January 13th – Now, this is winter at last. Riding homeward at 6pm, the air temperature according to the ride computer was -2.4 degrees C. It felt it too.
That morning had shown a light, wet dusting of snow, and it half-heartedly snowed during the late evening, too.
I’d like a bit of snow, or some good hard frosts.Come on then, weather… show us what you’re made of.
January 13th – I was grumbling uphill in Bradford Street, Walsall, and a piece of fresh graffiti art caught my eye. In light of the recent grumbles I’ve been having about the weather, it seemed like a message from fate.
In the last couple of days I had a message from a good friend and reader of this journal ‘Stop moaning about the rain!’
I shall try, promise. There’s always hope, after all.
January 13th – And there you go, it can’t even manage 24 hours dry at the moment. Another soaking on the way home – and it was cold too, with the temperature hovering just above zero degrees.
I stopped to adjust my scarf at Maybrook Road and took two quick shots. They look wet, cold and desolate and that’s just how it was.
January 12th – this was around 3:30pm, during the rains. I was soaked, and cold. Every single light was red and the traffic was doing the mad things it always does when we have rain.
I keep saying I think I’m developing webbed feet. Shelve that. At the moment I’m considering a coat of Cuprinol to stave off wet rot…
January 12th – A better day health and mood-wise, but not in terms of the weather. I had to go to Droitwich, and got wet on the way. On my return, it was sunny in Worcestershire and Birmingham; as I got to Walsall near 3pm, the sky blackened and dusk seemed to fall early.
The sky was incredible, seen here at Station Street in Walsall, just as the rain started.. The following downpour? Not so much.
January 9th – Out for a spin around Stonnall before the rains came again, I spotted another sign of the odd season. The sign announcing one’s entry to Stonnall out by the church has a planter at its base; in the planter, a variety of flowers are in bloom, including heather, ornamental daisies and primroses. I have no idea what the plant is with the orange, marble-sized fruits, but it looks familiar and is very attractive.
A nice dash of colour on a grey day – my compliments to the folk who tend these lovely village features.
January 8th – A rushed day in which I went to work, came back mid afternoon, did a couple of jobs at home, then had to dash here, there and everywhere on errands.
Sadly, in all the hubbub I failed to notice the camera was accidentally set in some awful scene mode and all my pictures came out horrid, except these.
I had to zip to Walsall Wood, then over to Shenstone, calling at Stonnall on the way back. The sunset was beautiful, and it felt like the air was warming up again.
The water, though: everywhere. Everything is saturated from all the rain. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a winter like this. I thought Christmas 2013 was wet, but it was nothing in comparison.
January 7th – The canal is still chewy, to say the least, particularly after another day’s heavy rain. But the overflow at Clayhanger was flowing well and made a reasonable photo, again in the bike light.
Also, at Catshill Junction, now the leaves are off the scrub, the lights of the new Courtyard development compliment Humphries House well.
Let’s hope there’s some real winter rolling in now…
January 4th – A wet commute both ways; not full on rain, but periodic drizzle. It was a clingy, cold kind of wet that soaked you without actually doing much.
Fed up of the traffic on the way home, I hopped on to the canal at Walsall Wood – a real mistake. Everything is saturated, and the mud and puddles are endless.
January 3rd – A late, wet spin around Brownhills after another very, very wet day. Thankfully, I had a huge amount of paperwork to do for work, so at least I didn’t feel so bad about missing a decent cycling day.
Brownhills was wet, dank, and once again, oddly warm. I hardly saw a soul, and the only sounds were my wheels squelching through the puddles and of water flowing endlessly into drains.
I think I’d be better at this rate flogging the bike and starting 365daysofcanoeing…
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