Man Flu and Harrison

Another week past and another period of sitting at the dining table trying to remember the last week and everything awesome and interesting that happened. I'm struggling as per but I'll do my best.

Thumbs up for the bacon butty

I remember Sunday as being mainly about having a massive lie in, typing up the post for last week, and not much else. I was still recovering from the night before though no hangover, just tiredness. The picture above is actually from the Friday of last week and was the bacon butty I made for A just before I made my own bacon and egg butty. It is only in here to provide some illustration before I get into the meat of the update. I really can't remember much about Sunday so onwards.

This was my second week at the new job and I was up and off to work bright and early on Monday morning. Not just normally early, either; I set off in time to get to the office at about 7.15am. My failure to communicated satisfactorily with the bank on Saturday meant that I had arranged to call them back on Monday when an English speaker would be in the office. On the drive I had a brainwave and managed to finally log in to my account so in the end I didn't have to ring Bulgaria again anyway. This was a good thing as I achieved what I needed to but it did mean I lost the opportunity to keep trying to improve my language skills. I still find myself sometimes thinking in Bulgarian and I am hoping that continues as it is months before I get back over there.

With the banking sorted out I rang the estate agent for the house we viewed on Saturday and confirmed our interest so an application process was started. Hopefully this will turn around quickly as I want to get over there and settled as early as possible. This process has been ongoing all week and, despite the fact that they use UK Tenant Data to collect their application details and do the credit checks and this company appears to be staffed by incompetent, illiterate and rude people, A is 100% complete on her application and I am now 90%. I have no idea whatsoever what the missing 10% is so am waiting for a reply to my email (they don't answer the phone. Ever).

The rest of the day was spent working away and finding myself slowly getting more comfortable with what I'm having to do. There was also a rather loud young lady who had been on holiday for a few weeks and who felt the need to share at top volume the same anecdote with every new person to come into the office. How I wished I had my big headphones! Fortunately our plans were to move to a new office and I was nagging my boss about it through Monday.

Happy in the new office

It was in the car on the way home that I started to feel a bit unwell and by the time I got home I was struggling; man flu had struck! I went pretty much straight to bed and, other than getting up for some food, stayed there all night until the alarm went off in the morning. Fortunately it wasn't too bad and I'm fully better now, however I went straight to bed on getting home on Tuesday and Wednesday as well. Tuesday morning we moved to a new office but then were kicked out of it during the afternoon so had to squat on random desks in the office however I think now we are finally fully settled in our new home which is quiet and airy and comfortable.

What with me being so badly on Wednesday I was sadly unable to make it to the Reggae Jam Night at our local however I made sure that A knew she didn't have to stay in with me and so off she toddled for a pint of guiness and to avoid cabin fever. She was tasked with getting some videos so I could feel a little less sorry for myself having missed it and she brought back a few, of which my selection is above. It also sounds like she made some friends up there which is good; it's always nice to have a local where you can go on your own and be made to feel welcome. I am looking forward to getting back up there next Wednesday myself.

The man himself about the carve the turkey

Despite being ill I managed to work the full week and was pretty productive with it and by Thursday I was feeling largely better. Thursday was, as my American readers will know, Thanksgiving and so I set myself on the sofa with Sky's NFL coverage on as is my habit. Cecil "The Diesel" Martin is no longer on their show as often as he used to be but they always get him to come back for this 12 hour long festival of American Football. The main purpose for his inclusion in the show is the huge turkey they get in the studio which he has to carve up and then, later on, he gets to eat one of the turkey legs in slow motion and close up. Yes, I know it doesn't sound very nice but it makes me laugh every time. The game that we watched (Lions vs Bears) was a really good game however the second game (A went to bed) wasn't so good and I turned it off just before half time.

And so to work-from-home Friday which was well timed after NFL (though I wasn't up that late in the end) and the fact I hadn't been well through the week. A has worked super hard this week and Friday was no different; I'm not sure there was much of a break at any stage in her typing away. I was also working hard and actually had to stop on a bit later than usual as I broke the build at the end of the day and wanted to fix it. During the day Ken, who is looking after Rambo, had been uploading videos of him onto Facebook so I asked him to send me some and he did; this is my favourite of the lot and everytime we watch it we laugh so much at the expression on his face. Four months or so til we see him again. A misses him loads but obviously I don't at all. Here is a link to Ken's business, transporting animals and other things back and forwards to Bulgaria

We had arranged to meet up with Shuggy again on Friday night, as his mrs was at a gig, and so we were off into town again that evening. Against all the odds we managed to get a table in Port Street which is one of my favourite bars in Manchester with loads of interesting beers which change all the time. It was a really good night in the end, with my old boss Mike turning up with his mrs and then later in the night A bumped into another of my mates, Rob, and so he came and joined us with his friends. We didn't drink that much, neither of us really being in the mood, however when I woke up the next day I was feeling really rough. A said she was too and later in the day Mike text with the same story so maybe one of the pints we had was off. Anyway, I was delicate all day and it's only now, sat here with a bacon and egg butty and a brew on Sunday morning, that the headache has shifted.

Me sat in Harrison

Huge amount of space in the back

There was no opportunity for lazing around on Saturday morning, though. We were off to Wigan to collect Harrison, the White Van. I drove us there and we arrived dead on time then it wasn't that complicated a process (other than the seller having lost the MOT, saying he'd post it on to me, then just as I was driving off he ran over waving it and had found it in his glove box) and we were off, with A driving Thomas, up the motorway to the studio. Harrison did pretty well on the whole, getting up to about 65mph without any problems and, while he is a bit noisy, he is willing and the bad noise that I was worried about seems to go as you go past 50mph. Our plan at the studio was to get some of the stuff out of storage and into the back of Harrison however we decided against it (partially due to really heavy musical stuff piled in front and partially due to desperate need for breakfast and a brew) and just tidied Thomas then left for the cafe.

Me with my pot of tea for one

I was greeted by the owner with "Hello Mr Tea" and our full Scottish breakfasts were wolfed down in no time, chased by every single drop of tea that she had provided for us. I started feeling a little more human after this but as I say even bacon, eggs, tomatoes, black pudding, potato bread, baked beans and toast wasn't enough to shift this hangover. After eating and chatting with the lady we went to look for a washing machine at the second hand place across the road but he was shut so it was back to Thomas and home. There had been an accident on the M6 which delayed us some but we got back pretty quickly and I was straight to bed and slept for two hours which was just a brilliant decision to have made. I woke up feeling a whole lot better and with energy for the evening.

Steak and chips with peas and mushrooms

First things first, though, and when it was time I started cooking dinner. A had picked up some awesome Ribeye steaks and I did my famous butter mushrooms, chips (which were oven, but were expensive oven, and so were nice) and LOADS of peas on the side. It was amazing! You really can't beat a high quality ribeye steak done bloody so the chips get red. Fantastic.

The main event of the week was a present from A to go and see The Alabama 3 gigging at Academy 2. We did not have to rush at all and strolled the ten minutes to the venue from our house. As we approached there was a MASSIVE queue of young people stretching as far as the eye could see but I quickly worked out that there were far too many of them, and they were all too young, for this to have been the queue for our gig. I was correct and we were able to get a beer (only a small one, and the only one of the night as neither of us wanted another) and some gig t shirts before we headed up and took our places by the sound desk. The support act came on quite early before many people were there and they were really good. They are a local band called The Cornelius Crane and their songs were strong which matched their musicianship and I have decided that I want to see them live again. I really cannot recommend them highly enough and my video does not do them justice so get yourself over to Reverb Nation and if you like them, support them by buying their music. Go on! DO IT!

It made such a difference to have a good support act, after the weird shouty scottish beat poet style weirdness of the Jesus and Mary Chain gig. After they left the stage to warm applause (they deserved more people to have bothered to arrive in time to see them) we settled to wait for The Alabama 3 to start. I had been watching a chap stood next to us for a while and, as I thought, it was The Reverend D. Wayne who had come out from back stage to enjoy the music. I have seen various members of the band do this over the years and I really love the fact that they come out and mingle, chatting to their fans and not being stuck up and hiding away. He was quite pissed and was engrossed in a conversation with another fellow and then had to dash off back stage so I didn't disturb him for a chat or a photograph in the end. Not long after he stumbled his way back stage a roadie appeared on stage shining his torch and beckoning them onstage and there was the Reverend, no longer looking (as) squiffy and polished up nicely in a suit.

What a great gig it was. I was dancing and so was A and the band were on form, after a couple of songs to warm themselves up. This was the first time A had ever seen them live and while she liked their CDs she was amazed at how much she enjoyed seeing them live. After the slightly-unpleasant militant political side the previous time I'd seen them ("burn the tory houses" etc) it was great to see them get back to what they do best which is rock the house and make the entire room dance. The sound on this second video is a lot louder than mine (my phone is broken, basically) and you can really hear just how well they play together live. At one point I hoisted A into the air so she could see a bit better and watch the drummer in his groove; in my opinion he is one of the best drummers I have seen as he holds the groove without ever making any mistakes and is not fussy or over-blown but just does everything that is needed to make you want to jump and dance.

With the last song ringing in our ears (but not as badly as after Jesus and Mary Chain, obviously) we walked home and had a cup of hot chocolate each before heading to bed. Such a rock 'n' roll lifestyle we lead. Now this morning (and it is still morning as I type this) I have made a brew and had a bacon and egg butty made for me and typed this and edited the videos and once this is published I'm going to carry on editing as I put together the pictures and videos which I want to show my Nan next week when we go to see her at my parents house. See you later.

First week of real work done

So it is Sunday again and time for another update. This weekly schedule is much better for me on one level in that it isn't take up my time during the week but now I am sat back down and trying to collect my thoughts about what went on I am struggling to send my mind all the way back to the beginning of the week. For example, Sunday night, who knows?

Monday, however, is clearer in my head as I once again made my way to begin a new job. I was up on time and the drive over was really clear which gave me a chance to get a bacon and egg butty as a take away, with a brew, which I ate while sat in the car waiting for my mate who I was starting work with to arrive and let me in. I finished it before he got in which was good and then it was to work. I won't go into too much detail about the job as it'll bore you and I have loads of other things to talk about so to summarise this job is just what I thought it would be; I am having to think harder than I have for years, I'm actually working at close to capacity all the time, and I'm learning loads of new skills which is keeping me interested as well. It hasn't been easy, though, and I've made several mistakes through the week which all served to teach me new things. Here's to next week and the continuation of this job.

When I got to work on Monday it was clear that Thomas was not doing very well; his turbo noise was getting worse and worse and the clunking from the bushes on the back was also becoming louder. I rang the garage to find out when he could be booked in. When I had previously spoken to them they had said it would be done in a day however for various reasons they weren't able to guarantee this (and were correct in this, as it happens) so it was arranged that A would drive him up on the Tuesday after dropping me at work and would go to collect him again on Wednesday afternoon, with the aim of getting back to my work in time to go home together. This meant a night without the car and I was able to avoid trains by stopping at Lee's for the night which was great.

A dustbin lid full of meat, and beers

As it happened he had arranged to meet one of his old colleagues for beers that night so he included me in that, and he also invited Ryan along for the party. Our plan was to have some beers than go for food at a place recommended by Ryan called Red's True BBQ where the rumour of awesome beef ribs was enough to convince us all to say "yes" straight away. Our meeting point was at a terrible bar that I whinged about a lot but worked out well as some other ex colleagues came in on their way out so we had a good natter then we walked across town and against all the odds were able to sit straight down at a table without any waiting. The menu had changed, unfortunately, and the ribs were no where to be found much to Ryan's disappointment however what we ordered (basically a dustbin lid full of meat, with sides) was absolutely amazing and none of us could have eaten another mouthful.

Gorgeous sunset across Blackpool Beach

The night was characterised by substantial meat sweats (and I was not alone in this as Lee said he suffered really badly as well) but I slept well enough considering this. The convenient plans we had made for the collection of Thomas and my getting a lift home after work, however, had been rocked the day before when the garage rang to say they had had a problem with the exhaust manifold which had cracked and was at an engineers getting fixed. They could no longer guarantee that Thomas would be ready by the time previously agreed. After some thought I arranged that he would definitely be ready at some point on Wednesday and so A didn't have to rearrange her work schedule and she just headed over to wait for a call that it was ready. That was quite a long wait and she didn't even leave Blackpool until 5.30 however this meant she was able to get more bacon from the awesome butchers, have a coffee in a pub and get down to the front where she took loads of pictures (though this is one she sent me by phone just to make me jealous).

My journey back was pretty horrible in the train as it was a tiny two carriage rattler and filled with school kids who seemed to push all the air out of the place so I was feeling light headed for a lot of it. I did have my book so I could hide in that. I got back and grabbed some pizzas from Asda though we had originally planned on going out for food; the delays at the garage were such that by the time she got back we were both so hungry the pizzas were chosen. These were so big they lasted for days and we eventually finished them off at Friday lunch time. That night I was to bed really early, about 8.30, and slept right through to the next day and woke up feeling a lot better.

The next night was one I had been looking forward to for a while but, when it came, was totally exhausted and it took some effort to get moving. I'd bought tickets to see The Jesus and Mary Chain ages ago and finally the date had come round. We did go online before walking to the venue just to double check they hadn't split up in the three days that they had already been touring. We were in luck and after only ten minutes of strolling arrived at the university where the gig was happening. We got my favourite position, stood right in front of the sound desk, and settled down to wait for the main act, sitting through a very angry Scottish band as a warm up who were OK but a bit forgettable and never bothered to announce who they were or give any real interaction with the crowd; I really hate that! If you have the opportunity of performing in front of a sell out audience because of someone else's success, at least take the time to tell me your names!

Amazing light show and overwhelming volume

Anyway, after this we waited a bit and then the lights dimmed and out walked the band. The last time I saw these guys was about 1994 or 1995 and they only did about 20 minutes before storming off stage and then the band broke up shortly afterwards. This time they managed to finish the entire set and the volume at which they played was exactly what we were hoping for. They remain the loudest band I have ever heard and this was the loudest gig I'd ever been to, since the last time I tried to see them.

The format of the night was a short warm up set of some of their best tracks (including one of my favourites called Reverence which I managed to video the last few seconds of, above) then they went off stage for maybe three minutes before returning and performing the album Psycho Candy straight through without a break at earsplitting volume. It was epic and as we walked home both myself and John had ringing ears the like of which I've not had for many years. I even slightly struggled to sleep as the sounds kept me awake. Brilliant.

I want one of these!

In the interview for this job I was told in no uncertain terms that I would have to work from home every Friday. What a shame! Anyway, this meant that after the gig I was able to have a bit of a lie in, but still be at my desk and working by 8am. I had such a focused day of working, with a load of problems that I solved and while I didn't get to move onto the next task on my list, I did manage to ship the code I was working on by the end of the day. Where we sit (A also works from home and was tapping away all day opposite me) looks out across the road to a college and there are two gorgeous trees that are going golden and silver and orange and red at the moment. I would love to know what type of tree they are, if anyone can identify from this picture?

Saturday was a busy day. First of all we headed over to near my work to view a house (five minutes walk from the office) and both of us liked it so I think I'll be applying for it tomorrow. Then we went straight to Wigan to test drive a van so we can move, my best mate can move, and we can drive the scaffolding and other stuff to Bulgaria next year. This was a Ford Transit long wheel base with a fibreglass Luton style shed on the back and for size and functionality it seems ideal, though there was a strange whine at high revs which I want to chat to Chris about before agreeing to buy. I also need to insure it and that is looking a bit pricey right now. I shook hands on letting him know by Monday with the aim of collecting it next Saturday if we do buy it. Decision time.

Good friends

After popping home briefly and grabbing a butty we were back out to the bus and into town to meet some friends. Before that we went past the army surplus store and I bought so much that the guy at the counter joked that it looked like I was going to set up my own store. Nevermind the jokes, I now have some really hard wearing work trousers (including built in tool belt) and a job lot of combat trousers and work vests (aside - when I put one of the trousers on today I found two $1 bills in the pocket; awesome). We made our way to our meeting point and sat with a beer waiting and, a bit late due to train troubles, our friends arrived and we had a cracking night from this point. We managed to get food at Almost Famous where the Bacon Bacon Fries were just as amazing as I remembered them. Last year this legendary venue burned down (I watched it from my office window with much sadness) and it hadn't reopened properly by the time I left. Now it has reopened and they have improved one irritating aspect. Before you had to queue outside for a table but now a girl on the door has a clipboard and takes your number and then texts when your table is free. After eating we headed across town and went to a few different bars before our friends had to leave (heading for a holiday in the morning) and so we went home.

Amazing breakfast for a Sunday

So Sunday and time for an awesome fry up cooked by John, me to type this up, and then a load of reading and chilling and preparing to go back to the office tomorrow for another full on week.

Til after that, then, ciao.

Hibernation Mode :: Active

Another week and time for another post. I do keep getting nagged to do them more often but really over here there isn't enough interesting stuff happening to type up every day. So, other than for specific incidents, I'll not be updating more often than once a week until we're back. Depending on when I return (and it is looking very likely that I'll not be staying in Bulgaria when A goes back in March) we'll have to work out how it'll go then; I'll prob just nag A to write it while she's there keeping everyone including myself up to date with progress every day. But anyway, that's for the future.

For now, and for the next four months or so, we're stuck over here in the UK and it is having quite an effect on our sleeping patterns. It is probably a combination of having to have the curtains closed as there is a street light right outside, and the fact that this much further north it barely ever gets above dusk even at the middle of the day, but several times this week we have slept in til 10am and beyond which is totally unheard of. I have been able to wallow in such laziness all week as I started the week once again unemployed. My interview was to happen on Tuesday and, true to form, we left in such good time that we got there an hour early. This gave us time to drive around the local area and look at a couple of houses that we had found on rightmove near the offices. If I got the job and settled, similar to the plans for Sheffield, we'll just move to within walking distance.

This ended up being one of the strangest interviews I've ever done as my mate sat with me for half an hour before the hiring manager arrived, his boss, and then as we were starting to chat the bell went to announce the two minute silence for Remembrance Day and I do always observe that. Once we sat down we ended up having a very non structured chat about many different subjects and then went for lunch, where A rejoined us having been out for a walk back up to where the houses were and then on into town to pass the time. I must have done OK as later on that day I was confirmed that I had got the job. I had hoped to start the next day but in the end it was agreed that a Monday start date was best and this has actually worked out very well.

Wednesday night is reggae night now, officially, and will remain so until we leave this flat. We had invited Ryan to come for dinner, help me with some of the setup on this laptop for the new job (I was desperately trying to avoid having to spend the best part of £2000 on a macbook, and seem to have succeeded in this), and then go out to said jam night. This all worked out very well, with a lovely fish and potato dinner cooked by A, however it wasn't the jam night it was a Latin American band which was pretty awesome indeed. We sat round the corner so there was no real chance for photographs or videos but we were dancing away at our tables and, in a nice touch, some of the people we had seen the week before came over and said hi. Gotta love a good local.

Eating out, alone. I love it.

With my job confirmed the rest of the week was spent being really lazy and sleeping, or trying to get the laptop fully configured, or a combination of the two. Happily by Friday afternoon I had done as much as possible and was able to go out for one of the main things I have been looking forward to about being back in this country; The Whisky Lounge Blind Islay Fury night. I was meeting my housemate John, and Lee and one of his mates, as well as another ex colleague but for one reason or another (John ended up at the wrong bar, Lee was held up in traffic) no one made it into town in time to have food with me. No matter I ensconced myself in the restaurant area of one of our regular bars and sat in splendid isolation reading my book and enjoying the BBQ ribs.

The whisky selection

The concept of Blind Islay Fury involves six shots of whisky, each quite peated and gorgeous, and you get to taste and rate them (and try and guess the distillery) before the grand reveal at the end of the night. I failed completely and got none right, though if I had stuck with my first answer across the board I would have ended with three out of six. The best in the room was two so I was quite annoyed at myself. This was only a sideshow, however, and everyone in the room had a really good time as Joe led us through each whisky, describing as he went the process of making an excellent whisky, and then allowing us time to savour the flavour of each. At the end I helped tidy up, with John, and got to drink a few more of each which was a worthwhile deal. From there we went for a few beers and ended in a karaoke bar which I put up with for an hour or so before leaving the others to continue their night.

Just below the cloud level. By about ten feet.

Amazingly I had no hangover the next day, though the last pint was a bad idea I think, and I woke up pretty early though didn't get out of bed for a while. As we had been stuck in the flat all week with only the trip to the interview to break the monotony, we had decided that whatever the weather we would head onto the high peak on Saturday. It took ages to get through Mottram and Glossop, as always, and as we reached the top of the first climb the engine light came on again in Thomas. He is going to have to be put into the garage sooner than planned, I think. We pulled over to allow him to rest for a bit and took a quick stretch of legs down the gully by where we had stopped.

Rushing water

This parking place was actually one I was aiming for anyway as there is a nice walk up onto the moor above the cut however with the weather we decided not to go too far. The path was waterlogged and the mist was coming down even more while we were stopped. The stream was enjoying the rain, however, and gurgled happily as it bounced into the tunnel taking it under the road. We may only have been stopped for ten minutes or so but it was still lovely to get the fresh air and leg stretch in.

Pity about the "e" that has snuck into Whisky

We got back on the road but then a snap decision was made as we passed the Snake Pass Inn to park up and go in for a pint and maybe some food. This was a very good choice and we had a really nice time first of all chatting to the barman with epic dreadlocks who was into music and whisky and commented on my Robert Johnson t shirt and ended up shaking hands as we left. The food, after this chat, was also epic and even though I wasn't feeling that hungry I ate all the lasagne and most of the salad.

Wrapped up warm for a stroll

Win Hill (I think?) in the mist

We reached the Ladybower Dam and I parked up by the side of the road so we could again get out and stretch our legs. The weather was still too bad to go up on the high peak and even down here it was not nice enough to do an extended walk. It was pleasant to stroll up one side of the road back to the bridge, take some snaps, and then cross and come back the other side to the car. There were a lot of people out, despite the weather, and a large number were on mountain bikes taking advantage of the excellent trails in this area. It made me wish I had my bike working over in Bulgaria and maybe I'll have to put my mind to getting the tools and other stuff I need to be able to make it working again.

Gorgeous colours, but the reservoir is very low

One thing that was really obvious at the dam was just how low the water levels are at the moment. They must be about ten foot or so below where they normally are. I did overhear the nice chap at the pub talking about how it hadn't really rained that much, despite being overcast, for quite a long time. This is quite easy to see with all the rubble and rocks that normally make up the shallows being totally dry and not even with any algae on them. They must have been above the waterline for a fair while.

Two water birds on rocks in the reservoir

As we were heading back to the car we watched a large water bird fly across the reservoir and land next to a similar bird on some rocks by the shore. They stayed there as we walked closer and closer and I was convinced they were cormorants but then we weren't so sure. Anyway, this is the best picture of them that we got so if any twitchers out there can help identify, that'd be great?

A shamelessly stolen picture of Winnats Pass (from Wikipedia)

From here I drove us across the dam and through Hope and Castleton and up my favourite road in the country; Winnats pass. Sadly the one picture we attempted to take of this didn't come out at all so I have unashamedly done a search and found one taken on a nicer day so you can see just why I love it so much. We crawled up at slow pace, which is the speed you do this road, and when we got to the top we were completely in the clouds and couldn't see anything at all.

Amazing colours from minerals

Fossils in the limestone

An inverted whirlpool was here

Tiny stalactites

Another, excellent, snap decision was made to go to the Blue John Caverns to see if they were open and doing tours; when you can't see anything outside you may as well go underground. We were in luck (not least because the clutch of annoying kids that were by the visitor centre when we arrived had just finished a tour and so wouldn't be walking around with us) and booked on to a tour leaving in just 10 minutes time. There was a foursome from Holland on the tour, and us two, and that is just how you like it as we were able to take more time, be less rushed, and didn't have to wait too long for stragglers (which were most of all either me or A as we took lots of pictures).

A seam of Blue John

Amongst many interesting things we learned on this tour (and which I don't remember being told the last time I came here, with my dad, which I think I also blogged about) is that the name Blue John comes from the good people of Derbyshire attempting to say "blue with yellow" but in french. Think about it.

Looking up at the old river channel

Another factoid of note was that the entire cave system is natural; they obviously have mined in places but this has had minimal impact on the layout of the caves as the volume of Blue John available to extract is very small indeed. I think it is nearly played out now as they only mine for a month or so a year and the quantity brought up is tiny. Anyway, the factoid (hinted in an earlier picture) is that this cave was actually an underground river; formed when ice forced its way into cracks and then cut out as the ice melted and tore through the limestone. This picture really clearly shows how the channel was cut as it swirled through the softer limestone leaving harder rocks, including iron, behind.

Returning to the surface

It is not immediately obvious until you have climbed all the way back out just how deep the Blue John Caverns go. The areas open to the public extend to 100m below the surface and the whole thing goes an extra 80m or so further down before becoming clogged with rocks. Apparently if these were cleared away it opens out into the Speedwell Cavern (I think?) which is at the bottom of the Winnats pass and has a boat ride along an underground river. This picture was taken near the top having climbed back up out and I must say I appreciated the exercise.

If anything the fog had grown worse while we were underground and so we decided that going home was the best idea so took a slightly different route back via Buxton and into Manchester through Stockport and got back feeling quite tired, but really happy to have got out and about. The rest of the evening involved Fajitas (though I had to run to the shops to get Sour Cream and Guacamole to save dinner as we didn't have any in!) and then a film. Today is being a nice chilled day, though I have some accounts to do now which I have been putting off for weeks, so that'll take some time.

I am also starting to plan for the return already with a list of things I need to buy growing daily. It had Lyle's Golden Syrup (for S) and Daddies Sauce (for me) as a start and now I'm going to add "things to fix bike up" as an item. Tomorrow is my first day in this second new job so here's to my post next weekend having me still in the same job.

Well that didn't work out plus boating

Hello again. What a week (I think it was about a week ago that I last updated this blog) and worthy of having a post written about it I think.

Sunlight at the train station

I remember signing off with excitement about the new job which I was starting the following day. I wasn't wearing my new suit or shoes to this but dragged out the Doc Maertins I bought just before heading over to Bulgaria and had pretty much never worn before this. I was getting the train and the timing for me walking down the ramp onto the platform for my morning train was perfect for sunrise. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were lovely and each morning I really enjoyed turning the corner to this corridor and seeing the sunrise in progress in the distance. There is beauty in lots of places if you look for it.

Reggae jam night

So anyway, the first day and pretty quickly it became apparent that sadly the interview had been misleading and this was in no way the job I was expecting. Nevertheless I decided to stick it for the first week to see how it would go. Wednesday I met up with Ryan for some drinks after work and then we went to meet John and A who had gone to what is now our local. What a great decision that was as there was a reggae jam night which started shortly after we arrived and finished just before kicking out time when we were still there, loving every second. There was one young white kid playing horn who was amazing, but frankly the whole ensemble including the random people who got up to join in sometimes mid song were brilliant. We shall be heading back there again this week I think.

Thursday was a better day as a new developer started who was both good at his job and a really nice lad as well; we had lunch together both then and on Friday but despite this improvement I decided that I really couldn't honestly keep working there. I have never finished a contract early before but this was definitely the correct decision. Friday morning I had a telephone interview for another place working and then I had the difficult conversations with both my agent and my manager and surprisingly they both took it very well. I certainly had no problem with either of them, it was other issues that had made me uncomfortable, and I was glad that there was no break down in relationship. I agreed to work out the day and then shook hands with the new guy and left. I was feeling quite sad as I don't like walking away from a challenge but that is how things are sometimes.

On the boat and ready for the off

And so, unemployed again (though hopefully not for very long), I went to the train station to head down to get on Ryan's boat for the weekend. The train was cancelled, which was the first act of a comedy of errors trying to reach where they had moored culminating in a taxi ride with A in a cab driven by a driver who didn't know where he was going. How you can get a job as a taxi driver if you don't know where the pubs are in your region I really do not know. Anyway, we found them in the end and had a lovely evening with nice food and good beer then a relatively early night followed by a dawn-start to get a jump on the long day ahead.

This swan was greedy and aggressive

We were up and breakfasted and ready for heading off before 8.30 which was really good news as the target for the day was past quite a lot of locks which always take more time than you think. First of all we had a visit from a very aggressive swan which hung around until fed and then chased us a bit as we pulled away from the moorings.

The first lock, and while we were in it

Before long we reached the first lock and shortly after that the second and then third. A had woken up with a really bad earache but was still able first thing to get out and help with the locks while I was really pleased to get outside into the fresh air and do some physical work after being locked in an office all week getting cabin fever. These locks were large with double gates both ends which needed two people to operate for the best speed. Cat was out with us all morning while Ryan drove.

Waiting to open the upstream gate

We got into quite a good rhythm going up these locks and finished the whole flight by about 11.30. It was not the best of days, weather wise, unfortunately and my coat was completely soaked through by the time we stopped. We all changed out of our wet clothes (Cat and Ryan, obviously, having had proper waterproofs on didn't have this problem) and hung them around the fire to dry for the afternoon as there were more locks ahead. Then it was down to a little cafe near the top lock for a lovely lunch of soup and a toastie. I bought some strawberry jam from there and a picture which will go up in the school.

A local called this the Stairway to Heaven

On the way towards these locks there had been a few, quite nicely spread out. As I was jogging along between them (it doesn't make sense to get back onto the boat between locks as it never really gets above walking pace) I had a brief chat with a couple of fisherman who were just packing their stuff away after being out all night. After pleasantries they commented that "just round the corner is the Stairway to Heaven" and when I rounded that corner I saw that they were right.

Water water everywhere!

After a really relaxing lunch we headed off again into the downpour which had worsened through the morning to a peak while we were eating. There were no locks for a while which meant I could stay inside and let the fire continue to dry out my outside clothes, while A was resting and hoping that her earache would clear up. We headed through one long tunnel which was pretty cool until a stream went over the top and it was dripping through in a very wet curtain which did get me a bit. It really was not very nice weather this day.

Serenely progressing along the gorgeous canal

As the day wore on the weather slowly improved with the rain becoming drizzle then going intermittent. One of the benefits of the overcast was that it was actually quite warm and even when I was soaked through I never felt any chill at all. The scenery we were passing through was lovely; with so few other boats moving and almost no one out risking the weather we cruised easily without delay until we reached the next set of locks.

Bridges with a slot in the middle

One of the features of these locks is the bridges near them. Back in the day narrow boats were pulled by horses hitched to their fronts and normally, at bridges, you had to unhitch said horse to get past the bridge. Around here they solved this problem by leaving a notch through the middle of the bridge through which the halter could be passed. Simple but effective.

Bottom gates opened and waiting

These locks were of a slightly different design, being narrower. They had a double low gates (entry, as we were climbing the hill) and a larger single gate at the other end. As the gates were smaller it was mostly easier to open than the morning ones. Ryan was a bit more athletic than I and when opening the low gates he did one then jumped across to the gap to the other whereas I just walked up and over the top gate and back. No way was I falling 20 feet or so into a canal just to show off!

Putting some effort in to opening the gate

These locks may have been easier than the morning ones but it was still quite an effort to get them started from stationary, particularly when the water wasn't quite equalised and my impatience led me to try and jump the gun. We did see another boat on this run of locks, crewed by a man on his own who was most amusingly grumpy when I stopped to help him shut the top gate of the lock we had just left so he could go in. "How am I going to enjoy my coffee if you make things go faster?" was his comment. I said "don't worry, I'm only helping with this one" and was off up the canal after my boat which was in the next lock and ready for my help.

Moonlit view that night

We reached the target for stopping mid afternoon and decided to crack on and try and get to the next pub. It was getting dark really fast as we chugged along and, after going underneath a drawbridge, we found some bollards to tie up to and stopped for the night. By this time we were all hungry again and the BBQd pork chops with nearly cremated (but awesomely tasty) potatoes and corn on the cob went down very well indeed. After this we decided to walk up the tow path to the pub which we found after about 20 minutes of torch lit procession. This pub was less friendly than the one the night before but still served a nice pint so we had a couple before making our way back. By this time the moon was out and the torches were unnecessary so we turned them off and found that we could see much better without them. Just before we got back to the boat I stopped and tried to capture the magical light. I didn't have a tripod so was forced to lay down and try to keep dead still for 10 to 15 seconds for each exposure. It was a lovely evening and I was sad to have to go inside.

First view of the morning

Definitely not a morning cat

Tiller and tie up rope frame this shot

Drawbridge and dawn

The sun has risen

We had a couple of drinks before heading to bed and when we woke the next morning it was to a much different day. The rain had cleared and a slight fog was over the water and it was a gorgeous sight which greeted me as I climbed out to get some fresh air and wake up properly. The above are a selection of the best shots I took while having that short morning stroll, including Milton the cat who decided that it was too cold to get off the boat and went back inside after that peek.

Expert drawbridge operator

After a very nice bacon and egg barm for breakfast, and a slightly slower and more relaxing beginning to the day than the previous one, Cat sparked up the engine and we were off. Fortunately A had woken up without her earache which was really good news however we both spent most of the day ensconced in the cabin reading and relaxing as those two drove. We had done all the locks on the route the day before and there was no need for me to get into my working clothes at all. That is not to say there weren't things to be done however Cat got out and did the winding on this drawbridge before I could offer.

Taking to the air

Kingfisher in closeup

Kingfisher silhouette

A little while after this I was sitting reading when I heard a yell from Ryan and I was told that a kingfisher was in the trees. Suddenly I saw it but then it flew off down the river and I wasn't quite quick enough to get the camera to bear. I went down to the front of the boat and spent the next ten minutes or so trying to get a good picture. It would sit on a branch by the side of the canal until the boat was roughly level then suddenly swoop off in its dipping flight until just out of sight before stopping again. I got a lot of very blurry pictures with a blue smear as it flew, but with the short lens still on the camera nothing came out that clearly. A took over after a while and I went to sit inside and she was able to get a couple of cracking pictures with her longer lens. What a beautiful bird it is.

Two ducks lead the way through a bridge

Beautiful reflections

While I was hanging out the front of the boat failing to get good pictures of the kingfisher I was proving that what I lack as a wildlife photographer I make up for in scenery shots. With the stillness of the water before we passed through it I was able to compose a few very lovely shots. I really do love water in photography and particularly either reflections or light or a combination of both as they interact with the surface.

This almost looks like an optical illusion picture

A also loves the reflections and she got what I think is the best picture of the lot here, as the trees which met overhead at this point are perfectly reflected in the still water and it looks like you are staring down a hole, not looking ahead along a canal. Stunning.

A steady hand, and all that

Try as I might I could not persuade A to drive the boat however I took a bit of a stint during the afternoon where I managed to not crash once. I handed back control as we entered a slightly more congested stretch of waterway with boats moored on either side. It was harder than it looked to keep going in a straight line but with slight adjustments I was able to navigate roughly down the middle of the waterway with no dramas. Success.

The (tagged) guillotine lock

The final interesting historical sight was this guillotine lock. Once used to regulate the flow of water between two competing canals (stealing water was frowned upon) this is now derelict and sadly tagged by some mindless yobs who can't even do something creative with their spray cans.

Entering Birmingham

We were now heading into the centre of Birmingham and the greenery and trees that had surrounded us all day (even as we went through Solihull and other built up places) gave way to concrete, bricks and then suddenly high rise buildings. It was such a dramatic transition not least because suddenly there were loads of people on the tow paths, a fair few taking pictures of the boat as it is quite distinctive when compared to others on the water. We drove along for a while, then dropped Cat off to try and find a long term mooring for them over the next week, but eventually settled for a 48 hour location and then headed off to find a beer before myself and A were on the train back up here.

Milton asleep

What a lovely weekend it had been and really relaxing; it is important that we keep doing things like this as much as possible while we're back in this country as otherwise it could get so depressing so quickly being in a place we don't want to be. So now I'm going to sign this off with a picture of Milton asleep next to me, and here's to my job interview tomorrow and maybe starting another new place this week.