December 27th – A short, cold and damp ride at teatime took me, somewhat unusually, into Walsall Wood and Aldridge. I don’t normally cycle this way, as I loathe Salters Road and Northgate for the narrowness and madness of the traffic. Today, though, it was calm in the mid-holiday period lull. As I passed the Fire Station, I reflected on the folk working there, on shift, waiting for a shout. They’ve been ready to leap in those engines all Christmas. People have been manning this station continually for years, holidays, bad weather, you name it. All just to protect us. They’re wonderful folks.

July 15th – Passing the now closed Focus DIY store on Northgate, between Aldridge and Walsall Wood, I noticed that competitor B&Q had cynically made plans for the collapse of their competitor. Cheeky, but I suppose it’s an ill wind… but the chutzpah jars a little.