ROY X CONE contest, 1.1.11 - 2.1.12

[rnrswitch]

Got this little guy in the mail. thanks a ton zissou. Me likey.

[zissou]

Glad you like it, RNR and erk!

zissou - that belt with only one belt-hole option looks damn smooth.... really appeals to neurotic me.

Hah, yeah, I do that for my own belts because I can fit it in person (obviously) and my weight doesn't really fluctuate much. But I am very apprehensive about doing it for other people's belts...

Looks amazing

Please keep us updated with the evo of these!

Thank you, sir! Will do....

Beautiful little car, Lostinthesupermarket! My first car was a Renault 5 (sadly, not the turbo). Your photo takes me back a little... Obviously, not as cool as your Morris Minor, but it was still a great car.

[lostinthesupermarket]

Great car zissou! Sportif!

So...the first day of Spring and the weather was nice. We decided to take one of the dogs down to the seafront for a walk.

Dublin Bay is tidal (obviously) and the water is pretty shallow in a lot of it. When the tide goes out it sometimes goes out as much as half a mile in some places, leaving a huge beach behind it. This time the tide was out, but not too far....

The Roy x Cones hit the sand

It was dead calm, and we had the place pretty much to ourselves...

We ambled about for a bit....Winnie the dog is getting on she's usually pretty calm these days. There were a few razor clams around.....(tasty but i wasn't collecting them today)...

We saw this guy hanging out waiting for dinner to swim by:

Funny, cos there are loads of herons around in dublin these days....by the sea, in the ponds in the public parks, in rivers etc...I don't remember ever seeing them when I was growing up. Global warming or something?

Headless family portrait ( except for Winnie....she told me she doesn't care if people on the internet see her face....)

[lostinthesupermarket]

We came off the beach by this building. The bay is ringed with these. Originally they were gun emplacements built by the British during the Napoleonic Wars to control the approaches to the port. They were worried there might be a French invasion. Nowadays people live in them. That state of affairs must have been going on for some time, because the first chapter of "Ulysses" by James Joyce is set inside one.

Afterwards we went home and made pasta.

The days are getting warmer and longer.....roll on summer.

[fardin]

nice pics, lost, and wow great your making pasta yourself now thats what i call real cooking. , wish i could rep

[Paul T]

Excellent. I want to live in one of those towers and go looking for razor clams every morning.

mmmm.... now I'm feeling hungry.

[lostinthesupermarket]

I should have grabbed a few. They would have been good with the pasta....

[ranonranonarat]

very scenic and thats what i call a good day out. love the pictures and clam pasta would have been so good. is that a corgi you have there? cute little girl.

[fre-co]

Plus rep for home made pasta is going to have to wait......

London was remarkably sunny today. It really did feel like spring.

I spent 24 depressing hours in Hilden near Dusseldorf. No pictures of that since I want to erase it from my memory. And what the fuck is going on with Curry Wurst?

[Freshdave]

Z - My wife got me one of those (VW) keychains for the holidays. Are you the one that makes them (and sells them) on Etsy?

I finally made my belt yesterday, along with a new keychain, card case, and bracelet (need to test some new designs). Better late than never~

[Paul T]

Normal kinda rambles. But these were in my ROYS. Not as beautiful scenery as lost's posts, sorry, but here ya go.

OUt early on to Spitalields, for a particular reason. My first change of train was at Shadwell, an old part of London.

Nipped round the corner quickly for entertainment. This is Hawksmoor's biggest church, St George In The East. Rears up over an old street called the Highway, dominating the area.

Back to the train station along Cable Street. This is famous in London folk lore - the site of riots in 1936, when the left wing community - students, Jews, Trades Unions - chased Oswald Moseley's black shirts - the fascists - out of London. Up till then they'd intimidated everyone in the East End. IN this one day, their power was broken.

Up till that point the police had protected the fascists - it was a policy they dropped soon after. So to get at the fascists… the protesters had to get thru the police. Here's a details of the mural that commemorates the event.

Back on the main train, and into the market.

Spotted this excellent, very plain, rough but sophisticated coverall.

I'm thinking this is linen: check out the selvage pocket detail:

I was about to photograph the buttons when the stall owner turned up - very irate. I've photographed stuff before, but asked him first, this time he was not well pleased.

Round the corner, was this lovely old Hofner Futurama. These were the cheap beginners guitars of the 60s and early 70s, before Japanese guitars improved in quality. Goerge Harrison used one of these in Hamburg - this one looks hand-painted to me, but it's still pretty.

Look at the transparencies in front - these are all Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange. I reckon they come from Corbis, their old agency - they've obviously finally turfed out all their transparencies and only supply work digitally now. I felt a slight pang of nostalgia, for the day you could go down to photo agencies and pull loads of prints or slides out of a filing cabinet.

This stall holder was friendlier. One of two people today to ask me about my william Lennon boots - he bookmarked their site on his phone. I hope they get another order…

My main destination was this stall. Check out this lovely deck jacket:

Ta-da!

The dude on this stall turned down my offer on this jacket last week. I sent him a funny note yesterday, twisted his arm and so.. yet another new acquisition joins the Roys. (Leather peacoat and a generic 50s flight jacket will go to make space, I'm not that bad honest).

SPitalfiends has loads of Georgian houses, I've posted them before, but check out the beautiful brickwork on this corner entrance, part of some otherwise dark and rather forebodings VIctoriain apartment blocks.

Lots of people comment on all the beautiful work, with rubbed bricks, you get on buildings up to the Victorain and Edwardian era. But after that the quality goes. Apparently, it was because so many skilled bricklayers and workmen were killed in the first world war. Those skills, once lost, never returned.

Then into town.

[Paul T]

The nearest train station is Liverpool Street. A huge modern development surrounds it, but I never noticed unti today, when I took a new route, this view of the train platforms.

State of the art victorian - structural cast iron, designed in a gothic style from the 1300s, with colour schemes heavily influenced by Giotto's Campanile.

Today I was meeting someone at Cinch. One of my favrouite shops was on the way. Soho books.

It's actually one of the best design book shops in London. really! I kinda of like the idea of being caught coming out of here. It's all porn downstairs, then design (and a fair bit of fetish) upstairs. THey sold lots of copies of our Denim book - I wonder if they sell Mike's? Sadly didn't have time to check.

always nice to see the guys at Cinch. THey loved the Roys. (In fact, I left my new acquisition with them while I went for a coffee, think they tried it on and gave that their approval, too). THeir new spring summer range isn't in till next week, but always nice to see the LVC staples.

On the way home. Quick detour via perhaps my favrouite shop in London, favourite food shop anyway. I Camisa and son. THe've been here since the 50s at least; tomatoes flown in from Mt Etna, sausages from Siena…. it's like a symphony of smells in here…

Measuring out the orders. TOday was just sausages, parmigiano, penne rigate and their special chili olives stuffed with anchovies. Yum...

Back to the train station. Thru Chinatown. A wonderful buzz around, for the year of the rabbit. The g/f is a bunny, actually, but she's working late on a pitch tonight, so we will hold off on celebrating until tomorrow.

Happy NEw Year!

[zissou]

Wonderful photos and story as usual, Paul!

Roys every day.

[Paul T]

Oh my god you got a Cameraman!

Jealous...jealous... jealous.

Congrats!

[riff]

Oh my god you got a Cameraman!

Jealous...jealous... jealous.

Congrats!

Indeed! Though I lust after that submariner sweater myself!

Paul - wonderful pics! And congrats to you on your new leather!

After the pitiful snowfall - although they did close all the schools (pics to come later!)....

[zissou]

Hah, thanks guys. I've had this thing for a year, though! Mostly I've been wearing my MFSC pea coat this winter.

[ranonranonarat]

great pictures paul, no picturesque shots but story telling ability is still fascinating as fuck. camisa looks like a great place to stock up on quality food. how are their prices like paul?

zissou goodness, i love that cameraman! it looks splendid on you, thought of getting one but prices for those are through the roof!

riff you looking good my friend, is that a piece from rocky mountain featherbed? lovely colour on that piece.

Z - My wife got me one of those (VW) keychains for the holidays. Are you the one that makes them (and sells them) on Etsy?

in response to your question, yes, zissou is the one that makes those keyhooks and hes got a space right up on etsy too.

[zissou]

Z - My wife got me one of those (VW) keychains for the holidays. Are you the one that makes them (and sells them) on Etsy?

haha, yeah, that's me! Small world...

[robbie]

ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffuhhh, I'd love some Cabourn in my life-- Nice Jacket Zissou!

Paul, great shots.

[lostinthesupermarket]

Thanks everyone for your kind words (and to cash and Mike for the repz).

fardin and fresco.....give the pasta a go! It's not that hard (otherwise it would be beyond me) and it's well worth the effort. The great thing is that it impresses people much more than it should.

PaulT: I love your posts about London...you really convey the flavour of the city. I lived in Old St ( waaaaay before it was trendy....I think that's hilarious) and on Tooley St. for three years and had friends down Greenwich way. Your writing and photos bring the feeling of it all back to me. They really remind me that London is one of the great cities of the world. All that history......it's one of the crossroads of the planet.You should seriously consider doing a book project based on your wanderings. Can't rep. but will return.

Great fits riff n' zissou.

ranon: I suspect she's some sort of wire-haired Jack Russell cross ( maybe a distant feral relative of An-Chan?) but I tell everyone she's a Portuguese Podengo .

[Freshdave]

Well I like it, so thanks.

Now I need one for my (horribly designed/ugly and retarded) Ford Transit Connect key.

http://www.leftlanenews.com/early-ford-transit-connect-buyers-running-into-high-cost-replacement-keys.html

haha, yeah, that's me! Small world...

[zissou]

You're welcome! Yeah, I remember your wife asking me about the Ford Transit key

[dkatz]

Yesterday, simple simple.

and thanks zissou for the super-awesome vintage-style nose-picker! The extra-long lanyard really helps make sure I don't misplace it or drop it when I'm pickin' away on the back of a boda-boda

[dkatz]

Time to get jealous, those of you in cold climates...

Last Friday morning, ROYxCones and I had a meeting out East in Mbale. Homegirl decided she'd come across from Masaka and meet me there in the afternoon and we'd head up to Sipi Falls in Kapchorwa for the weekend. I've passed by Sipi a number of times on my way into Kapchorwa for work (most recently on the trip to learn about commercial small-holder barley farming... and see some boys get snipped), and I've always longed to stop and spend a couple days in this beautiful spot.

We found a nice lodge with a couple bandas set right at the end of the cliff. Kapchorwa is all on a plateau - Sipi Falls is on the Northern edge of it, so our view from our lodge was down the plateau and North towards the vast, flat plains of Karamoja, which continue all the way up to the border of Southern Sudan.

No electricity at the lodge... but who needs it? I've actually seen a lot of electrification happening in Kapchorwa. Maybe if I come back here in a couple years, it'll be covered in tvs and radios and flourescent bulbs. I hope not! I prefer the sound of the waterfall and the gentle, warm light from kerosene lanterns.

The view from inside our banda:

and from outside

I spent a good amount of the weekend perched right here on a camp chair.

Another not-too-bad spot to watch the morning happen

Everyone say hi to Nakapiripirit District - just out the other side of the valley

Our banda. The waterfall is just in that crevice in the cliff around to the right.

On a hike to see the waterfall(s) up close

ROYxCone, meet the ultimate washing machine (note: I didn't make use of the falls' washing power, since I need my next wash to be HOT)

Shit's beautiful.

[dkatz]

I was thirsty...

Local kid showing off

No big deal, just doing the laundry in Sipi River

Matoke making its way to market

Wouldn't mind taking my morning coffee here every day...

And... for those of you who know me well, this won't be surprising

[zissou]

hahah, glad you like the belt, dkatz Wonderful photos!

[dkatz]

^ Julian quite liked his as well! Looked pretty fly with a Ultramarathoner buckle on it

[zissou]

Glad to hear! Yeah, his buckles were pretty badass.

[DocBlue]

hi guys

does anyone know how to insert a youtube vid please

[Paul T]

Put [youtubBe] in brackets, then the video number followed by [/youtubBe]

(without the capital Bs)

The video number is the bit you can see on the URL for the releavnat video, that comes after the equals sign.