Gulf of Finland - Photos for Friends

OK, I'm a little bit late for the party known as Tillerman's Photography for Bloggers 101 group writing challenge, but as I have been sorting through my 300+ pictures (auuugh!) from Estonia and Finland, I realized that I might have another hint for what makes blog photography fun for me. I never thought that this blog would last as long as it has. None of the diaries (yes, plural, there were repeated tries) that I started as a kid ever lasted more than a month. Many blogs end up having similarly short lifespans, and I sort of expected this one would too - but I hadn't taken into account the sociability factor that you get once you've found a nice spot in a circle of like-minded bloggers.

Funny how a bunch of people that you've maybe never met in person get to feel like friends, but they do (or if you're one of the usual suspects, YOU did -- hopefully you all know who you are even if I don't happen to call you out in this post!). And a lot of times, even if I don't specify it, I take a picture and post it here because I look at something and think "Oh, so-and-so would get a kick out of that".
Here are a BUNCH of cases in point (as usual, click on any picture for more detail).

The dinner picture above, from my first night in Tallinn? Who would I have been thinking of when I took that (and a number of other food pix which I'll inflict on everyone in due course) but Food Industry Professional Baydog?

Also from my first night in Estonia - this one was for archer extraodinaire Fuu. I'm not so extraordinaire but the arrows did actually start hitting the target by the 5th of 10 shots and moved steadily centerward from there. Haven't done this since the summer I worked as a camp counselor after my senior year in high school, but the camp had an archery range and on my free afternoons I would sometimes go do a bit of shooting for fun and it was fun to try it again.

Flemish coils of course remind me of the former "unblogger" Oh Docker - (thank goodness Blogger has relented on their temporary decision that he was a spammer - careful what you say about Marmite, everyone!)

and the same coil drying out in the sun after the storm passed through reminded me of a very old post featuring a Rhode Island weather report as given by a wild rose, with which the Peconic Puffin had been quite taken.

This didn't remind me of a blogger, but of my friend Joe Glickman, who has been after me to read his book about Freya Hoffmeister - Joe, my goodness, you didn't have to pay these people to remind me all the way up in Estonia, but I promise you your book is the next one I buy (even if I have to break down and get it from amazon!!!!).

I expect that my photos of the oldest operating drydock in the world (built beginning in 1740 if I'm recalling correctly, on the fascinating island of Suomenlinna, Helsinki Harbor) will be enjoyed by both Tugster (note the people for scale, I was trying for a Tugsteresque touch there) and Captain JP, who I unfortunately just missed there in Finland!

Antique telegraphs always remind me of the sort of details that the Bowsprite illustrates so lovingly.

Getting ready to wrap up -- this one's for the woodworkers and boatbuilders -- Doryman, Jimbo, Bob Easton, anyone else I've missed in that area and also Canoe-Building Uncle up in Jonesville (he doesn't blog but he would love all the lovely wooden boats in Suomenlinna so I was totally thinking of him too).

Here's some foiling Moth action in Helsinki Harbor for all the dinghy sailors out there - too many to list, sorry, and this is just a tease btw, I'm saving the GOOD one for the trip report for that day!

and here's one to get all my kayak friends dreaming.

Thanks to all the friends who inspired these. I don't always spell it out quite as specifically - but if you ever see a picture here that particularly appeals to you, there's a fairly good chance that that's not an accident.