November 1st – returning to Brownhills from work, I had to get some errands run. It was dark, and very wet, but in the night, the town glistened. Brownhills High Street, depressed and depressing as it can be, looks beautiful and almost busy in these conditions. Even the deserted hinterland of a Ravens Court possessed an unusual air.
It’s sore abused, but Brownhills is my home, and I still love it as much as I ever did. Even in the rain of the coming winter.
October 31st – I passed through Walsall’s ‘Civic Quarter’ on the way home, having to post some mail, which I always prefer to do at a main post office. Some years ago, the area of Leicester, Darwall and Tower Streets was refurbished in a peculiar style, with striped limestone paving, and oddly discordant street furniture and lighting. Although most of the town’s civic buildings are here – Council House, Town Hall, Civic Centre, Post Office – this is also a place of bars and night-time economy. Tonight, as darkness fell, it was oddly busy at the top end, but more deserted behind me.
An odd part of town, really, and I could never love that paving.
October 31st – I cycled to Darlaston in soft, warm drizzle. The rain couldn’t make up its mind to stay or go, and just hovered in an indecisive, grey mizzle that painted most things I saw shades of murky grey. However, it’s time to point out that despite the grey, your local parks right now are marvellous. Whether it’s Walsall Arboretum, Holland Park in Brownhills or as shown here, Victoria Park in Darlaston, the trees are really showing great colours right now that can brighten the most dull days.
My has is tipped to those who work so hard to maintain them. Thanks, folks.
October 30th – The flytipped fridge problem continues. Recently, the law changed and scrap yards can’t accept old chiller appliances, which must now go for specialist recycling. Sadly, people are still leaving them out for scrap men, who strip the easiest to separate metal parts, and flytip the rest. Dumped fridges and freezers are currently a huge issue for local authorities all over the country.
When you leave stuff out for the tat men, you are encouraging this scumbag behaviour – please don’t do it.
These are in Green Lane, Walsall Wood, just past the houses beyond the Black Cock pub, just pushed off the back of a vehicle into a lay-by.
This is what happens if you fiddle with waste disposal legislation without thinking through the consequences.
October 30th – So, they do clean them occasionally. Alighting at Tyseley on a sunny autumn morning, I happened to look up the track to the train wash. I’ve never seen it in use before. Seems to be doing a good job – this 153 ‘Dogbox’ positively gleams. Bet the inside still smells of mould, though…
October 30th – I spotted this yesterday, but it’s surprisingly hard to photograph. Growing from the thinnest of fissures in a capstone 20ft above Park Street in Birmingham, a small shrub. I’m not sure what it is, but it’s bearing the most beautiful red berries. It’s way out of reach beyond the platform fence of Moor Street Station, where the line crosses the street below. Here, the parapets and abutments of the bridge ramble and cross, and this small plant is clearly thriving, unseen, unchecked and unappreciated, presumably seeded by the local birdlife.
Give nature half a chance and it’s in like Flynn. Wonderful.
October 29th – A the risk of being repetitive, now we have cooler, drier weather, the sunsets are great. This was (again) the view from Tyseley this evening. I never tire of that view of central Birmingham – ever changing, yet changeless. Such a fine sky tonight, too.
October 29th – Spotted whilst passing through Moor Street Station, the Moorish Cafe is again using pumpkins as Halloween -themed table decorations this year. Whoever carves them does a great job – the expression on this one is brilliant.
A real moment of serendipity in an otherwise dull commute.
October 28th – The shift from BST to GMT and the earlier fall of darkness is always depressing, but it did allow me to catch a great sunset sky over Birmingham on my way home tonight. The inclement weather had left the door open for the cold, and it felt like winter out there, cold, dark and intemperate.
Better get used to it quickly, I guess…
October 27th – I’m not one for religiously washing bikes, preferring the patina of grime that shows a bike is well used, and also makes it less attractive to thieves. However, the mud gathered on my bike over the past couple of days is loaded with pine needles and grit. These, over time, will get into moving parts and for a sticky, resinous paste that will accelerate wear and attack paint and metal. As soon as the weather clears it’ll be out with the Muc Off spray and a hosepipe.
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