Welcome to the latest post in my series “London Station by Station“. I hope that you will enjoy it and that some of you will be encouraged to share it.
WATFORD AND WATFORD JUNCTION
The Bakerloo line reached Watford Junction in 1917, by way of a connection at Queens Park to an existing mainline railway. The service was cut back to Queens Park in 1982 and subsequently restored as far as Harrow and Wealdstone. The Metropolitan line’s Watford branch opened in 1925. The current terminus is in a residential area called Cassiobury Park and various plans to extend it into the centre of Watford have been mooted.
Here are a few pictures showing various plans…
The Colne Valley Transit proposal, from “West of Watford” by F W Goudie and Douglas StuckeyA 1994 London Underground Map showing proposed developments at that time.
I mentioned my own speculative notions in this area in a previous post in this series. However, looking again at the Colne valley proposal above I am slightly changing tack – incorporating that as it stands as the Watford – St Albans section of Orbital Railway scheme. The Bakerloo returns to play in this scheme by being re-extended to Watford Junction and taking over the St Albans Abbey service, thereby connecting it into the scheme.
I finish this brief post with some more map pics…
The Watford area as shown on the Diagrammatic HistoryA closer up view of the key area.A Beck style map showing London underground as it was in 1920A Beck style map showing London Underground as it was in 1930.
Pictures from King’s Lynn and East Rudham, mention of two uppcoming events at King’s Lynn Minster, a large number of important links and some high quality infographics.
INTRODUCTION
I hope you will enjoy this very varied post and that some of you will be encouraged to share it. Talking of sharing, here are a couple of recent comments about this blog from twitter:
@obiwandar “Great blog. pictures, activism, tips WOW” @spacesheepy loving the photos & duckies ~ nice blog Thank you for sharing 🙂
BIRDS, BOATS AND PLANES IN KING’S LYNN
In the break between innings of the delayed women’s ashes match at Worcester (yesterday was washed out entirely, so the whole game is happening on the reserve day) I went out for a walk and was delighted to see a cormorant in residence. As these pictures show, it was far from the only interesting sight of the day…
These model planes (two feature in these pictures – 5 pics in total) are by way commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.
The Great Ouse looks a bit choppy.
Two boats at the jetty – “Pero” and regular visitor “Kalyptos”
The flag drooped at just the wrong moment, but the gull made the pic worth keeping.And I got the flag, plus an ornate weathercock as a bonus, at the second attempt.This stonework is on the side of the Magistrates Court
LINKS
I have a large number of links to share, and I am going to start with the various campaigns that feature in this context.
CAMPAIGNS
Within this subsection I am going to give each campaign its own small slot…
STOP TTIP
The campaign against TTIP is gathering momentum. 38 Degrees members, of whom I am proud to be one, are organising a day of action all around the country on August 22nd. The particular details for North West Norfolk are:
For more or (hint) to sign up for the event please click here. There is also a specific link for joining.
HELP YAZIDI WOMEN AND GIRLS KIDNAPPED BY ISIS
I encourage all of you to sign and share this petition from change.org. I am going to share a buzzfeed article that gives detailed coverage of this issue and the petition itself:
First up, courtesy of independenclive, a horror story about someone who dared to take part in a protest immediately before an appointment, was refused entry to the building and then sanctioned for missing the appointment.
My final link is to this piece about providing the police with training for dealing properly with autistic people.
CLASSICAL MUSIC
While at my parents in East Rudham for Sunday lunch yesterday I saw these two leaflets…
…While I am sure that both events above will be excellent, it is the one on October 10th which really appeals to me. All three headline composers are among my favourites, while the subtitle piece was the first piece of classical music I ever heard, initiating a life long love. Here is a close up of that leaflet…
A full listing of organ recitals at the Minster can be found here, while among the many things that can found at the Minster’s official website is this piece about the organ.
INFOGRAPHICS
Today has been a bumper day for infographics…
The next three pictures are all related…
A FEW FINAL PICTURES
I bring this post to a conclusion with these pictures from East Rudham yesterday…
My parents new camper vanInside the back of the camper van.Once this pigeon nest was identified as reachable from ground level it did not survive long.
An account of the grand finale of the 65th King’s Lynn Festival, some splendid pictures from in and around King’s Lynn, a plethora of important links and some cool infographics.
INTRODUCTION
Hello and welcome to all who read this, old and new followers alike. As well as my title piece I have some excellent photos from in and around King’s Lynn, some very important links and a few infographics to share. I hope that some of you will be inspired to share this post in its turn.
A FINAL FLOURISH
Last night’s concert at the Corn Exchange, which brought the curtain down on the 65th King’s Lynn Festival was an unexpected pleasure in two ways. First of all, we had not (my mother and I) originally been going to attend it, but then at a previous concert a family friend had two tickets for this one that she could not use, so we ended up with them. The second sense in which it was an unexpected pleasure was that the star attraction of the evening was pianist Freddie Kempf and I am not the world’s greatest fan of piano music, so I had been a little concerned as to how the evening would go.
The stage pre-performance (obviously no pics once the evening was under way!)
I need not have worried – the Flanders Symphony Orchestra were quite magnificent, and at no point save in sections which were supposed to be solo did the piano (on which Mr Kempf delivered a spectacular performance) drown out the rest of the orchestra.
All in all, this was an excellent way for a great festival to end. I have mentioned before in this blog that King’s Lynn as a town is good at public festivities, and it really showed with this festival.
A PICTORIAL INTERLUDE
Before moving on to the links section, here are some pictures from in and around King’s Lynn…
A huge black backed gull at close range.
A close up of the frontage of the new visitor’s centre at King’s Lynn bus station.
The new seating areas between the bus station shelter and the Lynn Museum
Two boats moored at the jetty yesterday, this one, Blue Bird 2, which I had not seen before, and Kalyptos, a regular visitor.
This year’s blackberry harvest is going to be super massive if these bushes in Hardings Pits are anything to go on.
An albino duck
One brave duckling spurned to wooden walkway down into the water!
Some entertainment in central King’s Lynn yesterday lunchtme.“Of course the comfy chair is for me – I’m a cat”
LINKS
I am going to start with coverage of various petitions that are running at the moment.
PETITIONS
Within this subsection I am dividing things up yet further for reasons that I hope will become obvious.
TWO PETITIONS THAT RELATE TO WOMEN’S RIGHTS ISSUES
First in this little section, an update on the petition to get the Canadian authorities to deny “Roosh V” entry to their country, as we in Britain denied entry to Julien Blanc:
2)Simultaneously introducing what is to me a new blog, extremecrochet, and pointing you to an excellent piece, posted on that blog, that connects to the above petition.
NEWS ON THE GROUP B STREP PETITION
I am giving this a section to itself because as well as two links to share, I have some news of my own. Namely, that having responded to a call to write my MP I have received a response from Mr Bellingham indicating his willingness to support the Early Day Motion that relates to this petition. The links I have to share are as follows:
My last petition calls on David Cameron to remove Jeremy Hunt from his position on account of his offensive and out of touch comments about NHS workers.
POLITICS
First up in this section, a piece detailing some truly outrageous expense claims on the part of the Downright Dishonourable John Bercow. For the full details you will have to read the piece, but the single most outrageous claim was for £130 for a journey of 0.8 miles in each direction (i.e. 25 minutes walking time for both journeys combined given that Bercow is an able bodied man).
Next up, Vox Political’s latest post about the perfidies of the politician that site calls the Gentleman Ranker in honour of his previous military career.
Coverage of some aspects of today at work, lots of quality pictures, a good link and a superb infographic.
INTRODUCTION
This post is about today at work and features some quality photographs. There is also a solitary link and a quality infographic.
PREPARING AND SENDING A BULK EMAIL
One of my tasks for today was to put out a bulk email about the collectors fairs that James and Sons will be involved in at Stowmarket on August the 5th and Diss on August the 7th. The plain text version is below, while I have a link to full word document and copies of every image used as well.
TWO COLLECTORS FAIRS COMING SOON
Collectors Fairs on August 5th at Stowmarket and 7th at Diss
James and Sons will:
Provide free valuations
Make purchases
Have a wide range of our own stock available for viewing and purchase
We look forward to seeing you there!
DISS STOWMARKET
Diss Youth & Community Centre
30 Shelfanger Road
IP22 4EH
Stowmarket Football Club
Bury Road
IP14 1JQ
This is the composite image that I created from the first four pictures.
I am not going to attempt to kid anyone that the stuff I was imaging today included any potential record breakers, but a few items came out decently…
I quite liked this painting.The oriignal art dealer’s label from the reverse of the painting.Lot 8 – a tiny little ting.Lot 10 – the whole picture.A close up photo of the three medals.A high-resolution scan of the three medals for comparison.Lot 347Close ups of the two earthenware receptacles.And a close up of the curious bottle.
Lot 502 – a bulky mixed lot.A close up of the bronze (?) plaqueClose ups of the ashtray and the metal figure.
Blackhorse Road was part of the original section of the Victoria line, from Walthamstow Central to Highbury and Islington that opened in 1968. It is also on a London Overground branch line that runs between Gospel Oak and Barking.
I cannot pretend that the station is an impressive building. Indeed it’s only real significance to me is that the quickest way from the venue of Marxism 2015 to my accommodation was to travel from Euston to this station and then catch a 123 bus (quick but not cheap – my Oyster card took at least £30 worth of punishment for a total of eight trips – albeit one affected by the tube strike and so being somewhat elongated). Incidentally, things went so well on the accommodation front that my host has offered me accommodation again for next year should I attend – and I have accepted.
Accounts of some elements of yesterday at work, some important petitions, a couple of autism related links and some cracking pictures.
INTRODUCTION
Apart from a substantial links section, this post focuses on yesterday at work. I hope that you will enjoy it and that some of you will be encouraged to share.
CATALOGUE OUT
The catalogue for James and Sons’ auction on Wednesday is now out in print form. It can also be viewed online at the-saleroom.com…
Our feature image!
The auction will taking place at the Maids Head Hotel in Norwich, and those who cannot be there but see something of interest can bid online via the-saleroom or Delcampe or leave bids with us either by emailing admin@jamesandsonsnorfolk.com or phoning 01328 855003.
RESOLVING A QUERY
One of the tasks I was given yesterday was answering a query about one of our lots in the next sale. The request was for some extra images, and here is how I resolved it…
This is the image that is available online.
And close-ups of eachThe selection I chose to serve as highlights.
LINKS
My selection of links divides into two subsections, a selection of important petitions and a couple of autism related pieces.
My next petition grew out of a Freedom of Information request submitted by Mike Sivier of Vox Political regarding deaths following the stopping of benefits. I have two links relating to this:
My next petition is one that has already achieved its original goal but is being used as a jumping off point for tackling similar behaviour by an authority in Kent:
An account of an autism related meeting in Norwich, loads of links, some quality dragon pictures, some infographics and some other pictures.
INTRODUCTION
Although this post is based around my attending a meeting to do with Autism at the Charing Cross Centre in Norwich I have lots of other stuff to share as well, in the form of photos, infographics from various sources and a plentiful supply of links.
THE MEETING
The purpose of the meeting was to contribute towards a wide scale report on improving Mental Health services across the board. The speaker, who has been travelling around the country listening to ideas from people emphasized that one of the things his report would contain was a statement that it must be shared with contributors.
One of the (many) disastrous things that has been happening over the last few years has been a removal of investment from preventative care in favour of crisis management.
One of the commissioners for the Norfolk and Suffolk PCT actually told the manager of Asperger East Anglia that she should tell staff “to stop working with people after three months”, which demonstrates a scandalous lack of understanding of Autistic Spectrum Conditions.
As the only person in attendance to be actually autistic rather than either a professional working in the field or a parent/ carer of someone with an Autistic Spectrum Condition I made several contributions.
The final report should be complete by the start of October, and if we have not heard anything by the start of November we have been given a green light to contact Jane Sayer at the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust.
HERE BE DRAGONS: A PHOTOGRAPHIC INTERLUDE
I have already dedicated a whole blog post to the dragons that can be seen in and around Norwich at the moment, but yesterday I was in parts of Norwich not covered in that post, so I have some more dragons for you…
The first four pictures are of McFly, who sits just outside the City Hall
An educational dragon “The rise and demise of the dinosaurs”
This is Mr Wing, who resides just outside The Forum
“Dragofly”, one of two full size dragons (plus a clutch of babies) to be found inside The Forum
Luda, the other dragon to found inside the forum.
GoGo King Tut, the Egyptian dragon
Norwich Twilight, looking out over the marketplace.Morgan, in one of the streets that feeds into the marketplace.
“Eye Spy Cecil”, near Castle Mall.
Skipper, in the arcade.
Double Decker, Castle Meadow.
I did not get this one’s name, but s/he guards the castle itself
LINKS
My first two links are both related and come courtesy of Dr Marquis Grant. They are both to do with a survey for autistic people:
A petition that I have referred to several times previously in this blog is Fiona Paddon’s petition calling on the NHS to provide free tests from Group B Strep, which now has over 180,000 signatures. The next step is to pile on the pressure bby writing to MPs, to which end I have two links for you…
Finally in this subsection, a petition calling for the mayor of London to get dangerous lorries off the roads (so far this year lorries are responsible for the deaths of eight cyclists in the capital).
BLOGS AND BLOG POSTS
In this subsection are links to the some of the best blogs and blogposts I have found recently…
Having just mentioned the extraordinary Max Tegmark, this seemed a natural place to mention a book devoted to the strangest aspects of science, which it so happens that I read on the bus to Norwich yesterday.
Faraday’s Candle are regular producers of marvellous science and nature related stuff, and this piece on The Arches National Park is comfortably up to their usual high standard.
INFOGRAPHICS
Four infographics to share today. First, by way of Abby Tomlinson on twitter this on abstaining in the face of oppression:
Next up, this on Austerity:
This on energy is probably the most important of the four:
Finally, this on the Great Gathering for Voting Reform:
AFTERWORD AND SOME FINAL PHOTOS
I hope that you enjoy this blog post as much as I have enjoyed creating it, and that some at least of you will be inspired to share it. I finish with some non-dragon related photos from Norwich…
An account of England’s spinelessness at Lord’s, some pictures and links.
INTRODUCTION
As well as my title piece I have some photographs and links to share. I hope that you will enjoy this post and be inspired to share it.
A HORROR MATCH
Australia went in to the fourth day of the second ashes test match at Lord’s 362 runs to the good with all their second innings wickets still standing. The plan was obvious – lash up as many more runs as possible during the morning session and leave themselves five sessions to bowl England out. Part 1 of the plan was carried out in exemplary fashion, the eventual second innings tally of 254-2 declared leaving England a purely nominal target of 509.
England’s subsequent ‘effort’ to make a fight of it was so ludicrously inadequate that they failed even to take the match into the final day. A humiliating 103 all out left England beaten by 405 runs (their second largest ashes defeat by a runs margin). The actual extent of England’s failure in this match was even greater than the bald margin of defeat shows – Australia scored 820-10 in their two innings (82.00 per wicket), while England managed 415-20 (20.75 per wicket).
England did win the first match of the series and it is possible to turn things round straight after a huge win – England were monstered in the 4th match of the 2009 series at Headingley and bounced back to win at The Oval in the 5th, while in the 2010-11 series England were thumped at Perth and responded with innings victories in the last two matches of that series at Melbourne and Sydney. Not forgetting of course the 2005 side’s response to a humiliating defeat at Lord’s – 400 on the first day of the second match at Edgbaston and on from there to win the series.
A PICTORIAL INTERLUDE
The pictures in this section come from three different locations, because as well as Sunday lunch in East Rudham, there was an afternoon garden party elsewhere in the village that I also visited…
I have seen swans on the Nar and the Wensum before, but seeing them on the Great Ouse was a first!
Yes – a bee caught on camera!Back where we started – with the swans on the Great Ouse.
LINKS
My first link is to piece from Tax Research UK about the Labour Party leadership contest, and the bankruptcy of the position taken by The Observer in particular.
My next two links are to two related petitions both organised via change.org:
I hope that some of you will share this post. I was sufficiently inspired by one of the swan pictures that I have edited it to serve as a thank you message – my fourth such picture since I first decided to do something a bit special in that department for use on twitter:
This was my first pictorial thank you message.This was no 2No 3 was thisThis is number four, making its first public appearance.
The main text is Copperplate Gothic Bold, 58pt in the fourth thank you messgae, while the smiley face is a capital J in wingdings, 48pt.
Welcome to the latest post in my series about my experiences at Marxism 2015, the five day political festival in Central London organised by the Socialist Workers Party.
THE FINAL RALLY
I did not stay for the whole of the final rally, missing one speech and the singing of the Internationale, because standing all the way from London to Cambridge did not appeal, so I wanted to ensure that I was on the 15:44 – the latest train on which one can bet on not standing.
The Internationale
Here is a picture of the platform, taken before the meeting started…
All the speeches were excellent, but the one that really made an impression on me was the one by a woman from the campaign to get justice for the Hillsborough families…
The chair introducing the final rally.Richard Boyd Barrett TD (Irish equivalent of an MP) gives the first speech.These two were speaking as a pair about their experiences unionizing fast food establishments
SWP Student Organiser Lewis making his speech..Still fighting for justice 26 years on.
I hope that you have enjoyed this post and will be encouraged to share it.
A brief account of the state of play in the current test match, an account of the fly by and two concerts tthat were part of the 65th King’s Lynn Festival, some cool links and some impressive and imortant infographics.
INTRODUCTION
As well as my subject matter as indicated above including photographs, I also have some links and infographics to share with you.
ENGLAND STRUGGLING AT LORDS
Yesterday was the third days play in the second test match between England and Australia at Lords. It was England’s least bad day of the match so far, but they were so far adrift going into it that they needed rather more than a decent day. Australia at 108-0 in their second innings lead by 362 and the obvious plan for them is to lash up as many runs as they can in the morning session and then leave England a mountain of Olympus Mons proportions to climb in the final five sessions of the game.
A FLY BY AT VERY CLOSE RANGE
My outside space was an ideal position from which to view the advertised fly by happening as part of the King’s Lynn festival. It was on the aeroplane’s third pass that I was finally able to get some pictures (six in total)…
All the publicity about this event referred to a spitfire, but apparently, according to some who have already seen my pictures on twitter it is actually a Dakota.
TWO CLASSICAL CONCERTS
Once the day’s action had finished in the cricket it was off to King’s Lynn Minster for the first of two concerts taking place yesterday evening. There was a blanket ban on photography at the event, so I have few pictures…
Some detail about the first concert.The one internal pic I got before being told about the no photography rule.
This concert was splendid. The Vivaldi and Manfredini pieces were particularly impressive, while the Vejvanovsky was a splendid introduction to a composer that few of us had previously heard of. The lead violinist, Bojan Cicic by name, proved to be a quite superb performer.
At the end of this concert we just had time to visit my aunt’s house before the start of the second concert, a violin and harpsichord duet playing works by Telemann (the most prolific of all composers), Buxtehude and J S Bach (who as young man walked 200 miles each way for the privelege of witnessing Buxtehude in action – no recordings in them thar days!).
This mini concert was every bit as good as the first one had been – no evening of two halves this time. I got some photographs of the Minster’s light show (one of several dotted around the town)…
LINKS
My first two links both come courtesy of Vox Political:
aspiblog 