Grass on lith

It's hard to resist grass or stone of any description when you have a fair idea how it will turn out in lith developer.  In this case, I was down by the River Bann one morning a while back and only got round to printing it the other day.  I can't get the scan to look anything like the print but it's the best I can do in the time available...

Grass by the River Bann.  Hasselblad/HP5+/Fotospeed lith on Foma 131 paper

This was taken on the West bank of the river, looking East.  To get there, I have to drive through Coleraine and then take the road to Castlerock.  There's a smattering of houses down near the river and a bird hide for those who want to see the wading birds on the mudflats - curlews, greenshanks, heron are all fairly common, as are ducks of various varieties.  I used to go there when I was young but haven't been for years - you're too far from the birds for photographs, so it's 'scopes only.

As I turned down the side road to the river I could see a tractor and trailer combination coming up towards me, albeit some way away.  I did the decent thing and pulled into the verge and waited.  Now usually in these parts this would result in an acknowledgement of some sort by the tractor driver - a hand or a nod of the head.  Not so on this occasion.  He looked directly at me but pointedly did not raise his hand or acknowledge my action in any way.  Interesting.  There are two possible reasons, I reckon.  Either he's just plain rude and reckoned that since he was about 20 times bigger than me I had no choice other than to pull over and so Why should he thank me?  Or, he's a local and this is his road and What business did I have in driving down here anyway?  Thankfully people like that are still rare enough in these parts (although perhaps getting more common, sad to say).   Most country drivers understand 'the code' and a hand or sometimes just a finger lifted off the steering wheel is enough to acknowledge the presence and decency of the other driver.  I've been in vehicles driven by older people who lift a hand to every car they pass on a country road - as if it's a throwback to times when cars were uncommon and everyone knew everyone else in their locality.  Nowadays of course no-one knows anyone (except those who live next door to you) and so these customs are dying out, to be replaced by....nothing.  All too often these days it feels like it's every man (and woman) for themselves.