May 10th – Just in the Walsall Wood border country, a new leisure centre is being built at Oak Park, on the playing field of the earlier 1970s one.
In the middle of a huge building site, I realise that now the election is over, that must be what they did with Ed Miliband’s block of stone.
Curious, but nice to know it’s not going to waste…
March 17th – Maybe it’s some chemical in the water, or the heavy urban atmosphere, but a strain of really huge swans have started breeding in Walsall Arboretum pool.
It’s been a long time since we had boating on Hatherton Lake; tragedies and expense seemed to finish it for good – but a private operator has tendered to operate these cute pedaloes – and why not?
Users will have life jackets, and a whale of a time I’m sure. A great idea. Just watch out for Brer Alligator, and of course, the famous Plastic Hippo who dwells grumpily in the deep.
I could actually be persuaded off my bike if someone could fit one of these things with an engine. I could cruise about town, in a flying hat and goggles.
Stately, indeed.
Perhaps they should try it with the Mayor first – I can really see it suiting Smithy’s style – and we could flog the new jag. Win-win.
March 6th – And elsewhere too, on the canal, signs of spring. At Walsall Wood bridge, butties are being loaded from a temporary, rough wharf from a derelict factory yard, ready to supply earth to a worksite near Catshill Junction. Growing from the brickwork canalside nearby, beautiful coltsfoot flowers in abundance, almost hidden from view.
At the new pond in Clayhanger, the scrub and copse still looks barren, but there’s a sense of anticipation, almost as if nature is waiting for the starting gun.
March 2nd – Fiddling with a next camera. After a brief flirtation with a Canon at Christmas – I hated it – I’ve just acquired the new Panasonic TZ70, the upgrade to last year’s TZ60. I’ll be twiddling with it for a while to find out what’s improved – and low light handheld images have definitely improved.
People often think I must carry a large camera around; I don’t – I just go for a little compact in my pocket, that’s easy to pull out and take spontaneous images with. I’ve tried big stuff in the past and find the size to be a hinderance.
No doubt for a few weeks I’ll be swearing at moved, changed or lost features – but having tried alternatives, I’m still resolutely a Panasonic chap.
As an aside, the works are very intense at Bentley Mill Way under the aqueduct – I won’t look at the plans as I want to gradually see the outcome. But that’s a very big culvert in there, I must say.
December 8th – A shock today, commuting on a cold, hard morning with the wind against me; I noticed today that the leaves had gone and winter was truly here. It was chilly, and I felt it in my bones.
The sun shone, though, and passing on the Ring Road, I noticed the site of the proposed new cinema between Tesco and Stafford Street in Walsall had been cleared of scrub and it looks like work might be about to start here.
It’ll be interesting to see what develops.
November 11th – A word about rubber for the cyclists out there, if I may.
After the spoke failure of last week, I looked at the tyres and decided I’d replace them at the same time as they were wearing out. On that bike I’ve always used Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres, for wear and flat resistance – a really good tyre.
When I came to order new one, I find the range has changed, and the Marathon Plus has had a redesign with a new tread design, and what feels like a different rubber mix.
Been riding these for two days now in mucky, greasy and wet conditions and I must say, they’re a vast, vast improvement. They roll much better, and feel less ‘sticky’ than of old; at 100psi they’re hard but grippy, and feel much more sure footed.
So far, I’m very, very impressed – but time will tell how they wear and if the flat protection is as good – it certainly seems as thick.
September 8th – I hit Birmingham again mid afternoon. I was drained, and feeling a bit groggy, but couldn’t waste the good weather. I rode out of town on the canal to Spaghetti Junction, then eastwards to Castle Vale and hopped on the Plantsbrook/New Hall Valley cycleway. It was gorgeous, and well worth what seemed like a Herculean effort.
The Himalayan balsam is thick by the brook for almost the entire cycleway, making the air smell of hot tin, but for all the damage it causes, it is rather beautiful.
When I got to Sutton, I was beaten, and hopped on the train to Shenstone. IBS can be a pain sometimes.
July 26th – I’ve recently discovered Darwin Park – the long avenue through the new housing estate in south Lichfield. It’s very impressive, if a little artificial, but I do think it’s nice, and also a very decent traffic-free route out of the city to Waitrose.
There’s a pond there, and on this hot afternoon, Mrs. Mallard, with what I assume must be a second clutch, was promenading in the sunshine. More indolent, but no less cute, were a pair of swan parents with six offspring.
Mr. Swan was a little truculent, but his offspring were unperturbed by my presence. I’m absolutely captivated by cygnets this year. The positions they get their resting legs into are fascinating.
This is a lovely place and a new asset for Ye Olde City.
March 13th – Today, an old friend entered retirement. I replaced my trusty Panasonic Lumix TZ40 for a brand spanking new, just released TZ60. The little red compact camera has been through an awful lot, and survived, and still takes good pictures, but it is probably on the verge of death; it makes ominous grinding sounds when switching on now, and sometimes, the auto lens cover doesn’t open.
I have had and used the camera for a little over 12 months. Apart from the odd day when I forgot it, it has travelled with me every day in a little sleeve in my pocket. It has taken about 21,000 photos, and doesn’t owe me a penny. This little metal-bodied gem of a camera – boasting 20x optical zoom and great adjustability in a small size – has been dropped, got wet, covered in mud, sweat, tea, and on one occasion, was bled on. It’s operated in frost, snow, howling rain and hot sun. It has been a faithful friend and tool. Almost all the images posted here in the last twelve months here have been taken with it.
Panasonic cameras are a bit Marmite – loved and hated with equal passion. I’ve used them since 2007 and adore them, despite their foibles. With Leica lenses and tank-like build quality, I couldn’t change now. I tried a Sony for a bit in 2011 and loathed it. You get used to stuff.
Several of my cameras have come to sticky ends. Dropped down steps, bounced while riding, stolen. This one seemed to have had a real survival spirit.
The little red camera shows the marks of life, and wear and tear. Ingrained dirt, dents, buckles and chips. They are, although the camera probably disagrees, the marks of love.
The newcomer is the direct model replacement, the TZ60 (oddly, there was no TZ50) – it boasts a higher resolution, 30x optical zoom and more features to fiddle with than I can shake an SD card at. It’s slightly heavier, and larger, but feels good. Just enough features have moved button or changed to drive me mad for a good few weeks. Incredibly, it cost exactly the same as the TZ40 when I bought it. Progress.
I shall pass the red one on to someone who needs it for free, as I do with most of my old tech, and I shall become as attached to it’s black replacement as I am to the red one.
Yes, I’m a geek. But not for the sake of it. Tech I have has to prove itself and be useful. These cameras have proven themselves over and over again. Long may it be so.
January 16th – As much as I’m growing to loathe the results of the renovation of New Street Station in Birmingham, the process is still fascinating me. One of the things I like about it is how normal conventions of public buildings are broken. There is serious civil engineering going on at the same time as huge numbers of people and trains pass through this humming interchange..
Odd things happen.
Personnel appear from hidden doorways and gaps. There are odd noises and bangs. Occasionally, you get sprayed with water, or dust. Lifts and stairs appear, and then are boarded up again. cables dangle and tangle above the headspaces, and snake and race through the girders and scaffold.
One of the things you see here you don’t elsewhere is engineering graffiti. Surveyors measure. Sparkies test. Cladders clad. All of them leave their marks and datums scribbled on walls, floors and hoardings. Sometimes, they make sense. Often, they’re just mysterious glyphs, whose purpose is only known to those with the skill. I love how they ebb and flow with the focus of the work.
Spotting them is something to do while you wait…
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