Tag: beautiful

January 9th – Oh my, what a gorgeous puss this one is, a garden wall sentry in the Butts, Walsall.

Uninterested in me until I called, it was watching human proceedings down the street. An impressive neighbourhood presence, I suspect someone loves this one a great deal.

I think the cats must be emerging out of frustration. I later saw, but was unable to photograph a black puss hunting on the wasteland at Bentley Mill Way. I’m not used to seeing cats this active in the dead of winter.

Welcome though. Most welcome…

January 3rd – I was being watched, and I had a feeling this particular ball of floof didn’t care much for me at all. In fact, it looked positively hostile.

I was heading up to Walsall Wood on an errand, and I saw him in a canalside garden at the back of Lindon Drive, just near Catshill Junction. On the far side of the canal, I was in what must have been forbidden territory to the cat, and I’ve often wondered what canal cats make of life on the bank they can rarely get to.

Make no mistake, this is a stunning puss with gorgeous eyes. Someone loves this fine feline dearly. I just think he wanted to end me.

Still, nice to see a cat in Winter. Bit of a rarity at the moment…

December 21st – I had to return to Shenstone to pick something up I’d spotted the day before, so rode over there on my way back from Darlaston. 

Whilst there, a lovely, Christmassy, almost Dickensian image – the florist’s shop, closed for the night, but subtly festive.

Really into this Solstice/Chrismas thing now. And there’s a big reason for that….

December 20th – Returning through Shenstone, I popped into the village to the shop on an errand. Coming back down the village, I was reminded what a handsome pub The Railway is.

The extension in the foreground was once a chapel, then a butcher’s shop, but is now part of the stone-flagged lounge and has a large window it’s great to sit by and watch the world go by.

A lovely pub I’d almost forgotten about.

December 15th – In Walsall Wood for a takeaway, and the church looked beautiful with the Christmas tree in front like that. I was tired, it was late, and a snatched mobile phone picture.

I was glad of the ice tyres, though: there was black ice everywhere and it was a cold, hard night.

December 12th – Off to Telford in the early morning in temperatures pushing minus 6 with a fresh fall of snow the night before. Blake Street Station looked oddly eerie in the dawn light and pure white, and as the electric 323 train rolled in past a familiar view of the Sutton Mast going in the opposite direction, the pantograph pickup arced continuously and noisily due to the ice on the catenary wires.

A mesmerising sight,  I couldn’t help wondering if ithe 25,000 volt arc degraded the pickup carbons or just burnt of the ice. 

Something you don’t witness too often, that.

December 10th – They say things come to those who wait, and overnight between Saturday and Sunday someone turned on the celestial snow machine. At it was still running when I headed out mid afternoon into a Brownhills Narnia.

Too deep and soft to ride much in, I was content with a loop around Brownhills to Chasewater in a pristine white landscape the looked stunning. If this hung around it would cause traffic mayhem, but I didn’t care: It was a long time since I’d seen snow this deep and I revelled in it.

Snow really brings out my inner child.

December 9th – Lichfield Food Festival was huge, and very busy. I dined on tasty burgers, sweet treats and some rather divine curry goat. I bought cheese and treats and enjoyed a busy afternoon in the city, feeling very festive in the dying light. It was much better than I expected and I had a great time.

Sadly, all the food took it’s toll and the ride back was arduous. But as ever, Lichfield at Christmas was a joy. I’m glad I went, but a bit more snow would have made it perfect.