Tag: Blake street

November 19th – An unexpectedly grim commute home. Late trains, packed in like sardines, rain and a gusting wind. It’s not looking much better for tomorrow morning, either. Alighting at Blake Street for a change (and hopefully a tailwind) the station looked grim and harsh in the drizzle. It’s about time we all gave this winter lark up as a bad job…

November 9th – I’m fascinated by this bit of structural joinery at Blake Street Station. It’s nothing more than the wooden frame supporting the access steps to the Birmingham bound platform, but the way they’re erected is a work of art. At the base, they’re chocked level with two pairs  of perfectly cut reverse acting wedges. You don’t see that very often these days. I’d be interested to know how old this assembly is – had it been crated today, it would be a steel framework with jacking bolts, so it must be at least 2 or 3 decades old. The precision of the wedges makes me smile every time I see them. That was a joiner who understood his art.

October 16th – It’s all about the autumn colour right now. I was going to split these images down into two separate posts, but they’re all the same set, really. It’s been gusty and chilly, and the leaves have really started to fall now. I noticed council workmen sweeping them up in Acocks Green, and they’re turning even the most mundane alleyways into emerald gold arcades. How fantastic is autumn? Beautiful – but winter is such a price to pay…

November 22nd – Oh look, another station. This time, it’s Blake Street near Sutton Coldfield at about 7:00am, after what must have been the worst commute in four years. I saw data recently that suggested a very low percentage chance of ever actually having to commute in the rain – which, in my experience, stacks up. Today, however, it rained solid and heavily into my face for 30 minutes. I was wearing good waterproofs, but I was still damp and dejected when I got to the station. Still, it wasn’t as bad for me as it must have been for the guy I passed pushing a stricken motorbike up from Mill Green towards Shire Oak. He looked really, really pissed off…