Tuesday 1st December 2020, 8.15am (day 3,386)
The traffic lights say go, for what cars there are. No social commentary today, I just like the effect of a fairly long zoom down Brook Street, taken on my way to the office.
Brook Street, Manchester
Being 42
Life, one day at a time
Category Archives: Urban scene
A coming together (Jupiter & Saturn)
Monday 30th November 2020, 5.30pm (day 3,385)
Mondays have hardly been the most exciting days recently, even by present standards. But while, in no way, a decent photograph aesthetically, this is at least interesting. What you see here are Jupiter (the brighter one) and Saturn setting over Hebden Bridge, seen from my home. I did not realise this until today but apparently these planets are almost due to touch (from our perspective) on 21st December; the closest apparent conjunction since 1623. One to look out for, if you have any interest in astronomy.
This is the first time I have knowingly had Saturn in my viewfinder, and seeing as I had managed in the past to get a decent shot of Jupiter and its moons with my camera I did try for the rings. No joy — though the blurry disc I did get was, definitely, squashed-looking.
Waiting at the tram stop
Thursday 26th November 2020, 8.00am (day 3,381)
Here I am still going into Manchester a couple of days a week, largely because it gets the step count up. I will try not to get symbolic and just observe that I like this picture because of the various chunks of detail, which seem to lay over one another like a collage, particularly on the right hand side. And the pigeon which sneaked itself in.
Sunset view
Tuesday 24th November 2020, 3.55pm (day 3,379)
Went into Manchester and back, and did hope to get a photo from there to provide more variety to the locations. But it’s been a while since the view from the house at sunset made it: and today seemed a good day to return to that theme. Red sky at night is good news, right?
Wall artist, in blue
Saturday 14th November 2020, 2.05pm (day 3,369)
I thought as I walked past this guy, at first, that his facial mask was somewhat excessive even for the present. Then I saw what he was doing. It’s a way of stopping people painting ‘JOHNSON OUT’ on this wall, at least.
Dead Chinatown
Tuesday 10th November 2020, 4.20pm (day 3,365)
I’m not an economic expert, but I’ve been observing. Just audible at the moment, over the general silence of our cities, is a quiet but ominous creaking. If the arbitrary closures go on any longer than December 2nd, and the busiest month of the year is taken away from businesses like shops and pubs, expect to lose most of the independently-owned ones by March. I think Boris Johnson knows this, but the question is whether he cares enough.
On the bridge
Monday 9th November 2020, 4.15pm (day 3,364)
The family that texts together, survives house arrest together. One of the few signs of human life in Hebden Bridge this afternoon.
Mackerel sky
Friday 6th November 2020, 2.30pm (day 3,361)
Now that’s a mackerel sky if ever there was one. A change in the weather is on the way…
Halls of (permanent) residence
Tuesday 3rd November 2020, 12.05pm (day 3,358)
The fact that I am still going to campus, and intend to go two or three days a week through November, suggests that ‘lockdown’ as a concept is an even bigger con this time round than it was in March. The students in this hall have paid great sums of money and — in many cases — travelled thousands of miles to be in Manchester, but we can’t even see them from across a twenty-foot room. What do we do about it? I dunno, disobey somehow. At least the leaves are still just about hanging on.
Darkness falls
Wednesday 28th October 2020, 4.50pm (day 3,352)
I’ve given up wondering whether I’m being metaphorical or not. Fact is it’s that first week after the clocks go back, and dusk oppresses us an hour or more earlier than it did last week. Winter is coming. The Christmas lights are ready.
Being 42 