Those who have followed my writing for a few years will find several recurring themes. My worries about climate change and the loss of nature may be the first ones that come to mind, and my love for nature in all its beauty and diversity is another prominent theme. These dunes are always beautiful, and the changes in the season, the time of day, and the weather create an ever-changing palette of colors that never ceases to amaze me. For many, this landscape is a far cry from the green of springtime with its blossoming flowers and thus less attractive now, but I love this different world of a frozen brownish and grey landscape during a winter heatwave.
Daily I'm looking forward to your writings. My eMail box is pretty bleak without a worldly story or photo from you to enjoy, and learn from. Or an article to pass on to a friend.
Thank you, Alexander, I sincerely appreciate your efforts ! Goed zo!
Taken on a walk through almost palpable moments. A perfect wandering between the dualities of the now and the next. Pleasures, reasons and concerns are in layers within words. A shared world from the photographer, the writer and the participant. We, the avid and faithful readers, once again, waiting for the next trails.
Hello Alexander. I certainly enjoy reading your writings and seeing the amazing pictures. To me, this one is a perfect example of what brings joy.
From reading about your interest in Vincent Van Gogh to the perils of koala bears to the multitude of subjects that are of interest. And then to present such calming, beautiful scenery with your descriptions. This all resonates with me and brings a nice perspective to life on this planet.
How very interesting are your photos, walks, commentary on our fragile planet 🌎. I identify with your varied interests for perhaps an unusual reason. I became disabled in 2016, mobility impaired and so discovered the internet late in life.
Always a person to jump up and move, I can no longer do that. Worse yet, fell on 01/14/2022 a “day of infamy” for myself, fractured my femur badly thus aggravating my pre-existing problems; I am not a “victim” at all! I now have the opportunity to research anything at all, an idea, place, word, person pops into my head and off I go on a “knowledge quest.” Any time of the day or night, my devices are available. I have learned more since 2016 than I ever did before &
appreciate the entire planet 🌎 more than ever. I can share on various platforms although still a novice since arriving so late to the concept! I can go along on your lovely active walks and appreciate what you see through your photos. It is a joy and I thank you for the opportunity to visit places unknown to me and ideas 💡 new and refreshing! Being homebound in “my space” has been a blessing not foreseen. 🤗
Thank you Judith for sharing this. What a brave and positive outlook on life. I'm happy to know that when I share images of what I have seen, online friends and newsletter supporters like you walk with me and also enjoy what I experienced.
What a wonderful piece of writing. I really enjoyed that. I love your dune pictures and those reflections were well worth bending your knees for. Thank you for sharing.
I believe it happens when you’re appreciative of life in general and have multiple interests. It would be great to see a list of books that you enjoy reading on the various subjects that you write about. I know that you like photography and posted about the Yousuf Karsh on Twitter...
Hello Alexander and thank you for your nice and heartfelt newsletter. I like your sincere lines and your frankness resonates like your beautiful fotos through which I almost can feel the wintery vivid January air of your home region.
Added to the variety of your interests and joy I sense some sorrow mainly for the damage humans are causing and continue to do to the natural surroundings and planet. And there I read your constant preoccupation for the preservation of nature and livelihood. Thank you very much for persevering.
Hey, Alex! Like Lizzie Pi, I, too, particularly loved this piece, and I gotta say, I would love to read some of those “hardly known histories.” Yet again, I was totally drawn into the extraordinary world of your island. Each journey I make there, on the backs of your words and images, is as new for me as it is for you! Someday I will go there.
My friend Sierra goes to the same stretch of beach every morning at dawn and she comes back with amazing photographs. I start my day by looking at this one quarter mile of Los Angeles coast and it’s as if it’s a different place each time. I think I’ve shared some of these photographs with you. Over the years, I’ve watched migrations of birds and dolphins, seen hundreds of ‘new’ beaches carved out by the sea, and marveled at clouds so pink they look like they’re on loan from some FX team working on the latest big budget fantasy film. Sometimes the sea is almost like glass. Other times, as it has been recently, the waves are wild and dark, shooting sprays of white mist off the foam of their curls. And I have an album with at least a 100 photos of cloud reflections in the canal just behind the beach. I’m pretty sure I’ve posted some of them on Twitter and you may have seen them. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything quite like them. I wish there was a way to post photos here in the comments. 
But the most comforting thing about this piece was your description of the way your brain works. I identified completely. Mine, too, is insatiable for knowledge in dozens of fields. Sometimes I think I might’ve been an architect or an anthropologist, a journalist or a coder. Like nature herself, her multitudes of flora and fauna and intricate patterns and purposes, my brain has so many interests, has wandered down so many different paths. I have often seen it as a curse, but also an asset. It’s always comforting to know there are others of my kind. Thx for that.
I haven’t been a regular on twitter these days, either, but when I’m there, I miss seeing you as regularly in my feed as I used to.
Thank you, Alexis, there are some spots that I pass that I keep photographing, some day I should do a post of ten photos of the same spot at different times and seasons, like Monet used to return to the same haystacks or cathedral or Cezanne to his Mont Sainte-Victoire (leading me many years ago to making stage changes in my route when driving in France, I wanted to see why he saw). For twitter: I am just as active as always, but Musk has given my account a lower priority since he doesn't agree with my views. Just give some tweets likes and retweets to tell Twitter that you are interested in my tweets. They should then pop up higher on your timeline. Or make list with the accounts that you really don't want to miss en browse there first before you go to the general home page with all accounts you follow.
Even though I know your work as that of a climate expert, diplomat, and social scientist, I'm now viewing your work as that of an eco-journalist too!
A theme that has emerged is "walking." It facilitates myriad goals, such as being 'on the ground' to cover a situation, for up-close study and documentation and reporting, in addition to being fabulously healthy. Bravo!
🌻
Daily I'm looking forward to your writings. My eMail box is pretty bleak without a worldly story or photo from you to enjoy, and learn from. Or an article to pass on to a friend.
Thank you, Alexander, I sincerely appreciate your efforts ! Goed zo!
Taken on a walk through almost palpable moments. A perfect wandering between the dualities of the now and the next. Pleasures, reasons and concerns are in layers within words. A shared world from the photographer, the writer and the participant. We, the avid and faithful readers, once again, waiting for the next trails.
"Readers would know what to expect when they see my name."
My expectations are to "discover something wonderful," and I'm never disappointed. I'm sure many others feel the same way. 😊
Hello Alexander. I certainly enjoy reading your writings and seeing the amazing pictures. To me, this one is a perfect example of what brings joy.
From reading about your interest in Vincent Van Gogh to the perils of koala bears to the multitude of subjects that are of interest. And then to present such calming, beautiful scenery with your descriptions. This all resonates with me and brings a nice perspective to life on this planet.
Thank you
How very interesting are your photos, walks, commentary on our fragile planet 🌎. I identify with your varied interests for perhaps an unusual reason. I became disabled in 2016, mobility impaired and so discovered the internet late in life.
Always a person to jump up and move, I can no longer do that. Worse yet, fell on 01/14/2022 a “day of infamy” for myself, fractured my femur badly thus aggravating my pre-existing problems; I am not a “victim” at all! I now have the opportunity to research anything at all, an idea, place, word, person pops into my head and off I go on a “knowledge quest.” Any time of the day or night, my devices are available. I have learned more since 2016 than I ever did before &
appreciate the entire planet 🌎 more than ever. I can share on various platforms although still a novice since arriving so late to the concept! I can go along on your lovely active walks and appreciate what you see through your photos. It is a joy and I thank you for the opportunity to visit places unknown to me and ideas 💡 new and refreshing! Being homebound in “my space” has been a blessing not foreseen. 🤗
Thank you Judith for sharing this. What a brave and positive outlook on life. I'm happy to know that when I share images of what I have seen, online friends and newsletter supporters like you walk with me and also enjoy what I experienced.
What a wonderful piece of writing. I really enjoyed that. I love your dune pictures and those reflections were well worth bending your knees for. Thank you for sharing.
I believe it happens when you’re appreciative of life in general and have multiple interests. It would be great to see a list of books that you enjoy reading on the various subjects that you write about. I know that you like photography and posted about the Yousuf Karsh on Twitter...
I'm trying to buy fewer books ... but I would love that too. Great idea.
Hello Alexander and thank you for your nice and heartfelt newsletter. I like your sincere lines and your frankness resonates like your beautiful fotos through which I almost can feel the wintery vivid January air of your home region.
Added to the variety of your interests and joy I sense some sorrow mainly for the damage humans are causing and continue to do to the natural surroundings and planet. And there I read your constant preoccupation for the preservation of nature and livelihood. Thank you very much for persevering.
Hey, Alex! Like Lizzie Pi, I, too, particularly loved this piece, and I gotta say, I would love to read some of those “hardly known histories.” Yet again, I was totally drawn into the extraordinary world of your island. Each journey I make there, on the backs of your words and images, is as new for me as it is for you! Someday I will go there.
My friend Sierra goes to the same stretch of beach every morning at dawn and she comes back with amazing photographs. I start my day by looking at this one quarter mile of Los Angeles coast and it’s as if it’s a different place each time. I think I’ve shared some of these photographs with you. Over the years, I’ve watched migrations of birds and dolphins, seen hundreds of ‘new’ beaches carved out by the sea, and marveled at clouds so pink they look like they’re on loan from some FX team working on the latest big budget fantasy film. Sometimes the sea is almost like glass. Other times, as it has been recently, the waves are wild and dark, shooting sprays of white mist off the foam of their curls. And I have an album with at least a 100 photos of cloud reflections in the canal just behind the beach. I’m pretty sure I’ve posted some of them on Twitter and you may have seen them. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything quite like them. I wish there was a way to post photos here in the comments. 
But the most comforting thing about this piece was your description of the way your brain works. I identified completely. Mine, too, is insatiable for knowledge in dozens of fields. Sometimes I think I might’ve been an architect or an anthropologist, a journalist or a coder. Like nature herself, her multitudes of flora and fauna and intricate patterns and purposes, my brain has so many interests, has wandered down so many different paths. I have often seen it as a curse, but also an asset. It’s always comforting to know there are others of my kind. Thx for that.
I haven’t been a regular on twitter these days, either, but when I’m there, I miss seeing you as regularly in my feed as I used to.
Thank you, Alexis, there are some spots that I pass that I keep photographing, some day I should do a post of ten photos of the same spot at different times and seasons, like Monet used to return to the same haystacks or cathedral or Cezanne to his Mont Sainte-Victoire (leading me many years ago to making stage changes in my route when driving in France, I wanted to see why he saw). For twitter: I am just as active as always, but Musk has given my account a lower priority since he doesn't agree with my views. Just give some tweets likes and retweets to tell Twitter that you are interested in my tweets. They should then pop up higher on your timeline. Or make list with the accounts that you really don't want to miss en browse there first before you go to the general home page with all accounts you follow.
Even though I know your work as that of a climate expert, diplomat, and social scientist, I'm now viewing your work as that of an eco-journalist too!
A theme that has emerged is "walking." It facilitates myriad goals, such as being 'on the ground' to cover a situation, for up-close study and documentation and reporting, in addition to being fabulously healthy. Bravo!