Tag: island

#365daysofbiking A completed job

Saturday December 12th 2020 – One thing that had been a bit sad about the Christmas tree going up on the miner island in Brownhills was that there seemed to be an electrical fault with the existing, permanently installed lights on the trees around Morris. When the tree was connected, these stayed resolutely off and we assumed there was some terminal flaw.

Thankfully, council electrical wonks attended, and have got the lights working again, for which we are all grateful: Morris now has that Vegas sparkle returned and he is surrounded by festive sparkle.

A job well done, and seen through to completion: Thanks to all involved!

You can find out more about, and donate to the Brownhills Christmas Tree Appeal by clicking here.

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#365daysofbiking Tree cheers


Monday December 7th 2020 – Thanks to the tenacity and dedication of Susan Forster and friends who work so hard to raise money and organise the provision, Brownhills finally had it’s second festive community Christmas tree lit up on the miner island for all to enjoy.

Some electrical issues and council staffing difficulties meant it was a few days late, but no less excellent and very, very festive for us all to admire.

The tree is paid for like every other local tree in Walsall Borough by community donation and commercial support, and the volunteers have worked like demons to sort this out. The first tree they organised was in 2019, and that was the first we’d had in Brownhills for over a decade.

My thanks and best wishes to the all. You can find out more and make a donation at their Facebook page by clicking here.

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#365daysofbiking Mad about the mouse

Thursday November 19th 2020 – I’d been to Telford early, but had to get back to Bilston for the afternoon, so I headed south from the station on Ring Road St. Davids and made my way into the subway system to emerge onto the Bilston Road.

In the paved sub-roadway level – always a bit shady and intimidating here – I noticed a neat but unsettling stencil by local artist Skore.

Mickey Mouse with a dagger, dripping with blood.

It’s a brilliant subversion of a sugary sweet Disney character, if a bit grim, but in the position it is it’s a rather dark comment on the location.

Skore has even succeeded in giving murderous Mickey a quite unpleasant facial expression.

It really made me stop and look. A brilliant bit of urban art in a very unexpected place.

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#365daysofbiking Ghost town

April 4th – A trip out to buy essentials – once a casual, carefree, incidental thing – is now a mission. It involves queueing, or planning which shops to visit who might have stock of what you need.

Nothing is simple anymore. Everything is an extra effort, or requires planning or more time. Even finding a curry or getting fish and chips.

In Aldridge, mid Saturday afternoon. There was the odd, waiting, mostly empty bus. The supermarkets – Morrisons, Home Bargains, Iceland – were steady, but with social isolation measures, a queue to get in each made shopping tortuous.

And then, beyond the carparks this… sunlit ghost town.

These are the strangest days I’ve ever known, or will again.

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#365daysofbiking Fruition

November 29th – Popping up the hHigh Street at teatime, I noticed the first community funded Christmas tree for Brownhills was now up and lit for the season.

This is a real proof of the power of community – volunteers raised the money and paid for the tree to be erected entirely on their own volition and it’s a beautiful testament to the power of community.

Our first Christmas tree in a decade, I think… well done to all involved: Take a bow!

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#365daysofbiking Leave a light on for me

 

December 22nd – Homecoming, late, and a ride around Brownhills before bed.

Finally, due to hard work by members of the local committee, the Christmas lights on the miner island, as well as those on Morris himself have been fixed, so just in time for the festive season, my favourite icon of home is bright and proud ant night once more.

A great thing to come home to. Thanks to all involved.

This journal is moving home. Please find out more by clicking here.

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365daysofbiking Decent, enough:

October 6th – From the wailing and gnashing of the NIMBYs of Aldridge, anyone would think that the block of apartments planned for the long derelict land right at the bottom of High Street on the Elms Island would be some monstrous, hideous carbuncle that didn’t fit with it’s surroundings at all.

Studying it closely while in the village of 26,000 on Saturday afternoon, I actually decided I quite liked it. I’m not fond of the flat roof, which is a cop out in design terms, but the rest of it is an interesting blend of textures and colours, and is actually quite bland, really. It’s not too big, it certainly doesn’t block light to the hHigh Street as some alleged and it seems a good match for the rather stark pub nearby.

I’m sure the elderly folk it’s built for will enjoy living close to the amenities of the ‘village’ centre, too, and it will help keep the local retailers busy.

It seems a decent thing to me.

December 22nd – Often if I’ve had a long day away, I come to see Morris, the Brownhills Colossus, as his creator John McKenna called him. I have mixed feelings that are well known about the origins and personal politics surrounding Morris, the Brownhills Miner but I do love him to bits. Seeing this 30 foot demonstration of finite element modelling always makes me feel at home now.

Just wish they’d fix the spotlights.

I love how, at Christmas, the lights on the trees give the sculpture a little bit of a ‘Last performance at Vegas feel.

We’ve all got a bit of Vegas in us. Especially Morris. 

Rock on my metal mate. Rock on.

September 12th – Remember that traffic island planted with wildflowers I found in Tipton way back in the summer? I passed it again today in the sunshine and it’s still very, very beautiful.

Although the huge mass of flowers is gone now, there are still plenty of diverse, beautiful and understated blooms attracting bees and bugs. And it still gladdens the heart.

When people tell you we live in a dreary, ugly, industrial place, think of this, and smile.

July 25th – On an unexpectedly sunny afternoon, travelling between Tipton and Darlaston at 3pm, this gem looked splendid indeed.

On the island at the bottom of Owen Street – Tipton’s High Street – just by Coronation Gardens, Sandwell Council planted the centre with wildflower seeds. This is the result.

It’s gorgeous, captivating and a joy to the heart. Thank you to whoever did this, it’s a real act of beauty.

The Black Country: It ay all chimmocks and grime these days…