped to the pole by the vastly superior Norwegians who thought nothing of breaking the rules of fair play by using ski and dogs to cross vast areas of inhospitable barren snowscape, rather than the pointless trudging on foot or with horses favoured by us Brits. But Shackletin will be a truer hero to most than Scott because, although he too failed to reach the pole first, he did at least have an amazing instinct for leadership, and a reliance on the belief that confidence and a positive spin was sometimes enough to get you out of any tight spot. And luck. And Shackleton had luck like no other.

Those of you interested in his Endurance expedition of 1914 - 1916 will find it to be a story that, if it were fiction, would be impossible to believe. I have really enjoyed learning of the unimaginable trials and pitfalls that beset this poor group of long-suffering men. It's an incredible story and the film starring Kenneth Brannagh is entertaining, but doesn't begin to hint at the true hardship and misery encountered by the group.

So as I watch the rain, not only am I glad to be inside, but glad that I live on a time when us cowards can cheat by being prepared and still fail anyway. Here's to the New British Way. 

Testing testing

Lets see if this still works

Blink...where am I...something tells me I'm not in Kansas any more...

Hello again. That was a long break wasn't it.

I have good intentions but sometimes lack the willpower to carry them out. I have been unusually busy over the last few months, and life and stuff has crowded out the desire to spend any more time than is absolutely necessary sitting in front of a computer. Also there's the whole FaceBook phenomena which saps my updating energy a little even though it's a great way to keep in touch. As I've said here before it lacks the continuity and detail that a blog offers, but a blog takes way more time.

What happened in May and June I hear you ask? The short answer is I spent lots of it travelling around the UK on trains working with the Action Duchenne project, Life Thru a Lens (www.lifethrualens.org) - which involves supporting 9 young men who live with Muscular Dystrophy while they take photos of their lives. These photos will form an exhibition which is what I'm currently working on, amongst other things.

I've been to London several times, and also Manchester and Liverpool (where I stayed at the utterly FAB Castle Street Boutique hotel which was a beautiful place and a very nice experience apart from the lack of broadband), and also Arbroath and Eastbourne and other places in the South East.

It has been great to work with this organisation to work with these lads and also take my own photos, even getting access to Downing Street - great opportunities.

The past few months have also been a time of catching up with my past (rather than my past catching up with me I hasten to add) in the form of renewed acquaintances with some folks I knew in my early teens as part of a drama group that met in Backworth.

Clive, Maccas, Paul Blewitt, Lara, Isabel, Katy, Jonny and others have all literally crawled out of the woodwork (not literally obviously) and in some way made contact - mainly FaceBook again.

I've seen quite a bit of Clive, and have taken part in some filming for a long-running project he's been working on called Coming Soon (ironically) which is a sort of comedy sketch show based on a TV review programme. I've been involved so far in a James Bond spoof (evil henchman thrown off a high bridge), a Welsh comedian circa 1974, and most recently as Bigfoot. It's difficult to explain...

I've also become involved in an organisation called SENTA - South East Northumberland Tourism Association, and I'm in charge of press and publicity for them.

Still involved with the Arts Forum and Arts Centre in Newbiggin - and things are going nicely, but we need funding to make some changes to the building that will make a big difference. I want to equip it with an IT suite too, so we can offer training and courses in all sorts of artistic stuff.

June was also my second visit to Tiree, with the lovely Tim to meet up with Colin and Susan and take many many photographs of the island, and make them into panoramas. See them at http://www.isleoftiree.com/map_panos.html - click on a little dot to see the panoramas.

See also this photo album

Last month I went to see Dweezil Zappa in Birmingham with Paul and Barbera. We had great seats, and although he started late due to an electronic problem, he soon won over the audience and it was a fantastic show. I even got him to sign my Zappa Plays Zappa DVD. Wahoo!!!

Another nice development has been joining another band - Cadillac '59 with long time friend Graham Chambers. It's a rock and roll 6 piece and I'm on drums. Graham was in the first band I ever played in back in 1983ish. It was called The Comets and I was on bass and vocals and Graham was drummer. We did vaguely 50s and 60s stuff - a bizarre mixture of Beatles, Shaky and other stuff. We seem to have swapped places over the years, as he's now on vocals. Really enjoy it - we've done two gigs. The first was at the Morpeth Town Fair which was great, except I hadn't even had a rehearsal, but it went remarkably well considering. And the most recent one was this last week, at the Staff Reunion for Newbiggin Middle School. The local schools are all changing from 3 tier system to an Academy, and all the staff are moving around and everything will soon be completely different. The Middle School is a special place to me, having attended it as a child, then doing my final teaching practice there, then getting my first teaching job, then my children going there themselves. Lots and lots of significant memories.

Well that's enough of an update for now I think. Wanted to talk about Big Brother (fascinating psychological real time observations), Newbiggin Heritage Centre (it looks like it'll happen next year) sailing (I went sailing for the first time yesterday and loved it), Shackleton (reading his biography at the moment and loving it), ukuleles ~(will be starting a uke group next month at the Arts Forum), Kayaks (we've been given one but need to collect it from Dumfries somehow), my Beetle (on it's last legs due to rusty chassis) and things I think about being 40.

But that will have to wait.