Red And White & Not Going Anywhere

A new development today in the long running saga of the tram works in Beeston.  The contractors turned a roundabout into a T junction. This has meant chaos, as two or three lanes on each of the three roads that meet the roundabout have been turned into one, and is now controlled by traffic lights.

Traffic has been slow for most of the day, and local people have been putting messages on Facebook and Twitter about how long it has been taking them to get from A to B, or even how long they have sat stationary in traffic. When we drove out of the university, the Royal Mail truck was about where the bus is. So it took the truck driver about five minutes to where he is there.

I don't know how long these restrictions are going to be in place, but from what I've seen this afternoon,   I wouldn't like to be a motorist during the rush hour on Monday, as it's bad enough already, so who knows what it's going to be like next week.

Poppy

A simple shot today, that I took whilst going to the post office in Beeston.

At the moment, the town is like a bomb site whilst the tramworks are taking place. Everyone is fed up with it, with roads closed, holes everywhere, trees cut down, and there's still probably nearly two years to go.

One of the things that has happened is that all the mature bushes at the front of the parish church have been cut down, and all that remains are the stumps of the bushes and weeds everywhere. So I was pleased to see this brave poppy raising its head to the sky as it twitched in the summer breeze.

They always use the poppy as a tribute to fallen soldiers, so this is my tribute to the devastation that has hit our little town and all the plants, trees and people's homes that have been sacrificed in the name of progress.

Street Life

Work in Beeston on the new tram route is progressing, so much so that they have now closed the high road in Chilwell for a year. The problem is that the road is one of the major routes into Beeston, so some serious re-routing has had to take place. This means that many of the minor roads around Beeston, have suddenly become major ones. Even our quiet road has become a 'rat-run'.

And of course this closure is very worrying for the traders along there. They are concerned that there will be no business for them, as people stay away. Although the pavements are accessible at the moment.

So a friend of mine called Matt, recently thought up the idea of having a street party, so locals could see that the road is still open to them and what local businesses were there.

There was quite a bit of entertainment on offer, including the traditional seaside Punch & Judy show.

The Punch and Judy man wore a very colourful jacket, which aptly was covered in Easter bunnies. There was also some street entertainment in the form of a juggling unicyclist. He tried to teach me to juggle, but I wasn't very good.

A local radio station; Capital FM, gave away lots of little Easter Eggs. I managed to get two, one of which was for Gail.

And of course there was music. A couple of bands and this delightful folk singer called Emma Bladen-Jones.  Who writes her own songs. She entered into last year's Notts Factor, and although she didn't win, it was a great opportunity to promote both herself and her songs.

All in all, it was a good day. Longterm, I hope it has helped to make everyone aware of the diversity of shops that are there, which include  several cafes, a great bike shop, tasty fish and chips and a good hairdressers. In fact you can just about buy anything you might need along there; including a tattoo.

Letting Off A Little Steam

I was planning to spin one of my fantastical yarns about these two photographs. Of how a team of Nottingham University scientists have discovered a way into the centre of the Earth and that molten lava is slowly seeping to the surface. But I don't think you'd fall for it, right!

So the truth is that one of the main roads into the city centre is presently closed to traffic whilst repairs are being undertaken to mend the pipes that pump steam to buildings connected to the district heating scheme. Reality is a bit boring eh.