In training for the ongoing Pigeon-Duck Conflict (depicted several times on here), Bob completes his latest bout of callisthenics with close supervision from the sergeant-majors. He’ll soon be ready for action down at the marina, where it’s rumoured there are also geese about, so he needs to work on those reaction times.
I notice that almost exactly three years ago, on 7/10/21, I illustrated that there were still plums on our tree (albeit being eaten by insects). This year, those fruit were all gone by the end of August. But it’s time for the apple tree to pay off. It never matches the production rate of its neighbour, but it does just fine each year. On this shot I note also the matching car behind (yes, our kitchen is that close to the road).
At this time of year, good weather needs to be used — there may not be a great deal more of it for a while. It was too nice an afternoon to be spent sat around indoors, so a walk along the canal was mandated. I have a number of pictures that follow this same general theme today.
Five minutes into the second half, and the cue came to watch the rest of the game from inside the clubhouse at Huddersfield Amateur FC (a place that has been seen before). Perhaps the visiting team, in orange, might have wished to join us, as they were at least 8 goals down by this point and we were nowhere near the end.
Calling a band an ‘institution’ is something of a double-edged compliment, as it suggests they have been around a while — and the local Hebden Bridge institution that is (or are) the Owter Zeds were, indeed, celebrating their 40th anniversary at the Trades Club tonight, a gig I came all the way back from London to attend. And plenty of fun it was; if you like a bit of ska, you could do worse. The sax player gets on the blog for the second time, the first being over 10 years ago, when they were mere striplings of just 30 years’ experience.
A Friday night in London, but not for leisure purposes. Technically, I am working here tomorrow. Arrival at my place of residence tonight (a Travelodge, nothing glamourous or particularly metropolitan) was not until about 15 minutes after this was taken.
Still, there is nothing wrong with being in London — it’s a fine city and that fact certainly explains why this is the fourth-most depicted place on the blog, this is shot number 144 from London, meaning it’s appeared roughly once every 33 days, or only just less than once a month on average.
Did nothing except trug into campus by the usual routes, do my thing, and trug home again. The usual routes take me through Chinatown, of which Manchester has a large example, the third biggest in Europe if you believe the hype. And I do — it is hard not to, bearing in mind the ethnic composition of my classes at the present time.
It’s been over a month since I categorised a post as ‘Landscape’, which may suggest I’ve not been getting out much, but I did find an excuse to hang out in Rochdale on this pleasant, bright evening. As might be obvious, this is taken with a very long zoom, and I like the way the shot suggests a random collection of objects kind of poking out of various bits of land (note the antenna skulking around at the very back hoping nobody notices it). The tower on the right is not that of a church, but of Rochdale’s magnificent Town Hall. What the red-and-blue arrangement to the left is — you tell me.
Our Clare gets herself about the world entirely adequately on foot these days, meaning that I haven’t noticed any used of this bicycle for at least ten years, probably more. It still sits on our front doorstep though, being gradually colonised by grass and whatever strange growth is currently dying off on the other side of the fence. Perhaps, one day, it will move again — but I doubt this will be with anyone sitting on it.
Another lecture, only this time I am facing front instead of at the front. For several Mondays over the next few months I will be a student again: the subject, you can see for yourself. ‘Hogwarts’ is, in fact, the Historic Reading Room of the John Rylands Library; a spectacular setting for a class, and somehow appropriate (though this was opened in 1901 and is detinitely not a medieval construction). But by next time I hope they’ve turned the heating on. Mr Rylands himself, or his statue, at least, pokes up behind the screen.
Being 42 