Horse Guards' Parade

Another Wednesday, Another Headbanger Challenge. This week the theme is 'Home is Where the Heart is'. My suggestion is Sydney Harbour. Naturally I love my Gail, and my heart is always with her heart, but we both love Sydney and we would immigrate there tomorrow if we had the chance. Alas we are too old for them and wouldn't have enough points for the authorities to let us in. So we can just dream and try and save up enough money to have a holiday there again.

Today's main picture is of another re-enactment group. This one specialises in pretending to be the 16th Lancers. Some others in the group dressed up as Queen Victoria and her 'servant' John Brown.

Plain As A Pikestaff

Another group that like to dress up in costume are The Sealed Knot. Here they are reenacting one of the many battles between the Roundheads and the Cavaliers that took place during the 1640s. Nottingham has a strong connection with the English Civil War, in that it was where King Charles II raised the Standard near the castle in 1642. The smoke you can see comes from reproduction cannons, which look very effective.

Guard Of Honour

Here's the memorial I was telling you about yesterday. Quite a simple design. If you blow the photo up, you'll be able to read the inscription. On the other side, a plaque lists how many were injured, killed or lost in action during the D-Day landings and subsequent battles. In total 2144 men were involved.

Over There To Over Here

I spent most of today at Wollaton Park. It was the Veterans Weekend, where people get to dress up as soldiers through the ages. And very good they were too. I went last year, and I think I told you then that Wollaton Park was used as a base by some American soldiers from the 508th Parachute Infantry of the 82nd Airbourne Division as they prepared for D-Day in 1944. Today a memorial stone was unveiled as tribute to all those that made it and those that didn't.

It's All In The Angles

Bit of abstract today, basically as I haven't got anything else. I quite like the bronze of the Nottingham Contemporary, and how it contrasts with the blue of the sky. Although it is a genuinely ugly building, and probably one of the worst in the city centre.

Voice Of The People

Flyover pylons seem to be a good target for graffiti artists, going on the amount of spraying that we found when we went shooting on Tuesday night.
Some were just scribbles, but this one is almost poetry. It makes you wonder who actually runs a city, politicians, the police or criminals?

An Angel In The Night

Here's a photo of Amber, the other model who put up with us on Tuesday. Here she is standing in the tunnel that allows people to reach the other side of the flyover. I used my camera's flash, as the other guys were hogging the strobes. Not a bad shot I think, considering that I very rarely use any flash at all.

Model Opportunity

Last night Gail and I went shooting models again. This time we went to an unusual location; underneath a flyover. The main A52 heading east. It was quite eerie, and all the legs of the road had been sprayed with paint. Here's one of the models posing for us.

Tonight is of course Headbanger Wednesday. This week's theme is bugs. There are lots of creepy crawlies to look at the other gang members' pages. My suggestion is the 'Lesser Numbered Beetle'. Also known as 'The Love Bug'. They come in many colours, and are seen all over the world. They originally came from Germany, but now they are mainly bred in Mexico.

Dead Or Alive?

Some of the ladyboys opted to be boys, rather than ladies last night, as this interpretation of Michael Jackson shows. He actually looked quite realistic in some positions. Although his skin is a lot darker than the real MJ. He performed a few of MJ's best known songs, including Thriller.

More Than A Woman

Tonight Gail and I went to see a very unusual show that's on this week in the Old Market Square. It's called the 'Ladyboys of Bangkok'. I wasn't really sure what to expect, as I have no experience of cross-dressing etc. But the tickets were free. They put on a quite a good song and dance show, with a bit of comedy thrown in for good measure. Nothing like your 'end of the pier' shows of old. One or two of them did look a bit like Ting Tong from Little Britain, but some of them could quite easily pass for women, as my photo from their version of "Summer Nights" shows.

Gloves For Foxes?

My good friend and fellow blogger Imac has put some photos on of a foxglove that he shot in the gardens at Belton House, which isn't too far away from where he lives with his DW.

Strangely enough, I took some photos of the foxglove that is growing in our garden. I've gone for more of a dramatic 'Beanstalk' view, rather than a close up of the flowers themselves.

I'm curious to know whether foxes do use them to keep their paws warm?

Moon Madness

As a new moon appeared in the sky this week, I took the opportunity of seeing what a photo of it would look like through my 400mm lens that I bought from Ebay a while back. As its such a long lens, there is an attachment on it so you can screw it to a tripod. I took several shots of the Moon, and this is about the best one. I think it looks OK, considering I'm not NASA or the Greenwich Observatory.

Sleeping Beauty

I haven't shown you our little Marmalade recently, so here's a shot of our pet cat, doing one of her favourite pastimes; namely sleeping. Her other hobbies include eating and being stroked on the back of her neck. Her eating habits have changed. She's getting very fussy these days. She's starting to turn her little brown nose up at some food we put out. She still eats it though when she knows there's nothing else on offer.

Al Fresco

When there are no seats available to eat your hot jacket potato, the only thing you can do is sit on the grass or in a doorway. And that's exactly what this student has done. I know she's a student because she's very close to Nottingham Trent University's buildings in the Lace Market. I think I've told you before that I started my working life there 30 years ago. It was a busy area, as there were lots of factories there and vans used to go around all day long. Now it is dead, except for students coming out at lunch times to buy their jacket potatoes.

Hot Gossip

Another Headbanger Challenge, and this week it's my turn, so I've chosen communication. There used to be an old joke about how news travels; telephone, telegram and tell a woman!
For my headbanger picture, I've gone for the life cycle of a letter. The original form of communication, before phones, computers and email took over. Spending some time writing to friends, keeping them up to date with events, sending cards, or just saying I've not forgotten you.

Not much chance of passing on any information by phone from these boxes, unless you want to see the sparks fly. If you're lucky you'll just get a crossed line.

Casey Jones Jr

Sunday's Mini meet was at Wicksteed Park, which is a combined camping and amusement park. It's been around for over 80 years now. Two people I know went there when they were kids. Here is a shot of the mini steam railway that goes around the lake and parkland, which I have given a bit of a tweak in Picnik.

At The Other End Of The Scale

Well yesterday I showed you what is probably the worlds biggest real Mini. Now here's the smallest!
What this company has done is chopped the middle out of the car. So the front is the same as a regular Mini, while the seats and boot belong to the back of the car. Great for parking, as you'd be able to drive in sideways on into the space.

Not A Mini Mini

This weekend Gail and I went to Wicksteed Park in Kettering, for our first Modern Mini show. I have never seen so many different coloured and designed Minis in my life. There must have been a couple of hundred there, including some classic types that had been lovingly looked after.
By the very nature of the word, I bet you all though Mini's were small. No so this one we came across. Just the thing for those hen parties and school prom parties. It was for sale too, at a shade under £50k. Gail said that if she had the money, she would buy it. Trouble is, I don't think we could manage to drive it up our street!

Swan Song

As it was lovely and sunny cycling home from work, I took a detour through Highfields. Fortunately I came across this swan and her five chicks who looked like they were being instructed in the art of underwater food spotting. I do hope they passed.

They Couldn't Afford A Flagpole

Whilst I was out at lunch, some council workers with cranes were finishing off hanging this gigantic flag over the front of the Council House. I have no idea what it is made of, but apparently it is 18 metres wide, and 8 metres high.
Unless I come across anything unusual or worth reporting, this will be my only World Cup orientated post. I have no interest in football whatsoever, so I will not be mentioning it at all over the weeks that it is on.

Getting Into A Good Habit

Last night I went to a rehearsal of a play that I will be in next month. I am playing one of the monks who lived in a priory which was destroyed by Henry the Eighth, and two of the monks were executed for not accepting him as the head of the church.
We will be performing at the actual priory ruins, which will be quite exciting. Here's the memorial to them.

Reminds Me Of The Sun

Well summer seems to be over for another year. The usual rain has returned. It lashed it down this afternoon. Just like a monsoon. I've not taken any photos since Sunday, so I am getting withdrawal symptoms of not pressing the shutter button.
So here's a raid on the archives. Only taken three weeks ago. But seems a like a lifetime ago.

Step In Time

A happy couple walking in the rain through Wollaton Park. Perfectly in tune with each other.

If Only I Was Barbie..

Then I could buy this bubble gum pink Fiat 500. But as I'm a man, I'll keep to my rugged black one thank you. Apparently they are only making 500 of these, which to my mind is 499 too many. It's going to have to be a certain special sort of someone to drive one of these. Don't get me wrong, the Fiat is a great little car, and maybe it wouldn't look too bad on a bigger car, but on the supermini, it looks a bit like a boiled sweet.

Ski Sunday

Well it stayed dry enough for Gail and I to visit the motor show at Wollaton Park. We saw our neighbours' Mini on the Notts About Minis stand. Gail got chatting to a couple who had some little dogs that she liked, and I took quite a few photos of the different cars on show. Although not as many as in previous years. I was particularly taken with this mascot. It belonged to an old Alpine that had done a run to Switzerland. Hence the skier.
A great shame that modern motors don't have such mascots on their bonnets anymore, as they really make the car into something special. A lady was quite taken with it too, and was snapping away with her camera at the same time as me.

Mini Meal

We met up with some of the gang from the Notts Mini Club tonight at a local pub for a drink, something to eat and a chat. It was a good evening. We will be going to our first Mini show next weekend in Northampton, so we were chatting about that and other Mini matters.
Whilst we were outside, there were lots of flashes of lightening. It continued all the way home. By the time we got back to Beeston, there was an almighty storm, with a monsoon's worth of rain. I hope its nice tomorrow, as we are planning to go to the yearly motor show at Wollaton Park.

The Road To Nowhere

Here's a shot of the road that I took whilst Gail was driving her beloved Mini. We weren't going anywhere in particular. Just cruising around whilst the sun was setting. It's harder to do these days with the price of petrol. Fortunately Gail's Mini uses diesel, so we can go a bit further for the same price.

Attack Of The Cyberman

I had to have another day off work today, as I'm still full of cold and my cough has developed into more of a bark. Gail is feeling slightly better, but we are both still fighting over the box of tissues.
As it was a sunny afternoon, I sat in the garden, hoping that the sun's rays might do me good. Looking at the plants and flowers (and weeds) growing around, gave me an idea for today's post.

Flying Around

The week is going really quickly, and so I can't believe it's Wednesday again and the Headbanger Challenge. This weeks' theme is 'in the sky'. Well two years ago, Gail and I were literally doing that, as we went for a balloon ride over the area. So my picture is what I saw from the basket as we were sailing over the Nottinghamshire countryside.

On the subject of flying. Does anyone recognise what this strange looking insect is? It was attracted to our security light a few nights ago. It was bigger than a bumble bee or moth, and has got those strange 'feathers' on its feelers. Fortunately it stayed still long enough so I could take a photo of it. We made sure that we kept the back door closed, as we didn't want it flying around inside our house.

Concrete Overcoat

Here's something you don't see everyday, a bus disguised as a cement mixer. Well that's exactly what this local company have done to this city based bus as a way of advertising its presence. I'm sure it's a bit disconcerting for both passengers and other road users, as everyone tries to work exactly what sort of vehicle is being driven.