November 30th 2010

Going nowhere

I didn’t leave the house today, as fortunately I have the option of setting up to work from home on exceptional days such as this. Can you blame me? Expect tomorrow’s photo to be snow-related, taken from in or around the house too …

November 29th 2010

Three days on

Well, two and a half days on, and this is still the scene, dimly lit by the streetlight opposite. It doesn’t look fun to negotiate tomorrow, but the real question is, will there be more? As I type, I’ve just looked out of the window. I think the answer might be yes …

November 28th 2010

Horse for all seasons

No new snow today but sub-zero temperatures meant that discretion was the better part of valour today, and the cars stayed at home, as for the most part, did we.

Today’s photo was from when I braved the elements to walk to the local shop for provisions. There’s a field of grass on the corner of our estate which almost always has a horse there – I’ve been told in all weathers. As I walked to the shop there was no sign of the horse and I had started to wonder about the veracity of the claim. But as I returned, sure enough there he was, despite temperatures of -7 degrees. I was tempted to reach in to my shopping bags for some food for him (the carrots would have been perfect!) but thought better of it.

Here’s hoping for better weather soon if only for the sake of this poor chap!

November 27th 2010

Surprise …

Today was a lovely day spent with family, as Claire and the children met my sister, brother-in-law, niece and nephew for the first time. With a six hour round trip to Berkshire and a family gathering to report, you’d think there would be plenty of photo subjects, and indeed there were some lovely ones taken today. But the real story of today was waking up to this (certainly the first time I’ve ever known snow like this in the UK in November).

November 26th 2010

Happy Families

Today was a day off – no major plans other than a brief morning visit to friends, just enjoying a four day week at work instead of a five day week. Today’s photo is actually from the school run, a first for me. I couldn’t resist a photo of the appropriately named butcher in the village (with apologies for the photo quality …)

I did spend the rest of the short journey looking to see if other businesses followed a similar theme. I couldn’t find Mr Bunn the baker, but I was somewhat nervous when we turned the corner to see a shop run by D.I Blow. Thankfully, it transpires they are the local opticians.

November 25th 2010

Gold Coin

Today I headed for lunch at Starbucks. There was a very long queue, almost out of the door. Today’s photo is the free, large, chocolate coin they handed out to those of us in the queue to apologise for the wait and persuade us to stay.

Something is wrong with the above paragraph. Two out of three of the facts are true, but the third isn’t. The coin was actually handed to me a week or so ago, on a separate occasion, but for the same reason.

But the photo was taken today, and for the rules of the blog, it’s a valid one, even if the entry is factually inaccurate. But do any of you actually read this stuff anyway?

November 24th 2010

Junction 21

There are so few photo opportunities when one’s day consists of long motorway journeys mostly in the dark, and work/lunch routines that don’t change much during the year. A unique photo becomes harder to find as the year passes through its eleventh month .

If it were legal to just pull up and stop on the hard shoulder, there are several great shots I could have hoped to have taken so far. One is an impressive bridge over the Trent as you cross from Leicestershire into Derbyshire; one is the cooling towers of the power station in front of a red sky, and a third great photo would be the fishing lake to the side of the M69 between Leicester and Coventry.

Today as I turned a corner to approach junction 21, the bane of my commuting existence, I saw it for the first time in a completely different background, quite literally – as the sky was mottled pink and blue. Unfortunately though, as usual there was no stopping and setting up a photo, just this moving phone capture which doesn’t quite do it justice.

November 23rd 2010

Recycling

The long work week started again today. I do try not to complain about my job – the cliche is that it pays the bills, and indeed it does, just. I should be glad to have any job at all. But I have retrained, I have a second degree and a real wish to work in something more related to the environment, conservation or environment science. Could it really happen one day or am I naive in thinking I might one day make the world a better place?

Well, I have done one environmentally good thing, if nothing else. I may have lived in three different places during the course of this 2010 blog, but I’ve at least got a new family recycling regularly for the first time. Twice. You won’t see the world cooling down as an immediate direct result, but baby steps eh? Today’s photo shows the recycling tubs outside the door – one for glass/tins, one for paper/card, and one for plastics.

November 22nd 2010

Free to a good home

So why is there a photo of a PS2 for today’s photo? Two reasons: One, I’m a bit desperate. Two, this was free. The online notice board at work has been a good source of buying and selling over the years, and in the age of recycling and freecycling, that’s a good thing. This will be an ideal addition so the kids can have a console here at home and one with their father, and will allow the singing games to come out over the Xmas holidays.

Of course the work online noticeboards don’t always work and some things just won’t shift. DVD box sets of the first six series of King of the Hill anyone? Really – I’m serious, anyone, please? I’ll give you a good price …

November 21st 2010

Ambassador …

… with this incredibly large Christmas tree you are spoiling us! (check the people on the escalators to see the scale of the tree)

Shopping today – presents and stocking fillers. Christmas is unavoidable – if you can’t beat ’em …!