Random tangent (blog)
Ameel Khan's personal blog. This is a blog about life, technology, photography, typography, the internet, science, feminism, books, film, music, and whatever other random stuff I come across or happen to be interested in today.
It’s nice to have a dog that responds well to antihistamines. Instead of congested snoring while you’re trying to work you get adorable, quiet snoring :)
Photo of a red/brown dog curled up and asleep in a fuzzy orange bed. The dog’s face is nuzzled into the wall of the bed, and it has its paws tucked up in front of it.
It’s a gorgeous day in Melbourne today and Maggie is making the most of it. (I’m a little jealous.)
Photo of a red/brown dog fast asleep on its side in a residential garden on a bright, sunny day.
Turns out if you need to pour cement into a block at the back of a good sized residential property then this is the crane you need.
Photo of two trucks parked back-to-back on a residential street. One truck is a cement mixer and the other truck has a tall crane on it. The two are connected via a large pipe.
It might be loud, but it certainly does the job.
Photo of a truck parked on a residential street. The truck has a tall crane built into it. The crane has a long pipe running through it. The pipe is pouring concrete into the very back of an empty plot of land.
It is a little disconcerting to have a four story tall crane teaching into the sky just a couple of houses away from yours though!
Photo of a residential street with cars parked on it. Also on the street is a truck with a four story tall crane that is reaching out to the back of one of the properties on this street.
Another year, another fantastic Barbell Babes Brigade lifting party for Nadia – with one equal and two new personal bests!
Photo of a woman in a large indoor power lifting gym. The woman is wearing black exercise gear, wrist straps, and a lifting belt and is smiling at the camera. She is leaning on a barbell with heavy weights on it that’s been placed on a lifting rack.
This year’s results:
Squat: 90kg
Bench press: 50kg
Deadlift: 107.5kg (up from 65kg just two years ago!)
Photo of a woman smiling broadly at the camera. The woman is wearing a sleeveless black exercise top and is standing in a large power lifting gym.
#JustStrong
Photo of the back of a woman’s head. The woman is standing in a large power lifting gym. She is wearing a sleeveless black exercise top and her hair has been arranged into a bun that’s being held together with paint brushes.
Turns out peanut butter bread is super easy to make and is quite delicious.
The recipe I followed made a relatively mild loaf, so next time I’ll make a richer, more cake-like version.
Photo of a home-baked loaf of rich brown bread cooling on top of a wire rack on a kitchen countertop.
FYI: I followed the 1932 recipe in this video (which is from the US Great Depression) and I’ll try Dylan’s own peanut butter bread recipe for the next loaf.
Nadia Tweeted this:
Best part of the day. (Less so for @ameel because he has to spot me these days.) pic.twitter.com/BfgngsknPA
— Nadia Niaz (@NadiaNiaz) March 2, 2022
Which I quote-tweeted and said:
Don’t tell Nadia, but spotting her is one of my favourite things to do. Not only do I get to watch her lift ridiculously heavy weights (and increasingly heavy ones at that) I also get the opportunity to hang out with her when she's having the most fun (+ take cool photos of her)!
Photo of a strong-looking woman in a black sleeveless shirt and hair held up in a bun with paint brushes. The woman is wearing wrist straps and a thick leather belt for lifting heavy weights. She is standing in a room in front of a weight rack that has a loaded barbell on it.
Sunday afternoons, amirite?
Close up photo of a sleeping red/brown dog with its head resting on the side of a fuzzy dog bed.
Hello from Herring Island in the Yarra River in Melbourne!
Selfie of a man wearing a t-shirt, sunglasses, and a straw hat. The man is standing in an lightly wooded area that’s on an island in the middle of an urban river.
The island is a short punt ride from Richmond.
Photo of a small punt making its way across an urban river to ferry people to the other side.
It has gazebos, public barbecues, several picnic areas, toilets, and even a pottery store.
Photo of a gazebo and some park benches in a large open field surrounded by a wooded area.
Plus there’s artwork to check out. Including this one – ‘Steerage’ by Jill Peck – that you can sit in :)
Selfie of a man wearing a t-shirt, sunglasses, and a straw hat. The man is sitting inside a large piece of artwork that’s shaped like a wide boat. This “boat” is made from pieces of granite, so it looks like grey cobblestones.
It’s a lovely place for a walk and a picnic. 8/10 would recommend.
Photo of a woman in a red and black patterned dress and a straw hat walking across an open field that’s surrounded by tall trees.
I know it’s going to be a Hot Day today, but it’s quite nice out there right now. Even if it is a smidge windy and a tad humid.
Selfie of a man wearing sunglasses and a wide brimmed hat with the sun behind the man’s head.
That said, the temperature did rise by almost three degrees in just the half hour that Maggie and I were out walking. So it’s not going to be pleasant for too much longer!
Selfie of a man walking a red/brown dog on a red leash. The man is wearing a t-shirt, sunglasses, a wide brimmed straw hat and is looking up at the camera. The dog is just behind the man, sniffing around in the grass on a nature strip at the side of a road.
Home made, gluten free, mini apple pies on a Saturday afternoon.
My mother loved apple pie. Had she been alive, today would’ve been her 75th birthday. *sigh*
Photo of a few square, single-serve apple pies with a rich, brown, caramelised crust lying on a cooling rack.
Important Sunday breakfast update (lactose free vanilla ice cream in slightly warmed pie)…
Photo from the point of view of a man holding a yellow plate. The plate contains a square piece of pie with a scoop on vanilla ice cream on top of it.
Throwback to two weeks ago when we were picnicking at Donnelly Weir in the Yarra Ranges.
Selfie of a man with his back to a constructed weir in the middle of a forest.
You might not hear the tree fall in the woods, but at least you get to see it and then take a photo of it :)
Photo taken along the length of a tree that’s fallen in the woods.
One nice thing about living near a train line is that you get the chance to take lots of train-in-motion photos when you take the dog for a walk every day.
Photo of a train in motion taken through a gap in tree branches. The train is in sharp focus but the branches of the tree are motion-blurred.
We walk.
Photo of a red/brown dog on a red leash being walked down a residential street on a sunny day.
We check our pee-mail.
Photo of a red/brown dog on a red leash sniffing the grass at the base of a tree on a residential street on a sunny day.
We ask for a treat (when we’ve walked by another dog and haven’t reacted badly to them).
Photo of a red/brown dog on a red leash on the footpath of a residential street. The dog is looking back at its human expectantly.
We take a selfie. (Optional.)
Selfie of a man walking a red/brown dog on a sunny day. The man is wearing a black printed t-shirt, black hat, and sunglasses. The dog is sniffing a patch of grass next to the man.
Lovely day in Melbourne for a walk too!
Photo of a lovely looking residential footpath on a sunny day. There are picket fences to one side of the footpath and a line of trees on the nature strip on the other side.
Had a lovely afternoon with friends at Donnelly Weir in the Yarra Ranges yesterday.
Rebecca picked an excellent spot for a picnic, and the weather cooperated by giving us a a nice, cool day after the recent heatwave.
Group selfie of eight people in a wooded area.
Donnelly Weir has a picnic area as well – with a three-table gazebo, barbecue, and nearby toilets. It’s not too busy, either. Only one other table was occupied for part of the time we were there.
9/10 would recommend. But only because we had to drive across a shallow river to get to the car park, which not everyone and every car will be comfortable with.
Photo of a picnic area next to a weir in the middle of a forest. A weir is a small dam built across a river to control the flow of water. The picnic area consists of a wooden gazebo with picnic tables and benches, as well as a shared barbecue.
Weirs are always relaxing places to visit, and this one is no different.
You can’t get into the water here though. This spot is part of the rainfall catchment area that supplies Melbourne’s water supply (ie the water from here fills the dams that supply the city’s water).
Photo of a weir, which is a small dam built across a river to control the flow of water. The weir is located in a wooded area and has a log fence built to once side of it.
But that’s fine. You can still take lots of photos of the water :)
Photo of a weir, taken with the camera held out over the stone wall that’s been built to control the flow of water. Towards the back of the photo is is a small wooden foot bridge built across the river.
Both with…
Close-up photo of a weir wall that has water flowing over it. A long exposure effect has been applied to the photo, making the flowing water look smooth.
…and without the long exposure setting on your camera.
Close-up photo of a weir wall that has water flowing over it.
There are a couple of short trails you can wander down as well.
Selfie of a bald man, wearing glasses and a grey printed t-shirt. The man is standing on a walking trail in a wooded area.
But all you actually need to rest and recharge is to be surrounded by all the trees and birds and running water.
Selfie of a bald man, wearing glasses and a grey printed t-shirt standing in a wooded area. The man is looking down into a camera that is aimed towards the grey, overcast sky. Behind the man you can see the full length of the tall trees that surround him.
What time is it? It’s time for me and Nadia to take our annual Australian Open tennis tournament selfie!
Selfie of a man and a woman sitting in the stands of an outdoor tennis arena. They are both wearing geeky, black, book-related t-shirts; sunglasses; N95 face masks; and blue Australian Open lanyards.
With the 50% capacity limits placed on attendees this year, we even managed to find a totally empty section of Kia Arena in which to take a slightly less pandemically themed selfie :)
Selfie of a man and a woman sitting in the stands of a large, open air tennis arena. They are both wearing geeky, black, book-related t-shirts; sunglasses; and blue Australian Open lanyards.
One more in our full “hot day at a sporting event in the post-vaccine era” regalia.
Selfie of a man and a woman in front of Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Australia on a sunny day. The man and woman are both wearing black t-shirts, wide-brim straw hats, sunglasses, and N95 face masks, and have blue Australian Open lanyards around their necks.
Speaking of hot days, Nadia was reunited with her happy place at the Australian Open :)
A woman wearing shorts, t-shirt, sunglasses, large hat, and an N95 face masks walks up to a large fan that is spraying a fine mist of cool water onto people walking by.
One nice thing about summer – and the resulting lack of long sleeves – is that I can bring the Orient M-Force Beast back into rotation :)
Photo of a man’s wrist on which he is wearing a chunky dive watch on a thick, maroon coloured NATO strap. In the background of the photo is a dog being walked on a red leash.
Two trains pass each other at a level crossing.
One train goes left-to-right…
Photo of a Metro Melbourne train going down the tracks at a level crossing. The photographer is standing only a short distance away from the tracks. The train is in clear focus, while the rest of the photo is artistically motion blurred.
One train goes right-to-left…
Photo of a motion-blurred, blue coloured train zipping down the tracks at a level crossing. The photographer is standing only a short distance away from the tracks.
Both photos were taken with a Pixel 6 Pro smartphone. The first photo used the ‘action pan’ camera feature, while the second used the ‘long exposure’ feature.
Caught the edge of the thunderstorm that passed by our suburb a couple of hours ago.
Photo of several layers of clouds covering half of a bright blue sky above a house. The lowest layer of clouds is quite dark, while the uppermost layer has rays of sunlight breaking through the gaps.
The down side of working from home during the pandemic is that I haven’t had the opportunity to walk around the city taking photos with my (still relatively new) Pixel 6 Pro phone camera system. Which is why you mostly get snaps of Maggie either at home or in and around our neighbourhood. So here are a few train photos I’ve taken over the last few weeks.
Here’s a long exposure of a V/Line train arriving at Southern Cross station. That was taken the last time I went into the office before my year-end break.
Photo of a train pulling into a platform across from the photographer. The photo is a long exposure, so the moving train has motion blur and is slightly transparent.
Here’s one of a train zipping along the tracks from Newport to Laverton stations. I’m really enjoying playing with the various motion photo features available in the Pixel 6 Pro camera.
Photo of a Metro Melbourne train running down train tracks behind a line of trees.
And here’s one of a freight train running down that same bit of track at the southern end of Newport. This time I’m making use of the zoom lenses available on this smartphone.
Photo of a freight train running down train tracks behind the tree line at the end of a residential street. The phrase ‘MULTI-FRIEGHTER’ is written on the side of a the khaki coloured boxcar that’s visible through the trees.
I expect to be going into the office at least a couple of days a week from early next year, so I’m looking forward to taking and sharing more photos then.
Keeping an eye on its owner while he’s stepped to Leroy’s Café to grab a coffee.
Photo of a black and tan French bulldog wearing a blue and white polka dot vest. The dog is tied to a pole with a blue leash outside a café. It is leaning to one side so it can peek through the door at its owner, who is inside the café.
This is personal website of Nadia Niaz and Ameel Zia Khan. Here we document our lives in Melbourne, Australia.
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia