Doing it for the Birds...

Dear Stanford River Talk readers

It is Stanford Glendower Bird Fair fever time, this year coinciding with the actual date of Stanford’s 150th anniversary on Saturday 29th September 2007. Events kick off at 8am on Friday, 28th September with the opening of the information and exhibition centre at Okkie Smuts Hall and the start of the Glendower Bird Treasure Hunt where there are many prizes to be won. At 9am you can view the opening of the Fynbos & Flower Show at the NG Kerk and the Children’s Bird Art Exhibition & Sale.

To get in on the action, see the full program details, accommodations, restaurants, etc. Visit our website at http://www.stanfordbirding.co.za/

Where Birds of a Feather, Flock Together

STANFORD BIRDING AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPETITION
Birds, birding & birders and their habitats in and around Stanford.

PRIZES
FLIGHT OF GIANTS with AFRICAN WINGS – Win the ultimate whale viewing experience for 2 people and get an Eagles eye view of whales undisturbed and unaware of human presence. Valued at R1 500
PET FRIENDLY ACCOMMODATION at OAK GROVE FARM – 3 Star self catering for up to 5 people in three bedrooms and your pets. Win 2 nights midweek, to be taken up before 1 April 2008, subject to availability. Valued at R2 400.
STANFORD TECHNOLOGY CENTRE gift pack incl. 1GB flash disk, optical mouse, writable CD’s, stationery, A4 Laser colour prints of the winning photographs.
AFRICAN HORSE CO offers a 1 hour outride for 2 people in the Stanford Valley region.
MEAL FOR 2 at BIRKENHEAD MICRO BREWERY plus runner up prizes of Honey Blonde Ale, Premium Lager, Malt Stout, Red Reloaded & Crystal Fynbos Still & Sparkling Water

Get creative, get funny, get wet… and go birding! The amateur photographic competition is open to all and consideration will be given to young aspiring birding photographers.

To enter, simply email each individual entry to info@stanfordbirding.co.za, together with your full name, age, location the photo was taken, the correct name of the subject matter and your own unique caption. All photos submitted will become the property of http://www.stanfordbirding.co.za/ and may be used for future marketing purposes.

You may enter as many photographs as you like as long as each photo is sent in a separate email. Closing date for entries is 5pm Friday, 21 September 2007.

Invited judges: Annalize Mouton, Village Life; Kerri Brokensha, Stanford River Talk; Peter Younghusband and Nikki Miles, Stanford Gallery; Anton Odendaal, Birdlife Overberg; Elsa Gebhard, Bird Life Walker Bay; and Philippa Castle, Stanford Glendower Bird Fair.

Calling all photographers...

To enter the STANFORD BIRDING AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPETITION simply email each individual entry to info@stanfordbirding.co.za together with your full name, age, location the photo was taken, the correct name of the subject matter and your own unique caption. All photos submitted will become the property of http://www.stanfordbirding.co.za/ and may be used for future marketing purposes.

Dancing in the sunlight...

Annalize Mouton of Village Life Magazine came up to Oak Grove Farm to take photos of me dancing at Rooibos House. Annalize is compiling a special edition for Stanford and the 150th celebrations. She is also compiling a coffee table book on the history and present day of village life in Stanford.

She mentioned 7 photographs are being selected for display in the Stanford Gallery, as well as being part of her exhibitions is Worcester, Germany, Holland and the USA.

This excerpt from her email to me really made my day...

"It was an amazing experience. The photos are really exquisite. A friend, a professor in Psychology visited today and ordered three of the photos of you dancing on the lawn. She is a beautiful person herself and said your photos should be titled after Kundra's "The incredible lightness of being". To me in some of the photos it looks as if the clouds and the sky are giving birth to you and the dance. And we were successfull in capturing the movement, not only of you but the wind too. Thank you."

I thank Annalize for the opportunity and, as I am a former St. Cyprian's school girl, I offer my best dancing courtsy...

p.s. In the one month I was invited for 4 separate photo shoots. More about this subject later at my Rainbow Healing blog.

Advert for Stanford 150th Celebrations

I designed this advert with the help of Hanlie Allen specifically for the Stanford 150th Celebrations booklet.

Let's go for a little walk...

Enjoying a walk around the upper section of the pine forest whilst checking for alien regrowth after last year's veld fires is thirsty work. Hobbes and Baloo are seen here, not so subtly hinting that it is time to return home and get a drink!

The photographer / joint inspector reckons that being able to take photos at Oak Grove Farm is worth the investment in his fancy new Canon Digital SLR and the exercise is surely good for his body, mind and soul...

The energy of Oak Grove Farm has crackled and changed over the last 16 months since we moved onto the old "Lost Paradise farm" to look after it for Penny and Stuart, Thomas and Marja and of course, Peter B. Since the idea of buying the balance of the farm took firm hold in everyone's minds, to protect Oak Grove from any future insensitive developments, as well as enhance the already wonderful facilities and activity areas, we have all had a few hiccups, us, them, the sellers, the attorneys, etc. however, luckily for us and in true metaphorical style, our great neighbours, Naas, Geoff, Chistiaan, Sanita, Andries as well as the fire fighting helicopter squad of 4, came to the rescue. I must admit that in the hour before the fire I had been sitting in Pietman Fourie's old house, on the freshly tiled floor - prior to grouting - gazing at the carpet samples I needed to select from. My mind wandered to Pietman and ou man Fourie and within a short time I was involved in an intense distant Reiki healing session with him. Lying outside later on the grass near the Oak Grove it carried on. Three Jackal Buzzards soared gracefully overhead and after much pointing to one-eyed Van, drifted over the mountain behind us. Immediately after the wind came up, from nothing to 50 or 60 km/h (I'm not so good at knots!) I had the thought that the Buzzards are really clever to drift up on and ahead of the high pressure wave of air moving toward the lower pressure. After all of that and because Bruce and our friend Van had been working on connecting the water pump to the outside of the house and the temporary water tank for so long, I was agitating to go back down to our home at Lavender Cottage for some coffee. Bruce said he just needed to check that the rubble and cardboard, etc. that Babi had been burning was still all ok, as the wind had definitely come up. As he went off to the other side of the house I jokingly said to Van that it would certainly be rather funny if we had to say to Pietman, oops, your house nearly got burned again! We started walking in that direction only to find Bruce attempting to put out the patches of grass near the fire pit that were quickly catching alight. The rest, as they say, is history...