Brassed Off

Well it's only a week before the festive season, and I am completely lacking in Christmas spirit this year for some reason. So much so, that looking in a diary, I didn't even realise that we will be getting the 27th off as a bank holiday.

I've been on a Christmas lunch with my colleagues at work, which despite being very tasty, didn't help me look forward to late December.

Being the last Saturday before the 'big day' Beeston was heaving with shoppers and present hunters. The monthly 'farmer's market's being held in the Square. I bought some brownies from the Beeston based Brownie Company and some vegetarian pies from another local company, that I'll cook for tomorrow's dinner.

Along the High Road I heard the sound of a brass band, which kept being drowned out by the sound emitting from a small fair that was close by. I think they must have been music students from the university, doing a bit of busking and getting people into the mood for Christmas. Sadly it didn't work on me.

Supermoon

There has been a lot of publicity recently about the moon being the closest to the Earth for a long time.  In fact the next time won't be for another sixty years or so.

It's been nicknamed the 'Supermoon'.

Due to the skies being cloudy over the weekend, I didn't get the opportunity of getting a night time shot, but the moon was still visible early this morning, so I thought I would take a daytime one instead. Especially as the sun was out and it was a clear blue sky.

Lighting The Way

There's a new photo studio in Beeston that opened earlier this year called The Flour Mill. And yes, you've guessed right, it is based in an old Victorian flour mill.

Sian the owner has done a great job of turning it into a working space for artists. It's one large, light airy room that has been painted white.

I visited the studio for the first time a few months ago to interview Sian for the magazine that I write for, but returned today as the studio was running its first photographic workshop. All about lighting.

There were eight of us in total, and the workshop was led by professional photographer Nick Dunmur. He first went through the main types of lighting. We then split into two groups and practiced what we had learned, using ourselves as models.

This is my version of Steve. I used a bit of side lighting, just to highlight his face and body, but wanted to keep it quite dark, almost mysterious. Just enough information to see who it is, but not why they are there.

Farewell My Friend

2016 hasn't been a good year for stars of the entertainment business. First there was David Bowie, then Prince, Ronnie Corbett, Victoria Wood, and now Leonard Cohen.

I came into Cohen's world quite late. Around 1994, when an old neighbour of mine lent me his copy of 'The Future'. I played it a couple of times and was hooked.  A bleak musical look into how the world might be if we go on the way we are. Some deep and meaningful lyrics. Not just the usual "I love you baby" songs.

So I searched out his back catalogue and found great songs like 'Suzanne', 'First We Take Manhattan', 'The Tower of Song', and of course 'Hallelujah'. Songs about love, death, power, alienation. Certainly something special in all those lyrics of his.

Sadly I woke up this morning to the news that Leonard hadn't. But at 82, it wasn't unexpected. In fact I read somewhere that he was getting prepared for it. His latest and 14th album "You Want It Darker" was only released three weeks ago.

I was going to put the album on my Christmas present list, but out of love and respect for the Canadian poet, I bought it today and am plying it whilst writing this. The title track is quite religious in a way and illustrates through words the state of the world today. It even includes the line "I'm ready my Lord", which probably means that I am now prepared for death and waiting to go.

Besides not making anymore albums, I'm sad that I never got to see him in concert. So I'll just have to make do with videos on YouTube, and pretend that I'm in the audience.

So he's now taken up residence in the Tower of Song, where I'm sure his gravelly voice will be welcome to those that like his style of music.

Let's Do The Monster Mash Again

Well it's just struck midnight and so Halloween has begun.

The one time of the year when ghosties and beasties can go bump in the night as they do the dance macabre.

One of Frankenstein's relations looks like he's having a good time bopping away in the mist and cobwebs that the night has delivered.

It Is The Season, Turn, Turn, Turn

Cycling back from shopping in Beeston this morning, I was pleased to still see the sun and a blue sky, even though we are rapidly heading towards winter, and the cold and those early dark nights.

Moving up one of the roads towards our house, I just had to stop to take a photo of this wonderful tree with its red and orange leaves, gently being kissed by the sunlight.

Nature Art

I visited my local library this morning for the last time in 2016. Not because I'm leaving Beeston, but because the library is closing for nearly a year, so it can go through a £1,000,000 upgrade.

It's having a new roof and windows, and they are going to re-introduce the front entrance, which was blocked up many years ago. There's also going to be new shelving and hopefully a performance area for visiting musicians etc.

Leaving, I noticed a trail of stones on the wall surrounding the library. On closer inspection, I could see that someone had made, what I take to be a fish out of a leaf from a laurel bush and some stones.

I guess that it had been created by one, or some of the children that go the the adjacent Round Hill School. It's quite artistic, so I thought I would record it for posterity.

A Helping Hand

I've mentioned the Canalside Heritage Centre on here a few times, as it's an exciting and worthwhile project. The plan is to turn some derelict lock cottages into a heritage, arts and educational centre.

The work is progressing well, with the renovations are really making a difference to how the buildings look. Interestingly, most of the building materials have been delivered by boat, as the location is difficult for wheeled vehicles.

The projet team have recently entered a competition that is being run by Marks and Spencer's, to win a biomass boiler, which is worth £12.500.

A member of the project team was out in Beeston today to promote the competition and to get shoppers to vote for them.

They are presently running second, so to help them win, I am asking everyone who reads this post, if they would kindly pop over to the M&S website and vote. The project is listed under the Central East area.

The website address is accessed through this Weblink

Thanks. And I'll let you all know if you have made a difference.

Talking Italian

Whilst shopping in Beeston this morning, I was surprised to see two friends of ours, Leone & Yarden. Especially Yarden, as he lives in Italy. Leone meanwhile lives in Derbyshire.

Gail & I first met them last year on our tour of Tuscany. Leone was one of the travelling party, whilst Yarden, a fashion designer, unveiled the 'Volcano Dress' during our stay in Italy. The Volcano Dress is based around a photo that the artist Roberto Alborghetti took of the now famous Barton's bus, nicknamed The Ghost Bus.

It was nice to see them, especially now that they have become a couple.

All Steamed Up

I read something quite exciting on social media this morning, as someone had put that a steam train would be passing through the Attenborough Nature Reserve at around 1.25 today.

There has been a couple of steam trains passing this way recently, but annoyingly I have never been around to see them. So I was very keen to get down there and see if I could find a good spot to see it thunder by.

Even though I knew the time of its appearance, I thought I would go down a bit earlier, to a, get a parking space and b, find a good place to take some photos.

The nature reserve was really busy when I got there, but I managed to find a space and parked up. I was in two minds whether to stay near the nature reserve building and get a long shot of the train, or stand close to the line, so I could see the might of the 1933 Princess Elizabeth.

In the end I plumped for the latter. So I took the few minutes walk to where the railway line crosses the reserve and looked for a suitable spot. Several other photographers were already there, eagerly waiting to take that shot.

It wasn't as busy as I thought it might be, especially as it was sunny. I found a good spot and waited. Not long, as one old guy called out "the barrier's down", as part of the line crosses a road. I got ready and waited for the right moment to press the shutter.

It was coming by quite quickly, so I just kept on pressing. Fortunately I managed to capture a couple of what I think are decent shots. I was using my 40-150mm lens, and so I wonder if I might have done better with my 14-40mm lens instead. Both can shoot at f2.8.

Still, photography is a continual learning process, so I might try the smaller lens next time. But I'm still happy with this one. Especially as you can see some smoke coming to of the chimney.

The Red Side Of The Moon

I was quite surprised to see the Moon surrounded by a red sky tonight, as usually any red sky sunsets that do appear are in the opposite direction to the Earth's nearest planet.

But tonight, both the red sky and the Moon were both in the right position for me to get this photo.

I of course used my 40-150mm zoom lens, to get this shot, otherwise it would just be a small dot in the sky.

Broken Free

This building in Beeston is called The Grange and was built in 1820 for a local businessman. In May 1976 it became Grade II listed, and was used as a refuge for homeless people.

Up until recently, it was Beeston's police station, but they moved out last year, and transferred to the local council offices. It has stood empty ever since.

A planning application was made to the council to turn the building into luxury apartments and to construct some flats where the main part of the station was, and which was demolished only this week. Wednesday in fact.

The section that was knocked down was built in the 1950s and some of it looked similar in style to the Grange, while some of it didn't.

The site will be one that I will be following, to see how things progress.

Bubble It

A Beeston based estate agents called CP Walker, is currently celebrating its 120th anniversary. So to commemorate this, the owners decided to partly sponsor an event at Broadgate Park yesterday called 'Party in the Park'.

It was similar to the carnival event a couple of months ago, with various stalls and music. And lasted all afternoon, and was well attended. The weather was lovely and sunny too. Perfect for any outdoor event.

One entertainer that caught my eye was 'The Big Bubble Man'. As his name infers, he creates bubbles with soapy water. But not just any bubbles. Giant ones, or hundreds of little ones at a time, through a giant piece of special string on two very long poles, which he dipped in a large bowl of soapy liquid and then life the poles into the air, and all these bubbles then appeared.

The children loved it, aid I watched them running around and trying to catch them. But of course they couldn't. And if they did, they would just pop, and a small shower of soapy water would fall to the ground.  There was also the opportunity of people having a go themselves. But on a much smaller scale.

Up Above The Streets And Houses

People of a certain age will probably know that the title of today's post are the opening lyrics to the theme song of the old TV show Rainbow.

Which is quite apt, as while I was out gardening earlier this evening, I noticed one had formed in the sky, even no rain had fallen.  Only the bottom bit was on show, but I still got my camera out to get a photo or two.

Just as well that I did, as it soon disappeared from sight.

Laid Out Like Lamb And Lettuce

Our little Oscar can always find somewhere to take it easy. And with this warm weather that we are currently getting, he obviously prefers to be outside.

So does Gail. And when I came home from work the other day, I found them both relaxing on the patio. Gail was sitting, eating an ice cream, while Oscar was stretched out on a large plastic box, where we store some of the garden tools.

He looked so comfortable and contented. So much so, that he didn't mind having his photo taken, yet again!

A Strange Coincidence?

I'm not really a believer in coincidence, but I came across something strange yesterday.

Whilst at Farnstock, I came across a folk singer, with a touch of punk called Paul Carbuncle. I've not heard of him before, but wouldn't mind again, as his songs were quite amusing. Especially the one about squirrels.

Anyway, when I got home, I logged on, and popped my SD card in, ready to start downloading the photos that I had just taken. While my Mac wad doing this, I caught up with Twitter and Facebook. On Twitter I came across a Tweet from someone that I follow, and guess what; they had mentioned Paul Carbuncle, as some of his songs were being played on a local folk radio station.

Then on Facebook, there was a comment from someone called Helene on the secret Beestonian magazine group page that I am a member of, as that's the local magazine that I write for. She mentioned that she has just met Matt, the chief writer and was keen to write for the magazine herself. She had written a bit about herself and had put in a link to her blog. So naturally I went to have a look, and yes, the first entry that appeared was about Paul, as Helene had seen him perform at recent Oxjam event, and had enjoyed his performance.

Now that is quite odd, don't you think? Three incidences concerning a perfect stranger. As Harry Hill used to say; "What are the chances of that happening?".

A Fond Farewell

Social media has all kinds of uses for me. From keeping in touch with friends, to finding out what's going on in the area. Sometimes you come across something that can be upsetting, for whatever reason. And that's exactly what happened to me a couple of days ago.

I was reading some Tweets on Twitter, when I came across a message about a Douglas McDonald and that it was his funeral on Friday. Now strangely enough I know a Douglas McDonald, a photographer, so I sent the author a message, asking them about this man that shares the same name as this friend of mine.

I got a reply, and they mentioned a link to where there was a photo of him. So I went to have a look. And yes, sadly it was 'my' Douglas. I was also saddened, as I realised that I couldn't go to his funeral, as a couple of people in my team at work were on holiday. So that would just leave me to keep everything moving.

I met Douglas several years ago through photography. He often went to book signings and theatre shows, to take photos of the authors, celebrities and stars that visited Nottingham. And I would be there too. Unlike me, he got paid for his photography, as he worked for the local newspapers, and did some freelancing. But it was good to see him and his Nikon every so often. I sometimes used to call him Donald, rather than Douglas. But I guess he would be used to that, and didn't seem to mind.

I also used to see him sat at a table in Beeston Library most Saturday's, diary open, colour coding events that he had put in. More book signings, events and shows. We would spend a good hour or so chatting about celebrities that we had photographed, or were coming to town soon. We both enjoyed the music of Kate Rusby, and would see each other at her Christmas shows that she put on at the Playhouse. He would also show me the photos that he managed to get printed in the Nottingham Post, on their readers page. Photos of flowers, animals etc. Things that he'd noticed on his travels. Just like me with this blog. He had a chuckle sometimes, as they would use one of his photos, that wasn't even taken locally, but he had sent it in anyway. He also used to write quizzes for the local WEA (Workers' Education Association) branch that he belonged to. And the odd reference book would be on the table as well.

Despite using a digital camera, he didn't seem that confident with technology. Especially mobile phones. He was interested in Twitter, but didn't know how to get it installed on his phone. So I told him how to do it. He finally managed it, but didn't Tweet very often. Unlike me, who Tweets 50 times a day. He often asked who I was following, and wondered who the person with the most followers was. I suggested it was Lady Gaga or Madonna.

So this morning many of his friends and family said a fond farewell to him at Bramcote Crematorium. But I couldn't be there. Going to the library in Beeston won't be the same now, as I'll never see Douglas sitting there again going through his diary, or reading a book or the local paper.

Feeling Fruity

At the Beeston Carnival yesterday there was something called the Human Fruit Machine.

Three ladies dressed as clowns picked up a piece of fruit, and if they picked up the same type, then you won a small prize.

It was all to help raise funds for the Canalside Heritage Trust, which is converting an derelict building by the canal into an exhibition, education and community centre.

It was quite amusing to see them pulling fruit out of the bowl, and then doing a little dance when they pulled three out the same.

Driving On The Wild Side

Another day, another car.

As far as I know, this American Plymouth wasn't involved in Friday's prom convoy, but I'm sure that it would have fitted in very well and would have turned a few heads.

I spotted it parked up on a side street when I came back from shopping in Beeston yesterday. So I just had to stop and take a photo. A shame that the modern car was parked behind, as I might have been able to turn it into a period photo. Still it's nice to see these old cars still being on the road.

Lucky That I'm A Pisces

Will this rain ever stop, and we get some sunshine and a proper summer, like it's meant to be? I feel that I'm turning into a fish, every time that I get wet. Which has been quite often this week.

It's rained practically every day for a over a week or so now, and there seems to be no let up to it. We are going away next week, so I hope the weather improves for our road trip down south.

There was a particularly heavy downpour at about half seven tonight. A real monsoon. Thunder and lightning too. Here's a bit of a grab shot that I took from the porch, which shows the heavy raindrops and a grate that just can't cope with the sudden influx of water.

Apparently there have been several reports on Facebook of localised flooding across many parts of Beeston. Which is expected, considering the amount of rain that fell in the space of about thirty minutes. It's a good job that we live on a slight hill, otherwise we may have experienced it too.