Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Going back to the day before New Years Eve, last year, when we set out on the afternoon constitutional walk on which the sunset photos in the post a few below were taken, we took the coastal path, or in French, le Sentier Cotier, which is getting a bit hard to read on this well weathered sign . . .
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Down by one of the Carantec beaches, a place known as la Greve Blanche, a dog was waiting and he wanted to play, waiting for someone to throw his stick. I'm always a sucker for a dog with a stick . . .
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And for big brown eyes. He didn't seem to mind the sand in his mouth . . .
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Glimpses of windowsills covered with seashells and lighthouses can be found here, I guess the same in any seaside town the world over . . .
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The sign on this gate was not your typical "no parking" sign . . .
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It said, "No parking, wheelbarrow entrance" . . .
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42 comments:

Amy said...

Dreamy seaside walk. It's like a place I've read about but never fully experience. The small island off Puerto Rico was almost it. Almost.

These pictures though, show just the place...

Love the peeling paint!

JoMo said...

The first shot us stunning. Those blues! I can't resist a pooch either. How nice of him (her?) to pose for you.

Sanand said...

Stunning pics!

Steve said...

What a gorgeous dog... and so... French looking... if a dog can look French!

henk van es said...

"Sortie de brouette"....and a small painting to illustrate the message in case you do not understand the text...it's art brut, sir...thanks for posting

desi said...

oh my, what a lovely walk. for a moment there i was in France...!!
:) such a cute doggie, i wouldve taken him home with me! :)

desi

desi said...

oh, and what is french for wheelbarrow? Brouette?
maybe a stupid Q...
:)

Batteson.Ind said...

There's something about seaside cottages... I'm destined to live in one one day. I lived over a pub in a village called Ballycotten (one of earths most beautiful places).. I spent the whole two years pissed, carefree and standing on the edges of cliffs with my walkman turned up full watching stars and waves etc.. bloody marvellous! And old sea dogs.. he looks like a nice lad ..
perfect pictures that make me want to win the lottery even more!

Jess said...

That's great isn't it? 'Wheelbarrow Entrance'! I love that when you get individual signs. I passed one this morning, hand written in someone's front garden warning about the uneven paving stones! You're right about that window, looks like it's near here! ;)

CiCi said...

I so like the picture of the dog on the sand next to the stick. For a stray dog, he sure looks gentle. Yes the window looks like seaside town windows all over the world. People who live near oceans and large waterways are so similar in their preferences. There must be an artist living at the charming place that has a wheelbarrow gate entrance.

Amanda said...

Nice pictures Owen! That dog does look french indeed.

pRiyA said...

There again, the otherworldly (or should i say otherplanetly) feeling when i look at pics on your blog. Makes me sometimes wonder about why on earth i stay where i do.

You deserve special mention for finding the Firecracker in my blog Owen. And you will be mentioned!
:-)
(Someone who actually reads wot i rite!)

Unknown said...

Lovely collection of photos.

It is frost smoke on the water. It was a very cold day. :)

clo said...

coucou Owen....j'ai la sensation que ça fait tres longtemps que je ne suis pas venue te rendre visite..
tu as un veritable don pour nous offrir des photos insolites et pleines de charme...
ce chien a une tete incroyable...presque un regard humain...
j'aime la jolie petite fenêtre avec ses phares et ses coquillages...
et le portail unique...
sortie de brouette...be oui on a le véhicule que l'on peut...j'espère qu'ils ne sont pas trop nombreux dans cette maisonnée ...la brouette c'est pas toujours pratique...:o)...
j'espere que tout va bien pour toi...
amitié et bisou du sud....

Selina Kingston said...

Gosh I am obviously becoming more like Steve with each passing day as I clicked on comments to say that I thought the dog looked french and there was his comment, saying it already! The dog is gorgeous though

Together We Save said...

Wow - this are amazing pictures!!

Plum' said...

Bonsoir Owen,

J'aime beaucoup la texture de ce mur aux pierres bleues et ces pointes de jaune.
Comme Clo, cela fait une éternité que je ne me suis pas arrêtée chez toi, j'ai pas mal de retard et de posts à lire !
Une réponse à ton gentil petit mot sur TmlG et dans ta mailbox (sauf si l'antispam a fait trop de zèle...;-))
Bonne soirée et bises à la tise(TM):)
K'line

jeff said...

Comme ce chien est attendrissant !
Je n'aime pas assez les animaux pour en avoir chez moi ( est-ce vrai ? ), mais je dois dire que je suis vite attendri par un regard de chien comme celui-ci...!
Il a l'air vif et nerveux comme un jeune chien fougueux !
Alors comme ça, tu t'es déjà réincarné en animal ! ! !
A côté de ça, j'aime bien ton "attention, sortie de brouettes !"... Heureusement que beaucoup de personnes ont un grand sens de l'humour ! Celui-ci est gentillet et fait du bien à regarder...

Amitiés cher Owen !
Tu vois, je suis revenu sur ton blog... et espère avoir le temps d'y revenir plus souvent !
Les blogs en ce moment, c'est un temps qui m'ait plutôt difficile à gérer...! ! ! Il y a tant et tant de choses à faire...

Ciao amigo !
A bientôt...:)

Roxana said...

oh, but he is so lovely, the dog with the stick in sand, it's impossible not to fall in love right away...
and that window makes me dream... the sea inside, shells like collected memories of a younger life...

Nevine Sultan said...

A bit of light in the darkness... that's what your photos are! Thank you Owen... :-)

Nevine

English Rider said...

Very harmonious colors in the first picture and I covet a Sortie de Brouette sign of my own.

Anonymous said...

Assume that there's no other place upon earth where sight like these could be. Thank you for providing this little escape in the middle of the night.
Please have you all a wonderful Wednesday.

Lynne with an e said...

BrOwen, dear bro.
Weather beaten signs, goofy dogs, sea gazing windows, and wheel barrows. These are a few of my favourite things. Oh yes, and your photos as well!

Vague but sweet recollection of the thrill of riding in a large wooden, reddish wheelbarrow, gripping the sides with tiny hands as my father pushes it along.

Long lost dreams of living in a seaside cottage and each day emptying pockets full of shore found treasures to marvel at and place in jars on windowsills.

Remembrance of a goofy, affectionate dog born to fetch tirelessly, relentlessly, devotedly, endearingly and, eventually, annoyingly.

Rough textures and muted colours of old painted wood, telling stories that we can only barely hear as whispers from times past.

Can you tell I am near delirious with tiredness? Too much time spent at the computer has fried my eyes and my brain! A Ning network is a nefarious affair--that's all I'm saying.

Marguerite said...

Bonjour mon ami, Owen! Such a lovely, interesting group of photos! I would love to live on the sea again, and I think that the pup looks French, too!

Lydia said...

I just took a deep cleansing breath while totally loving these shots. Thanks for the sweet break.

Owen said...

Hi Amy, Sounds like you are still looking for something encountered in a dream ? Well, keep looking, looking for our dreamscapes is a worthy occupation, I think... anyway, that's what I've been doing for years now... and there are still many stones left to turn over...
:-)

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Hi JoMo, it's not always easy to get a frenetic dog, joyous about chasing his stick, to lie still for a moment, one gets many blurry, failed photos, before a clear image appears... but it's all fun...

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Sanand, many thanks for stopping in here, and thanks for your kind words from India... namaste...

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Steve, interesting point you raise there, I wonder how one gets impressions about nationality when it concerns a canine ? I mean, he's not wearing a beret or carrying a baguette instead of the stick, not slurping out of a bottle of red wine... so I wonder what said "I'm French" about him... his name is "Astuce" by the way... and he seemed quite astucieux.
:-)

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Hey Henk ! Yeah, it's very small, but it is certainly a piece of outsider art, and someone went to quite a bit of trouble to paint all those hortensias and do the whimsical lettering of the message... Hope you are well !

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Hi Desi, am always happy to help provide vicarious transportation, free of charge... alot cheaper than airline tickets. Although sometimes it's good to get airline tickets too. And you are right, a "brouette" is a wheelbarrow... the only stupid question is the one you don't ask, right ?
:-)

Owen said...

Dear Watercats... your lucky number is coming up soon, I can feel it ! Hope you'll remember your fans when you're rolling in the big dough in a quaint seaside cottage with a big picture window looking out on the ocean, rocked to sleep at night by the surf on the coast... and invite us to come stay a while too... oh, you just did ! Hmmm, not sure I'm going to be able to make it this time... but one of these days ! Blinking and groaning in the morning is what I'm best at !
:-)

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Jessie, it's wonderful when people personalize their homes with art visible to those around them or passers by, announcing the presence of an original, creative spirit within... If you haven't been there already, and would like to see some really amazing examples of outside art around Europe, I'd highly recommend a visit to Henk Van Es's blog about Outsider Art, which you can get to by clicking on "Henk Van Es" in his comment just a few above your message here... enjoy ...

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Dear TechnoB, aren't those big brown eyes adorable ? He reminded me of the dog we had when I was little, who was nearly all black, but had big brown eyes like that, almost the same expression as this one... I'm really happy you are finding things you enjoy here...

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Hi Nadege, well, both you and Steve recognize something French about this beach hound, but I'm wondering what... I should have added a text bubble with his thoughts, or my projection of his thoughts... "bonjour... je veux jouer, jetez-moi la branche, allez, vite, je veux jouer, jetez-moi le bout de bois, allez, vous attendez quoi là, woof, woof..."

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Hi Priya, so the firecracker was a test to see if people are actually reading all of the text ??? Of course I read !! Who could not help but be captivated by your blog ? Hope to see some more of your fanciful photos like in that first post that caught my attention there not long ago... Best wishes to you in India, and many thanks for your kind thoughts here... !
:-)

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Hi John, many thanks... yeah, I loved all that mist on the frosty water, what beautiful scenes you create every time, I really admire your work ! Especially the old cars ! But also the abandoned insane asylum, and the riversides, and benches... all of it... a pleasure...

French Fancy... said...

What a gorgeous dog. Do you have any pets? I can't imagine life here without my two little bichons

BLOGitse said...

Thank you for your great pics again!
It's always nice to explore with you :)

Nanny Goats In Panties said...

Nice pictures, Owen. And that dog....he looks so....so....French! I've never seen a dog that looks like that. Unusual colors and the long hair. Did he bark in French too?

Linda said...

Yours is a favorite site of mine. It's one of the first places I check. All the photos are so mesmerizing and evocative.

Thank you for visiting my blog. If I hear anything from former U.S. AID friends, I'll let you know about your favorite places in Haiti.

I fear Haiti will be years recovering from this, and then only to a point where they were before which wasn't much. It tugs at your heart.

Owen said...

Chère Clo, tu sais je suis toujours content quand tu passe, même si c'est une fois tous les six mois, toujours autant de gentillesse qui transpire de tes messages... et oui, ce chien, presque humain, j'aurais voulu rester un moment continuer la conversation avec lui, mais le soleil se couchait, il fallait aller voir ça... Et bon, quant à la brouette comme moyen de transport familial, moi je trouve ça super, car on n'a pas besoin d'un permis, et tout le monde pourrait se relayer en prenant leur tour au volant... mais j'admets, pas très pratique pour faire Paris - Draguignan...

Merci Clo, et bonne fin de semaine à toi !

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Hi Selina, for sure, Steve is a tough act to follow... but I'm still trying to figure out what it is that says "french dog" about this guy... Maybe it's the first photo with that slightly truculent stance, like, I'm ready to go on strike if you don't throw my stick... NOW !
:-)
Hope you are well...

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Together We Save... thanks for stopping in here... glad you enjoyed the photos...

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Salut K'line ! Je suis toujours content quand tu passes, un vrai moment de plaisir... j'ose esperer que les choses s'arrangent un peu, ou vont s'arranger bientôt. Et merci mille fois pour ce petit mot... je répondrais incessamment sous peu... et oui... c'est la texture qui m'attire souvent...
:-)

Owen said...

Salut frère Jeff...
ah, on va tous partir faire un tour en brouette, tu veux venir ?

Et oui, bien sûr que c'est un autoportrait de moi en chien là, comment tu as pu deviner... tu as un sacré sens de flairer la vérité dans des images...

Je comprends plus que bien ce que tu dis concernant la gestion du temps et les blogs... je me suis rendu compte que je ne pouvais pas garder le rythme un peu fou de 2009 avec 666 posts dans 12 mois, sans parler de tous les commentaires laissés ailleurs, et d'essayer de répondre à tous les commentaires ici... pas facile... entre boulot, famille, le temps quand même de partir flaner avec l'appareil photo en main et l'esprit vide... ce qui a souffert c'est mon temps pour lire des bouquins et écrire mes petits bouts de poésie... sans parler du sommeil qui manque. Mais bon, le blog c'est quand même une entreprise noble, je crois, un effort en création d'art qui permet aux autres à l'autre bout du monde à partager quelques moments riches en sentiments... mais est-ce que cela vaut la meche, comme on dit ? Je n'en sais rien... je vais continuer encore un peu encore, en esperant qu'un jour un message tombera qui changera un peu la vie... je sais, je suis naive et idiot, autant jouer au lotto, eh ? Autant se noyer dans de la bonne tisane... Marrant comme tu m'inspires à écrire des pages entières....

A plus pix poete, pix pote, pix pot...

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Ah Roxana, can you then fall in love right away ? Just for the big brown eyes of a beach hound ? It's ok, I know I did... I love taking pictures of dogs, and cats too; I guess that there are 36 previous posts of "dog photos" and 26 of "cat photographs" is some evidence of that, and there are more... Are you familiar with the photos of Elliott Erwit ? I love his work, especially his dog portraits... among many others, he was a genius with a camera.(imho) And keep dreaming, what better than seashells and lighthouses to set us dreaming ?

http://www.elliotterwitt.com/lang/fr/index.html

Owen said...

Nevine, I don't know what to say... with just a few words you shake me to the foundation...

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English R., perhaps grumpy hubby could be persuaded to paint you one ? Surely that is within his skills with a paintbrush ? Good luck... PS, hope your weekend away was finally ok
:-)

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Hi Robert, perhaps this place is unique in all the world... indeed... thanks for all your late night visits... I do hope you manage to sleep sometimes...

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Sister Lynne,
If these photos brought back all those memories, then I'm in seventh heaven... loved your note here... but oh my god, what on earth is a Ning Network. I looked at their site for about a minute just now, omg, yet another form of social networking... I already do nothing with MySpace and Facebook, and it's all I can do to keep the blog alive, and now there is Ning ??? My god, how is anyone supposed to keep up with it all, and sleep ??? I need a vacation ! Oh good, it will soon be time for that... yes, better a good vacation than further exhaustion from too much screen time... Happy Ninging then... must be a real humdinger...

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Marguerite ! There you are... it's been a little while, I've been too submerged of late. Hope all is well in the sunny South, with plenty of good food and music ! I never heard the outcome of the prosecutor's memo... hopefully they dropped the charges, finally ?
:-)

Owen said...

Ah Lydia, a deep cleansing breath... that is very high praise indeed... may you always find fresh air in these pages...

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Hi FF, we do, we do, we have two darling kitties, one of which is the mother of the other. I'd love to have a dog too, but just not so practical for us who like to get away from time to time, the cats are far more independent, they practically take care of themselves... very discreet...

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Blogitse, thanks so much ! Hope all is well in Egypt...

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Hi Margaret ! Umm, he didn't bark, il aboyait..., and he'd hung his black beret up nearby while frolicing in the sand... And not a nanny goat in sight that day...

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Linda, thanks so much ! I'm sure you are right, it is going to be a long, hard road back for Haiti, this has set the country back decades I fear... time will tell, and I sincerely hope the old adage about time healing all wounds will be true in this case...

Vivian aka Deborah said...

Hi Owen, as always, you have such interesting photos and stories to go along with them. That dog looks a bit scared in the first picture, then in the second one, he looks like you won his heart. I do hope he was not homeless....breaks my heart, homeless animals.
Love the sign on that gate entrance...made me smile.
By the way.....I've TAGGED YOU! Check out my blog for details. heehee

English Rider said...

Thanks for asking about the weekend:- Compte Rendue avec Images chez moi.
p.s. The sign on my garden says " Please come into my garden. I have some flowers that would like to meet you"

babbler said...

Owen, The first thing I thought of when I saw that sign on the gate was, "Defense of Stationary Slugs, Sortie de Belly Brouette Sliding devices, depicted here with the provided transport given by a very dapper looking man in red pantaloons checking for bits of cellulose paper deep in his French pockets, a sort of in-slide meal to give to the slugs as he pulls them around town in his Belly Brouette! Fantastic! Bravo! Owen, you have done it again Sir!
Thank you kindly for your priceless blog! Like other fans of yours, this blog is the first that I look at out of all the blogs in the world, and that is saying something.
Hats off to you and your French furry doggy friend who has a tail and knows how to use it, Love, Mrs. (and the Mister) Slug!

pRiyA said...

hi owen, i just wanted to know if people actually read arty explanations in an attempt to understand strange stuff that passes of as 'Art'these days. as i suspected, most of them don't, not even with the one teeny paragraph that i inserted along with the firecracker in my post.
which makes me (and lots and lots of others) wonder about the point of conceptual art these days. whatever happened to beautiful pictures that required skill and not an entire thesis as an explanation?

do you know, this is the first time i'm actually seeing pictures of haiti?
i can't tell you how many ways the world has opened up thanks to blogging.

Roxana said...

Owen, he is fantastic, i adored each and every one of his shots - omg, he is so good! thank you for the link, a treasure!

Plum' said...

Bonsoir Owen,
Même si je ne viens pas souvent déposer de commentaires, je peux t'assurer que tu apportes de la fantaisie et du bonheur à travers ton blog. Et pour une petite fée triste (les roses sont fanées à cette époque et mes ailes repliées par le froid), c'est le plus important...Tu nous donnes un peu, beaucoup, énormément de chaleur et de générosité.
Bises,
K'line

Sar@h said...

Ah ! Ah ! Je situe très bien … Qui plus est les propriétaires sont sympathiques … et change le décor régulièrement !
http://photosdeladamedenage.blogs.letelegramme.com/archive/2010/01/05/fenetre.html