20th/July/2006

Hi y'all,
What a beautiful evening for a stroll. I walked back from town at about 10 this evening, and it was absolutely delicious. All day it's been muggy and hot - i mean loads of people have been out sunning themselves on the beach, but due to another unforseen extreme tennis incident, swimming's now off-limits to me for a while, and the beach is looking a little too warm for this one-time frolick-in-the-surf-er. So all day i've slinked about, my brain never really seeming to click into gear - it's been hazy at best, i did what i had to do, and got on with the day, but it all felt a bit oppressive. But then this evening, oh joy of joys, i went and sat in 'The Duke' for a few hours talking to some people, and suddenly remembered the miracle that is air conditioning. Nice. Seriously. After a couple of hours i actually felt wide awake and didn't have to just feign coherency as has been my way today. It was amazing, i was responding normally, and not just sitting there looking like a sweaty, slightly dribbling mass - i was actually taking in some of the very interesting points people were making. By the time i left, the night had well and truly drawn in, and a slight breeze had blown in from a cooler direction as i made my way to the beach to walk home. An amazing evening - not a cloud in the sky, and the stars shining brightly over the sea and beach. People were walking about in couples and groups, and the air was thick with the smell of the sea mixing with the night scented flowers which adorn the sides of the path. Lovely. The breeze was keeping things nice and cool, and everyone knew it - it's not often you see the night so busy along the beach. People were out with their families and walking dogs at ten at night - and there was a lovely sense of ease going on amidst the night-time strollers. Things were just right. To be honest, i could've stayed out all night, just enjoying the rare humanity of a balmy summer's eve in England.

Oh yeah, and check out what those kind people I met in 'The Duke' gave me...........

oooooooooooohhh......................................................., aaaaaaaaahhh........................................................

That's right........ it's a photographer-pass. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. nice. At this point i wish i knew how to record some sort of playground-style nursery rhyme taunt about how "i'm a big photographer, and you're no-ot, ne ne ne ne neeer neeer", but that would be very immature, and i'm not sure how to do it yet, but the second i learn..................... anyway, as you've probably already worked out, i'm not a proper photographer, so i'm really happy to have been given this little gift - it's part of an initiative to help with the creation of a new website called inct5 which aims to be a locally-run Whitstable Oyster Festival site. Some of the more established Whitstable website owners have been kind enough to invite me along for the ride, so we'll see what happens .......... there was a fellow there who's going to be videoing most of it, so maybe he'll give me a little footage to edit - if he does, i'll put it here so you can all have a look at some of the highlights.

Here's wishing you a tranquil night's sleep on this sultry summer night,

your most excellent and poignant local photographer,

Tom

13th July 2006

Did you watch 'Garden State' ? Nice.
Anyway, i've taken the advert off the restaurants page (you probably didn't notice it), and i've moved my advertising-to-fund-website shenanigins over to somewhere else. By the way...... i came across another Whitstable-based website which i think is an amazing resource and obviously designed and programmed by a master of their craft - obviously the kind of Zeus-like figure who takes all in their stride and whilst excellent with computers, can in no way be considered a geek.
The site's called Whitstable Accommodation and has clearly been made by a genius... in fact, i think i'll go over there now, and peruse its wonderous content, i may even click on the ads if i find any, as that's just a nice thing to do - i don't know if there are any, i've only seen it once, and was awe struck to such a degree that i merely stared at the screen in gratitude, unable to navigate deeply into its beautiful and well-researched content.
Should you, or anyone you love find yourself at an accommodation-based loose end, or simply in need of a little beauty, i strongly recommend the afore-mentioned site, and wish you hours of browsing pleasure as you gaze upon this most excellent of treasures.

12th/July/2006

Hi everybody,

Watch 'Garden State' , here's a picture of the fire and the moon at a barbeque i went to this evening.

Tom

29th/June/2006

Hi again, I'm about to launch two other websites, and take my Delboy antics over there, and hopefully use what i've learned from this site to make a little money. One's all about accommodation in the town - it should start popping up in a few weeks or months, and one is about hammocks.................. that's right, hammocks. You see i couldn't decide what to use for my first affiliate-based site, so i was at someone's house, and they said, "why not hammocks?", so off i went - probably not the most rational of business decisions, but you see, the thing is, if i can do it with hammocks, then i can do it with anything. I hope. So i've built the site, which is imaginatively called BuyAHammock.com, and once it gets hosted (today or tomorrow), i'll start optimising it like a madman - building links to it, etc, and eventually, start placing hammocks from different companies on it and get commission. Woooohoooo! To be honest, i have no idea whether it'll work, after actually building the site, i decided to do some analysis of the market place. You have no idea how competative the online hammock trade is - it's a cut-throat melee of wheeler dealing and corporate giants - so the moral of this story may well be - analyse the market place before you set up shop....... I'm still going to give it a go though. You may also have noticed the 'get Firefox with Google toolbar' button which has appeared on the blog, and the restaurants page - bit naughty really, but in my defense, i do actually use the Firefox browser myself, and it is free, and a usefull piece of kit, so it's o.k... isn't it......? i'll stop with the adverts on this site now, otherwise it's going to get polluted and a bit naff like all the others with intrusive flashing and moving stuff everywhere you look. I hate them myself, so why make one? To be honest, the answer is sheer greed, it seems such an attractive proposition to sit back and watch what i have heard described as a "passive income" start to grow. It does sound good eh............."passive", and "income" together in the same sentence. mmmmmmmmmmm. nice. There's been nothing "passive" about making this site though, or learning the beginnings of techie stuff - i have yet to stumble across this utopian state - another guy i was talking to about it yesterday described internet marketing as "The new gold rush". Now that's more like it to be honest - everyone scrambling frantically to find the next big rich vein of gold in the wilderness, and then guard it furiously, and exploit it as quickly and efficiently as possible. Does that make Google the Sherrif or the frontier? And i'm no Clint Eastwood...... I always preffered 'Tuco' from 'The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly' anyway - but i'm not sure where i'm going with this now - I don't think 'Tuco' was much into internet affiliate marketing, and if he was, he sure kept that quiet throughout the film.

On a lighter note,
I had the first tennis lesson i've had since i was about 6 this morning. Which was really nice. Felt very 'clean-living'. It was the first job i ever wanted - professional tennis player - I wonder what would've happened if i had just stuck to that. It's amazing eh? the different turns and choices you make. It was great to get back out on the court, however, in typical fashion, i went and bought a new tennis racket the other day in preparation for my triumphant return to the sport, and proceeded to get tennis elbow by hitting a few hundred practice serves yesterday evening. The result was that i worked mostly on my ground strokes as opposed to the scheduled 'service lesson' this morning, as by the time i woke up, my elbow was in agony, and i'm now wearing one of those tubi-grip supports till it heals...... good god i'm stupid sometimes. I just get a little over-enthusiastic about things. Maybe a tad obsessive. Anyway, the courts near Wave Crest, by the beach hold open play sessions on a Thursday evening, and Sunday morning, and since i can't find anyone else to play, i think i'm going to show up there - probably for a light thrashing by either a very old, or very young person. All the assembled simply take it in turns to play each other, so hopefully i'll get a game or two. One thing which is also slightly disconcerting is that i don't seem to recover as quickly as i did when i was six years old, and the concept of 'stretching' now seems to be a necessity rather than 'something the big people do'. I'll remember that next time too.
Here's my new tennis racket....... she's a 'beut, and there's the arm too.

Tom

27th/June/2006

Here's another picture i thought was quite interesting. Remember i was going on about the harbour earlier on, well i was walking past it the other evening, and there was a huge boat parked up with people milling about on it, so i thought i'd show you...It's a big 'un eh!... I'm not sure what it was carrying, but i reckon anything which can float while a digger drives around on it has got to be worth a mention when it makes its way silently into our little harbour.

Tom

26th/June/2006

Just wanted to put this one up here.....................


Tom

19th June 2006

Hi, it's Delboy here again, i've had another idea, ......... what do you reckon to this little doo-hickey. It's an Amazon search box, (I also put another type in the picture gallery, but that one's pretty) and it's designed to let people search for any product from Amazon from my site, and then if that person buys something, Amazon gives me loads a' cash out of their profit margin - fantastic eh? I hope to combine it with my own unique form of subliminal suggestion to rake in the cash - granted my skills in subliminal advertising are in their infancy, and still somewhat cumbersome and unwieldly, so maybe slightly ineffective, but it's worth a try - hopefully you won't spot them and (spend lots of money, spend lots of money) they will gain control of your subconscious rendering you completely helpless in the face of my new found powers. You can get yourself one of these little bad boys by becoming an Amazon affiliate and using some of their code in you website - it's very simple, not sure if it's very attractive though, it kinda sticks out like a sore thumb, and people may mistake it for a large square bumble bee on their monitor, but other than that, it's a clever idea. Only problem is, realistically, you've got to make a site which is a lot more specific to a niche market than my one, but this was never meant to be a commercial enterprise, it's how i'm learning web design and a little programming. I noticed on my stats software that there have been quite a few visitors from London to my humble little site. Hello London, how's it going? I love a bit of London every now and then, the Thames, so majestic as it flows through our fair capital, Big Ben and its tourist entourage, the people, so vibrant and (buy some products, buy some products) civilised as they go about their daily hustle and bustle. God bless it!

30th May 2006

(This entry is completely unrelated to Whitstable and is about geeky computer stuff, it's only here to serve a purpose - , sorry for the inconvenience, and hope you're enjoying the blog.)
(Tom)

O.k, so what i'm about to do is conduct a little experiment. The reason i started this site was because i wanted to learn about the process of search engine optimisation - where you analyse and alter a website specifically to make it appear higher in the major search engine (google, msn, yahoo) results pages. I've been trying this out with the keyword "Whitstable", which is the main word i'm practising with. This means that what i hoped to see was my site appearing higher in the search engine results when someone typed in the word "Whitstable", and this has worked, and along the way, i've realised i actually really enjoyed making this website, and playing with the design and content. What i'm about to do may get me thrown off the search engine listings all together, but bear with me, if this site suddenly disappears from google in a few days, then you know what's happened! Even if it does, i'll change the code back, and will reappear shortly............ i hope. Anyway, what i'm going to do is a little experiment to see how the major search engines react if i create an entirely different site, only connected to this one by one link, but existing within the same domain . That sounds a little complicated . Basically, i have this website - the address is www.seewhitstable.com, what i've done is create another completely unrelated site - it's actually about luxury mens' watches (i'll explain that in a minute), and its address will be
www.seewhitstable.com/luxury-mens-watches.html. It has it's own navigation and links, and doesn't link back to this site in any way, but it does occupy the same domain (www.seewhitstable.com), and it has the same address. It'll be aimed at a completely different audience, and you know how earlier, i said i wanted to make see whitstable appear higher in the search engine listings when someone typed in "Whitstable", well this new sub-site is one that i only want to appear high in the search engine listings when someone types in the phrase "luxury mens' watches", so it's as though the two sites are completely seperate, and i'm going to see if my whole site "See Whitstable" gets punished by the search engines for doing this... - you see they like relevancy, above all things, they have very complicated mathematical programs which are trying to ensure that when someone types in "Whitstable", they get the most relevant sites possible, - otherwise people wouldn't use their services, and they need you and me and all the other customers, or they'd be out of a job - so they try and give us what we want - so how are they going to react when half my site is about Whitstable and half is about luxury mens' watches? Lets' find out... if my site disappears, we have an answer. I'm also using my sub-site to learn about affiliate marketing - which is where you do a deal with Amazon, or other companies (there are loads), and you show their products, and send traffic( internet users) their way, and if anyone buys something from their site, after coming through a link in your site (they can track everyone) , then you get commission. (hence the watches) Sounds lovely eh? In reality it's an incredibly tricky business, but i'll learn. I've grown quite proud of my little website really, and it's been great watching it climb the search engine results when someone types in "Whitstable", but i need to keep learning, and with that in mind, i'm now going to place the link to my subsite, don't bother following it, it's just an alternate colour scheme version of this one's layout really, and it's got nothing to do with Whitstable, i just have to put the link so that the search engine spiders (that's what they call their little programs which constantly retrieve information about the whole web) can follow it, and the new pages will start to appear in search engine results in a week or so, so here's the link
mens luxury watches
Thanks for your time,
Tom

29th May 2006

It's the May bank holiday, the sun's out, and i'm going to go wandering around a little - maybe go to a cafe and have a spot of breakfast or something. I like that - going out for breakfast - it always seems luxurious to me, - no hassle - no need to do very much - (i'm not really a morning person), you just sit there, and drink tea and wait for someone else to make you some food. aaaahhhhhhh. I love it. Sounds a little lazy, i know, but there's something really nice about it. When you go out for dinner, it's great, but it's a completely different feeling, eating out in the morning's less formal - it's the beginning of the day, and before anything else happens, you've taken time to relax, and treat yourself - what better way to start off. In Spain, one thing i noticed was that all the cafes were packed with people by eight in the morning - and they didn't look glum, - there was a real energy in the places, like our stereotype of the Italian family dinner, but at 8 a.m - (and Spanish). It was really good to see so much going on so early - a.) i'm not used to being up and about by eight, and b.) when i am, it's normally to quite empty streets, maybe a touch of mist, and some light drizzle - so it was a pleasure to see all the life going on there. Having said that, it can also be really beautiful here in the early morning, especially in summer, when it's the most "clean-cut" time of the day. Really good light for photography, really sharp. Anyway, i'm going to get something to eat, maybe see you there.
Tom

16th May 2006

I've changed the look of the weblog again - it hasn't migrated to the whole site, but i think this makes the blog look a bit cleaner - hope you like it
Tom
p.s
I just liked these photos, so i wanted to put them on -

08th/May/2006

Hi all, it's me again. May Day's Come and gone, and we're in to the getting-excited-about-some-sun-then-it-starts-raining-again portion of the month, where our hopes of a few rays go up and down like a spring thermometer. Actually, that sounds a bit cynical, and i'm loath to spread discontent amongst the ether - so here a picture of the sun only a few days ago - 'twas a blinder, literally, on the beach the other day, and for the first time in about nine months, i was on the beach soaking it in!

Every way you looked, there it was - the big bright sun - bringer of life on the great Serengeti and unsightly red burns on the British public - and i was hoping to be no exception - donning a pair of shorts i sallied forth into the mid-day sun armed only with a towel and an empty bottle of factor ten suncream. It was great - i spent about an hour lying on the beach - and even waded briefly into the sea. The water was actually quite warm, as the tide was coming in and the mud flats, heated by the morning sun, made the sea temporarily humane. A lovely little interlude.

Tom

p.s here's my bit about May Day 2006

(Many thanks Ross)

23rd April 2006

Hi again, it's Sunday, and it's raining, and i thought i'd write a little. Here's some pictures i took of the beach in the rain. Hope you like 'em. I went walking down by the horsebridge,

All of the photos on this site are of Whitstable in the sun, so here's a little balancer - if that's a word. I was talking to someone about photography yesterday, and they asked if i adjust the colour in photos much, and i don't think i ever have....... i tend to wait for certain lighting conditions before i go out snapping away. Today had a really nice range of greys going on. Very "rainy Sunday" . It wasn't raining hard, just the sort of light drizzle which, when mixed with mild air, makes walking around really soothing. It was also very still, so you could really here all the seagulls down on the beach near the horsebridge. There's a restaurant there, and they throw all the left-over fish parts onto the beach for the birds and tide to take care of. There was a whole flock of seagulls down there, along with oyster catchers, and some smaller birds whose names i'm not sure of... anyway, there were all busy wading around as the tide went out, trying to weigh up the risk of the small boy chasing them against the possible gain of a nice piece of left over fish head, or crab-claw. The smallest birds seemed the bravest, quickly darting from waterline to left-overs, and back to waterline before the little boy could throw something at them or attempt a catch. The bigger birds - mostly seagulls- stayed close to the water where people generally avoid so as not to tarnish their sunday-best shoes. The whole beach seemed still and quiet except for the crowd of birds waiting their chance, and when it came, it looked great as they all swooped and dived in for a tasty morsel. I didn't manage to get a shot of that though. I tried to creep up on them all, but then some wayward ramblers, equipped with waterproof clothes and wellies - the alternative country sunday best - scuppered my plans by coming too close along the beach, and off the birds went, and i continued on, down the beach towards the yacht club. It always looks interesting there too - people purposefully milling about in wetsuits with other people in wetsuits, some of who i've seen holding glasses of wine - which is strange, but nice to see. Why not eh? There's some lovely boats down there - i said that to a friend yesterday, and he said" They're not boats, they're .................." I still can't remember the word he used, so as i was saying, - some lovely boats, i don't know who owns them, that'd be nice - to have a boat, there are loads on the beach near where i live - i'm sure some of them haven't moved in three years, but there they sit, maybe they're ornamental boats - they look good just sitting there, - it's better than just an empty bit of beach - gives it character. Hope you're well, and enjoying whatever day it is that you're reading this.

Tom

06th/February/2006
Gare d'austerlitz
Paris
6.43 p.m

So i'm sitting in a cafe waiting to catch a train to Madrid that leaves in about an hour. I've been here for 3 hours, and i've started to get bored now, and thought about how many people there are here who i'll never know. You look at them, and they look, and maybe you smile, or not , and off you both go - everyone here is going somewhere else - apart from the staff.... to whom i guess we're all just temporary as well. Then i thought about Whitstable, and how the tea there's a lot cheaper than here! Maybe that's because i'm sitting in a Parisian tourist trap - much like the ones you find around the central stations of most big cities. I also thought about how strange it is that i've got to know the people i now know in Whitstable. I was born in Surrey, then i lived in Yorkshire, then Malta (just under Sicily) and now Whitstable, and the people i know there now were just like these people in the train station a while ago. I might have nodded or smiled, or they might have.... or not, and then we'd have gone our separate ways. Strange how our stories get mixed together. I couldn't have seen it coming if you'd asked me a few years ago. How many other people are there wandering around right now - both of us unaware that one day our stories will mix. Strange thought. There's a Spanish couple sitting next to me, i wonder what their story is - they seem animated and quite happy - colourful clothes, fast syllables, and clouds of smoke through which their hands sporadically gesture. Very expressionate people. There's a woman with dyed blonde hair sitting opposite who keeps glancing at me, perhaps it's because i'm writing, i think she's with her husband, maybe she's talking about something personal, and is wondering if i'll overhear?... I'm not sure if the two people at the other table are mother and son or boyfriend and girlfriend - sounds strange, but it's hard to tell - there seem to be a fair few toyboys in France. Going to finish my tea and catch my train. Not so bored any more. Thanks
Tom