Tag: cock

#365daysofbiking A dark chicken

January 9th – One of the more comedic things about curating this journal and blog is that I comment a lot about a geographical local feature with a very amusing name – the Black Cock bridge. Named after the pub nearby, the Black Cock has long been the source of much schoolboy innuendo and humour, but is actually a decent, old fashioned pub that always looks welcoming when I pass, particularly on a dull winter evening.

It does, of course, have a far cruder colloquial name I shan’t detail.

However, I do love the thought of sweaty-palmed people banging Black Cock into search engines, which then return multiple hits to this journal rather than the desired subject…

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September 27th – The wet, dark, mentally arduous commute season has started.

Welcome to the suck.

And people wonder why I hate the dark months…

Filmed real time. Music is Mainframe ‘Take me Home’ – a lost classic.

(Source: https://player.vimeo.com/)

June 14th – I notice that on the embankment on the north side of the Black Cock Bridge in Walsall Wood, the vipers bugloss is flowering again. In 2014, this was very prolific, in full bloom for about 20-30 metres, but now is sadly confined to just the one clump.

A beautiful flower though, and one I’ve not seen anywhere else locally. 

October 18th – Another lovely golden hour, this time as I came through Walsall Wood and the Black Cock Bridge. The sun reflected off the golden leaves beautifully and rendered the farmhouse precious.

As the sun receded further, the skies were dramatic over Clayhanger, too. 

The sunsets at this time of year are fantastic.

May 29th – In the meadow behind Alder Mill, just north of Atherstone, this pair of huge black cocks.

I have no idea, but just like imagining the faces of hopeful Googlers finding this post at some point in the future and being somewhat disappointed.

Interestingly, these cocks are only a a few hundred yards from a place called King Dick’s Hole.

Think I’m joking? Check a map.

August 5th – Another saying my Grandfather used to use a lot was ‘It’s always a good year for something.’ On this, the old man – who lived life much more connected to nature than I – was bang on. Every year, every season, is detrimental to something and benificial to something else.

This year we have an absolute wealth of early blackberries. They, sycamore,  horse chestnut and beech appear to have done very well indeed. Oak and fruit seem to have had a very bad year. This is the first acorn I’ve seen – last year, the boughs were heavy with crab apples, damsons, cherries and acorns. This year, very few. Rowan, Hawthorn and cotoneaster seem to be doing reasonably well, though.

I guess it’s just how the weather falls. One late frost and the fruit crops are ruined…