Have I really been away from blogging for two days? Damn…

As usual, it’s not that I’ve had nothing to say, just that there never seems to be enough hours in the day especially as my normal time for writing these blogs is in the evening. Despite ‘lockdown’ that work/life balance thingy is a tricky little bugger and days run away with you. Time is never on my side.

I’d intentions to catch up on several blogs I’ve been wanting to pen but that never happened. Instead I was immersed in the mundanities of life, scanning more old pictures and trying to keep fit despite having my wings clipped by Covid. I sometimes wonder how I managed before lockdown but then I look at how many slides I’ve managed to scan in the past year and the answer becomes obvious! Looking through so many old pictures has brought me both joy and sorrow during lockdown. On one hand it’s made me appreciate how many places I’ve had the fortune to visit over the decades and the people I’ve been lucky enough to meet, but that’s also reinforced the feelings of constriction due to Covid. Funnily enough, those same feelings have been reflected in my daily perambulations. Spring is very much in the air here in West Yorkshire, but I’d normally be seeing the season make its way up the country through my travels – travels I’ve simply not been able to make in the past year. I’ve never been so tied to one place since I was a child – and it’s starting to chafe on me. I can’t wait until the restrictions are lifted and I can start to spread my wings again. Hopefully, that will be soon as jobs are starting to trickle in again as others are scenting the smell of freedom again and the opportunities that brings too…

Tomorrow Dawn gets her first Covid jab which is yet another step on the road to release from our collective confinements. If Dee reacts the same way that most I suspect I’ll be playing Nurse tomorrow, but that’s no bad thing and I’m prepared. Besides, I’ve plenty to keep myself occupied with and my office is within groaning distance of the bedroom!

OK, now I’ve go to choose a picture of the day, which is actually rather difficult as there’s so many old slides that are worthy of the title as the current crop are from India, a country that’s impossibly photogenic for a whole host of reasons. Looking back at my archive I’ve realised how so much of it seems commonplace and familiar to me due to the fact I’ve spent so much time there, whilst to others some of these pictures must seem incredibly exotic – or just plain strange! So let’s try you with this one. As much as we may bitch about our first world problems we are incredibly fortunate compared to the majority of the population of this planet – we just forget that most of the time. Travelling in countries like India (if you leave the comfort of your resort complex) teaches you that.

I took this picture on the 30th October 1991 at the steam locomotive depot in Jaipur, Rajasthan, but it’s not about trains…

These young people are picking through the ashes of fires thrown out of steam locomotives, looking for pieces of unburned coal that they can either sell or use for cooking. And yet – do they look unhappy? I was wandering around taking pictures when I spotted them and realised what they were doing. Despite the fact we didn’t share a common language they were perfectly happy to pose for a picture when I asked if I could take one. One of the wonderful things about India is that most people aren’t camera-shy (exactly the opposite) despite their circumstances which is rather humbling in more ways than one. I often look through old pictures like this and wonder what became of the people whose images I froze in time…

I’ve a favour to ask…
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