I think it is just great to let children sit in your classic car. I have a rare 1990 Toyota Sera, now 33 years' old, with gull wing doors, and when I take it to shows, it's mostly the little boys who love to get in. With all the glass in the "roof" i.e. the doors, it is like being in a moving conservatory. And by the way, the doors were the inspiration for Gordon Murray's McLaren F1, so that he could get the two passengers into the half-way seats. He greatly modified the McLaren F1 for safety and weight, but they work in exactly the same way. It is my daily drive, so it doesn't bother me one bit to let kids climb in. I've attached a photo of me and my car at Simply Japanese, where my car won third prize out of 1500 cars on show, voted for by the participants, not the organisers. We should encourage children into our old cars, that's how the enthusiast of the future is born!

If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

Jaymatt, I agree with you totally!

Lovely photos of a lovely place.

I HATE the new format. It makes no sense to me: no structure, and I have to scroll through the whole lot just to find subjects I am interested in. That wastes a lot of time. Please return to headline format.

I lost the thrill at the end of last year. I was already beginning to feel that I was tired of having to keep up with the latest gear (I don't mean buying it, just understanding where photography is going), learning more and more about Elements/Lightroom etc. which I found I needed to do to keep up with the competition standard at our local photography club and it was all taking up enormous amounts of time in order to gain minor improvements. Then a woman in the club produced a wonderful photo which won all the prizes going until, as Print Leader (in charge of all print comps in the club), I entered it into the East & West Sussex County-wide competition (22 clubs), whereupon she admitted that she had "cheated, and stolen a part of it off the internet" (her words). Composite photos are allowed in comps, as long as it is all your own work, but this wasn't. She said it was an "inadvertent error", which was about the only true thing she said, as she had not read the rules until after the photo was submitted to the County comp., and she was clearly afraid she would be caught out. However, it is plainly morally indefensible to steal someone else's work and pass it off as your own. Doesn't matter what the rules say, you just don't do that, it is NOT an "inadvertent error". But she made life very unpleasant in the club, because I withdrew our "winning entry". I didn't gossip about it, but when people asked why, I told them and she went round saying I was maligning her for an "inadvertent error". I decided that that was the final straw, photography wasn't fun any more. So come December, I sold my 5D Mk11, and all my 6 "L" lenses, tripods, bags and accessories and all I have left now is my Sony a6000, which I hardly ever take anywhere. And to tell you the truth, I feel much happier just able to look at wonderful scenes without feeling "I must take a photo of that". I still read UHH every day and vote in the competition, and am interested to see what you all are doing. But I have taken up face painting instead. I've had some training, I love being creative in a different format and I love the look on children's faces when they see what I have painted for them. It is very satisfying and far less stress.

[quote=jerryc41]You always hear movie stars saying that even if they don't win the Academy Award, it's great just being nominated. That could have something to do with the $232,000 Gift Bag that they will all receive this year. Looking at the contents, much of it is junk, but still, $232,000 for people who are paid millions to act in movies seems unnecessary.

What a load of (expensive) junk. I wonder how much of it never even gets used.

Wow! Nothing like that in the UK

More to the point, can you spot the "leopard"? Which is also very easy to see!

That's brilliant! Too late for this Christmas (presents already bought) but hey! Christmas will come again. I don't see why you shouldn't use two different colour balls of wool to give it some interest. Great idea, thanks :o)

Actually, it doesn't refer to the sort of "passion" I think you might be referring to! It said: "Passion is your most dominant personality trait. You commit 100% of yourself to everything that you do. People admire the good energy you bring into their lives. You listen to your heart when making a big decision, and while some may accuse you of being too emotional, you never apologize for it." I think I have "good" energy, but what if someone had "passion" and "bad" energy? I think the answer is not to take this too seriously! Happy Christmas, all!

Gosh, all these wise people on the forum! Mine came out as passion, which probably makes me difficult to live with - have to check with my husband! :o)

That sounds about right to me!!

That is very moving. I wish our country honoured its' serving men and women, and its' veterans, as yours does. I was in New York on Veterans Day last November, and watched as they all paraded up 5th Avenue. The respect and applause they got from the people as they passed was amazing. It does not happen in the UK, more shame on us.

Right on, Graham! And by the way, I come from Whitby, also proud to be a Yorkshirewoman.

:-D :-D