February 25th – A dull, grey, chilly day. Again, I came back via Shenstone to avoid a punishing northeasterly wind, but also hoping to find some inspiration in the nascent spring. Sadly, there was none in the dull, grey, darkening lanes, but the spirit of the Footherley Brook remains.
April, come she will, but she’s a long time arriving.
February 12th – After a protracted and tortuous journey to Telord to undertake a five minute task, I needed to be in Tyseley that afternoon. The snow remained, and it was really quite cold and grey. A succession of delayed trains, grim light and relentless chilliness darkened my mood all day, so much so that when the time came to go home, I was glad.
I’ve been away from Tyseley for just over a week. I’ve really missed it. Looking from the Wharfdale Road bridge, I liked the snow on the terrace roofs stretching out beyond the railway to Camp Hill, whilst down on the platform, the railway signals twinkled in the mist.
Hopefully, tomorrow will be a better day.
February 9th – A grim day. Grim all round, really; not feeling in the best of health, and the weather was overcast, wet and miserable. I’d had a thoroughly depressing couple of hours unsuccessfully fiddling with bikes, and had to nip up to Walsall Wood. In such murky, unphotogenic conditions, it’s difficult to find subject matter, but as I got to Bullings Heath and the Black Cock Bridge, I thought how quant and villagey the area looked. It’s true that riding a bike can lift your mood. From a feeling of darkness and a depression that didn’t seem to want to go, I suddenly felt happier.
Bicyclic antidepressant: cycle one, twice a day.
November 9th – The day was very grey indeed, and the train service lousy. Bad weather had been predicted for the evening commute, and with cancellations and slow running all round, I left work half an hour early. We’re in the days now of the nascent winter; grey, smoggy air, partial drizzle and heavy cloud makes for a greasy, unreal, not-quite-daylight feel. This is the worst bit of winter for me; not cold enough to be dramatic, or photogenic, or even challenging to ride in, but just headache-grey mundanity, rumbling from day to day. Stuff this, bring on some real winter, please. Snow, or crisp frosty mornings with bright air that hurts your forehead and clutches your chest when you breathe in.
The only thing that looks good in the is murk is the light of the railway. Steady, bright, control.
April 2nd – Working in Telford today meant returning late from Walsall with the wind behind me, a few weeks since I’d undertaken this commute. The wind eased me home, as did the impending drizzle, and my legs found quite a bit of energy from somewhere. Cresting the Black Cock Bridge, I noted how grey it all looked, and how depressing it seemed. Yet it was 6:45pm and still light. That’s a good thing, I guess. I put the camera away, and sped downhill to Brownhills with a less heavy heart.
March 17th – Unusually, I came home through Hammerwich. I don’t usually do that, but had to pop into Brownhills West on the way back. The weather was vey grim, and I only just missed getting soaked. Hammerwich, however, was as beautiful as ever, and the overcast weather made for moody, cinematic photos. On the corner of the bizarrely-named Lions Den and Station Road, I noticed Hall Cottage, which I’d not really studied previously. A beautiful little house.
January 7th – emboldened by my trip to Lichfield, I set out into the wind early afternoon and headed to Cannock Chase. I figured that if I could ride up the hills through Heath Hayes and Hednesford, then up to Brindley Heath, I could ride to work. As it happened, I rode it into a nasty wind and in the face of some pretty black clouds. Here at the Hednesford Hills, just on the Chase Heritage Trail, I was preparing for the last climb up to the old RAF Hednesford, and wondering wether to pull out my waterproof hat…
November 21 – Back in Telford today. I had hoped for a change in the weather, but it was still lightless, grey and misty at 9am. At least on Telford’s network of traffic free cycle routes I didn’t have the drivers to worry about. Just like Redditch, there are miles and miles of this kind of track around the town.It’s such a shame that hardly any of it is mapped…
September 14th – I headed off to Lichfield late in the afternoon for some shopping and to chill out over a cuppa. When I left, the sun was still warm and the wind low, but as I returned, the skies blackened and a stiff breeze sprang up. The combination of the golden hour, darkening skies and Leomansley’s interesting architectural textures made for a captivating scene.
June 10th – The day was fine until late afternoon. Leaving work, I called at the shops in Aldridge and then dived into Morrisons for some bits and pieces. It started to rain lightly. Thinking it would come to nothing, I headed for home via Stubbers Green. As I left, the sky looked ominously dark.
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