Category Archives: Musings

21st August picture of the day…

21 Sunday Aug 2022

Posted by in Food and drink, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, West Yorkshire

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The lull before storm…

All three of us had a lie-in this morning. Well, until ‘Bernie’ (our friends dog) decided it needed to go out for a wee at 07:30 this morning which meant I was woken up by being slobbered over as a way of attracting our attention! I’d agreed to take the short straw so Dee could sleep in. What I hadn’t bargained for was letting Bernie out of the back door – only to find one of our neighbour’s cats sat on the doorstep. I don’t know who was more startled, Bernie, me or poor Popi – who took off like a bat out of hell! Luckily, I’d kept Bernie on her lead so there was no cartoon-like hot pursuit.

The excitement over we returned to a much calmer Sunday. Dawn returned Bernie to her owners (who were still recovering from their night out) whilst I pottered around at home, sorting out the final logistics for my week away before retreating to the kitchen to enjoy my last opportunity to indulge in some cooking for some time. I really enjoy the ritual of preparing the ingredients and laying them out before beginning the process of turning the raw ingredients into a meal. I was cooking Indian today so now the the cottage is filled with the smells of exotic spices. The dish I’ve made includes freshly roasted and powdered Fenugreek seeds along with Cloves, Cinnamon, Star Anise and Cumin powder. The mélange of fragrances is wonderful especially as the final product contains the tang of White Wine Vinegar which hangs in the air and complements the spices.

Now it’s time to kick back and enjoy the late afternoon sunshine and our evening together so I’ll end the blog here. Expect a series of rolling blogs over the next eight days – although they won’t be a complete commentary on my trip as I’m writing for a magazine. If you want to read the full details they’ll be published in a series of three articles in RAIL magazine starting in October. Despite that, I hope to keep you entertained as I take over 80 trains around the UK to explore many familiar destinations plus some I’ve not visited for decades – plus one of the last extremities of the UK rail network I’ve never managed to reach before…

So, today’s picture is cooking therapy. In this case, Chicken Vindail. Here’s the ingredients prepared for cooking.

20th August picture of the day…

20 Saturday Aug 2022

Posted by in Musings, Picture of the day

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It’s been an easy Saturday here at Bigland Towers. There’s a busy time ahead so it’s nice to kick back a little. The pair of us have been up to different things. Dee’s been out for brunch whilst I pottered around the house catching up on housework and preparing for next week away. In the afternoon we reversed roles as I went out playing pool with friends. This evening the pair of us are relaxing at home as we have a guest to entertain.

Meet ‘Bernie’ – who belongs to friends who’re out partying tonight. We’re looking after her whilst they do. It’s not a service we could have offered whilst our venerable moggie ‘Jet’ was alive, but (to be honest) it’s lovely to have a four-legged friend around the house again…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Thank you!

18th August picture of the day…

18 Thursday Aug 2022

Posted by in Musings, Picture of the day, West Yorkshire

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We’ve had another mixed day here at Bigland Towers – not that I was going to be going anywhere as there’s another rail strike on so no trains were operating through the Calder valley. I couldn’t have gone anywhere If I’d wanted to! Whilst this was a major inconvenience for many I was happy to be stuck at home as I’d lots to do in preparation for next week and my ‘grand tour’ around the UK’s rail network. To add to the happiness at being busy at my desk, the weather wasn’t exactly conducive to wandering with the camera. Our latest dry spell has broken but it’s still not going to be anywhere near enough to replenish our famished reservoirs. Whilst I was working I was seeing friends in the South and West reporting on the torrential rains they’d had and the consequent floods as the water ran off fields baked like clay. At least we’ve not suffered that here. I’ll be interested to see the contrasts as I traverse the UK next week.

My plans are finally coming together. I’ve only one day out of the seven where I may have to ‘wing it’ or plan at the last moment due to problems with a couple of the train operating companies. But that’s all grist to a journalists mill, so I’m not going to worry about it.

Whilst I’ve been busy at home I’ve managed to add another load of railway memorabilia to eBay and offer up for sale stuff that’s been sat in cupboards for years. Some of it is rather unusual and certainly limited edition as it was souvenirs that were commissioned for various press events over the years. Here’s an example. You’d be mugs to miss stuff like this! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/314112297014

So, my picture of the day is another mugshot!

No, it doesn’t tilt – unless you make it!

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Thank you!

16th August picture of the day…

16 Tuesday Aug 2022

Posted by in Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, Railways, Sri Lanka, Travel

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It’s a short blog from me tonight as the pair of us have had a very convivial night at the house of friends. Normally they cook for us but today we turned the tables and brought with us food we’d already pre-prepared. All that was left to do was cook the potatoes in chilli and the spicy chicken kebabs to go with all the salads and demon garlic mayonnaise we’d brought with us. Needless to say, a fine time was had by all – but I wouldn’t stand downwind of us in the morning!

The earlier part of the day saw Dawn commuting into the CRN office in Huddersfield whilst I worked from home planning more of next weeks round Britain odyssey and prepping a lot of old slides and other memorabilia which went live on eBay this evening. Follow this link to see what’s on offer, which includes 90 new slides which I’ve only added today. Oh, there’s also a selection of old badges and branded moleskine notebooks which may tickle your fancy.

As for today’s picture, this is identical to one of the slides that are now up for sale (starting price £1.99). I’ve added a selection of pictures of the railways of Sri Lanka, taken in 2003. The railway still uses a couple of British-built locomotives classes, including these examples, the M7s, which were built by Brush, Loughborough in 1981.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Thank you!

15th August picture of the day…

15 Monday Aug 2022

Posted by in Architecture, Manchester, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, Travel

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Another week and another day spent chained to a desk, but hardly in a bad way. The weather forecast was threatening rain and even the possibility of thunderstorms so it seemed like a good day to be at home. Neither rain nor thunder materialised, all we had was a few desultory spits of rain which didn’t even wet the pavement.

Away from the weather my time was spent productively. I’ve a lot more of next weeks around Britain trip and now have an idea of where I’ll be ending the week as I’m not going to try and return home on the day, it would cramp my style too much and mean too much retracing of steps. I’ve not finalised everything as I’m waiting for a few temporary timetables to either be confirmed or cancellations be announced. I may have to be flexible on the Saturday as a result. Even so, it’s going to be quite a trip!

Another project that’s taken up a lot of my day has been preparing another batch of old railway slides and sundry memorabilia for sale on eBay. I’m hoping to have many of the articles added tomorrow and released for sale in the evening. There’s a mixture of UK pictures going back to the mid 1990s plus a selection of Sri Lankan railway images dating from 2003 which feature some old British built locomotives.

One unexpected diversion today was the return of an unexpected visitor. On Friday a racing/homing pigeon put in an unexpected appearance. The poor thing was suffering from exhaustion due to the heat and crash-landed at the back of the house where I found it voraciously chugging water out of an old flowerpot. I managed to save it from the local cats and put it in our outhouse with a supply of food and fresh water for the night then released it successfully the next day and watched it fly away. Well, it seems it enjoyed its holiday a little too much. This afternoon I was looking out of the office window and noticed it perched on the wall opposite, almost as if it was watching me! This time it was a much closer call with the cats who were already stalking it – but now it’s back in the outhouse. This time we checked the rings on its legs and found a phone number – which is local! I’ve rung the chap and he’s going to collect our feathered friend tomorrow. Let’s hope this time it decides it’s given me enough stress! Besides, I don’t want to fall out with the cats…

OK, time for today’s picture. This one’s from my recent jaunt to Manchester and features the Edwardian baroque magnificence of the Midland Hotel. The hotel was designed by Charles Trubshaw and constructed between 1898 and 1903 for the Midland Railway Company at a cost of more than £1 million. It’s coated in a variety of terracotta and granite and it looks stunning!

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Thank you!

12th August picture of the day…

12 Friday Aug 2022

Posted by in Lancashire, Musings, Photography, Trams, Travel

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After yesterday’s Blackpool jaunt today’s been one where the focus has been very much about home. The day’s been another hot one with the mercury hitting the 30 degree mark so ideal for spending lots of time in the cool of my office. Plus, I’ve had a couple of days worth of pictures to edit. The galleries they’ve been added to you can find by following this link.

I did eventually venture out for my daily constitutional but boy, was I hot and sweaty by the time I got back. Apart from the absence of humidity these temperatures remind me of being back in Asia – only without the colour and the chaos – well, if you discount what’s happening in politics anyway.

One unexpected event was playing host to a racing pigeon. I’d been out watering the back terrace garden when I spotted a clearly exhausted pigeon drinking from an old plant pot base. The fact it showed absolutely no fear or inclination to move when I approached convinced me it wasn’t one of our skittish locals. When I got close the rings on both its legs confirmed my suspicions. Myself and a couple of neighbors fed and watered it, but then the damned thing wanted to go to sleep on the back steps, which would have been suicide as next door has a couple of cats. Instead, it now has a perch in our shed where it has food, water and sanctuary until tomorrow when we can see if its fit enough to fly off or we have to try and contact its owners.

Talking of flying away, our evening’s been spent in our local pub (The Big 6) to celebrate Holly’s last shift after seven years behind the bar. Nowadays the ‘ginmeister’ works as a teacher and doesn’t have the time. Her send-off brought a lot of old regulars together and included the former Landlord and Landlady – John and Leslie. We had a lovely night catching up with everyone and reminiscing about old times.

Right now the pair of us are back at home and ready to call it a day. It may be Saturday tomorrow but we’ve both got lots of things to do involving work rather than play. Before I switch off for the evening I’ll leave you with the picture of the day which is one from my visit to Blackpool. Odd to think, but until the early 1990s when the Metrolink system in Manchester opened Blackpool was the last refuge of trams in the UK, now look at it. It’s gone from a run-down old system running vintage vehicles to an growing business that uses new Bombardier Flexity 2 trams and is extending its routes to include a new interchange by Blackpool North station.

Trams are in the pink in Blackpool…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Thank you!

8th August picture of the day…

08 Monday Aug 2022

Posted by in Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, RAIL magazine, Travel

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It’s been another busy day here at Bigland Towers, although most of it’s been spent chained to my desk. I’d pictures to get out to a couple of magazines, paperwork to sort out – and then start planning my round Britain trip for RAIL magazine. Looking through the diary I realised that there’s only one window to fit a 7-day trip in, so the 22nd-28th August it is then, which just misses the bank holiday Monday – although (depending on my finalised plans), I may still be travelling back from somewhere that day. Right now I’ve the first four days mapped out. They’ll see me travel anti-clockwise from Halifax, across Lancashire, Cumbria and Yorkshire in a loop before returning home. After that I head West again to take in Merseyside, Cheshire and onto Shropshire and the Welsh borders before ending up in Pembrokeshire. Day three sees me traversing South Wales before hitting Bristol and heading down to Cornwall for a flying visit, then ending up in Exeter for an overnight. Day four will see me heading from Exeter to Salisbury before hugging the South Coast all the way to Brighton and on to Ashford before ending up on the Kent coast and on to London. Right now, I’m still planning days 5, 6 and 7 as I’ve a lot more ground to cover – including Scotland! You’ll be able to read all about my travels which will be spread over three editions of RAIL this coming October/November.

Tomorrow I take a break from planning as I’ve got to go to Manchester with Community Rail Network colleagues to scope out the venue for this year’s community rail awards. I may as well make a day of it, so expect a rolling blog as I’ll be looking at some rail enhancement projects en-route – and possibly on the way back too…

So, without further ado – here’s today’s picture. Unlike the South of the country we’ve had a lot of rain up here in the Pennines recently. One morning when I opened the living room curtains I noticed these raindrops on the lilies outside and couldn’t resist digging out the camera fitted with my micro-lens.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Thank you!

7th August picture of the day…

07 Sunday Aug 2022

Posted by in Malaysia, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, Travel

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The first week of August is already over? Really? I know it’s said that time seems to pass more quickly as you get older but it feels like someone is seriously taking the pee here! I’ve so many things to plan or fit in my diary or on the calendar but some bugger keeps nicking the days!

The consequence of this time foreshortening (and other things) has meant that this Sunday’s been anything other than a day of rest – despite my best hopes and aspirations. I wouldn’t mind, but next week is going to be jam-packed with events and suchlike. It’ll provide me with material for several blogs – if I can find the time. Oh, and then there’s sorting out dates and planning for my bi-annual round the UK trip for RAIL magazine, which I really need to get on top of – especially with the next round of rail strikes in the pipeline which could really put the mockers on things. I suspect my Monday is going to be spent poring over timetables and calendars whilst I map out the rest of my year. Especially as I’m determined to get back to Asia in December-January. Whilst I’ve got some great holidays planned with Dawn and family, I miss flying solo and really travelling. I’m hoping the things I can put in place over the next week will fix that.

But, right now it’s time to relax and leave you with the picture of the day which is another one from a previous life where travel was so much part and parcel of my everyday life – even more so than now. Many of us have a ‘happy place’ and for a whole host of reasons Georgetown on Penang Island, Malaysia is one of mine. I first discovered the place on my solo travels in 1991-92 and I’ve been drawn back on a regular basis ever since. After a long journey overland there’s something about getting on the ferry across from the mainland, seeing Georgetown hove into sight and thinking ‘I can relax now’. Here’s one of the reasons I love it so much. Streetlife -and streetfood.

Hawkers stalls take over Lebuh Chulia in Georgetown of an evening, serving a fantastic variety of Asian foods. They’re a great place for tasty cheap eats and chance to watch the world go by…

If you want to see more of my pictures of Georgetown taken over the years, click on this link.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Thank you!

1st August picture of the day…

01 Monday Aug 2022

Posted by in Musings, Norfolk, Photography, Picture of the day, Travel

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Another month has flown by and now we’re already into the eighth month of the year, where the hell’s the time going? After yesterday’s little excursion I’ve been been busy at home editing the pictures to get out to the client whilst sticking the rest on my Zenfolio picture website. You can find which galleries they’re in by following this link. To be honest, I was glad of the home time as I’d so many things to catch up on or prepare for the week ahead. Plus, whilst the weather still feels warm the day gradually deteriorated, leaving us with yet another wet evening with worse to come tomorrow. Hardly great photographic conditions, so if the rain Gods want to do their stuff now and leave me in peace from Wednesday whilst I’m working on HS2 sites I’ll be more than happy!

One of the many projects I want to get done this month is stick many more old slides and items of railway memorabilia onto eBay. I’ve already got several hundred old transparencies listed and I re-advertised over 350 unsold pictures this evening. You can find what’s on sale (prices start from £1.99) by following this link. I’ll be adding new pictures by the weekend.

Right, it’s a short blog from me tonight as I’ve another early start as both Dawn and I have a long day ahead. I’ll leave you with today’s picture which is from yet another project that remains uncompleted – scanning all my old slides! Although this particular picture dates from August 1997 is topical for me as we’re in the process of arranging a week-long holiday on the North Norfolk coast in September. Dawn’s never visited the area and I’ve not been back for over 20 years, so we’re both looking forward to it. Here’s the old windmill at Cley next the Sea.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

30th July picture(s) of the day…

30 Saturday Jul 2022

Posted by in Food and drink, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, West Yorkshire

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And what a convivial day it’s been! We started off by driving over to Huddersfield to have brunch with Dawn’s parents at the excellent Hinchcliffe’s farm shop in their ‘Rusty Bull’ cafe/restaurant. It’s always a treat to have someone else cooking for us – especially of a weekend. We weren’t disappointed either. The menu’s changed since our last visit. The full English still features and that was my choice as it’s something we’d rarely cook at home. Dawn plumped for one of the new dishes, Shakshouka. This was comprised of Chorizo, Smoked Bacon, Baby Spinach, Sweet Peppers and Poached Eggs, served with Sourdough Toast.

We had a lovely meal and time together which was only slightly spoiled by the fact a lone Wasp managed to sting me on my neck! The little barsteward prompted a detour on the way home so that I could pick up some anti-histamines from a chemist. Years ago I had a bad allergic reaction to a sting from some critter so I wasn’t taking any chances, especially as it stung me so close to my throat. I didn’t fancy a tracheotomy if things went pear-shaped! As it was the tablets worked a treat.

On the way home we called in at another favourite, the Bolster Moor farm shop where we stocked up on various cuts of meat that’ll keep us going for quite some time and allow Dawn to produce some of her amazing dishes – like her fabulous gluten-free lasagne as well as home-made chicken-liver pate. We also bought a couple of different bags from their range of flours for our neighbour as a ‘thank you’. Susan bakes the most delicious bread (purely as a hobby) which she passes on to us. Her delightful range of fresh home-made loaves mean we hardly ever have to buy bread.

Once back at home Dawn rolled up her sleeves and started cooking whilst I sloped off to our nearest pub (The Wainhouse Tavern) for a few games of pool with some friends. I don’t go every week, only when I’m around. Rediscovering old skills (I used to play in a pool team back in my distant youth) is great fun and makes a pleasant change from just propping up a bar.

I stayed for a couple of pints and several games before returning home to muck in cleaning up the kitchen where Dee was cooking up a storm. As well as the gorgeous smell of the Lasagne ragu the kitchen was full of the aroma of our meal for tonight – Nasi Goreng, the signature dish of Indonesia, which we’ll be eating soon after I’ve finished scribbling this!

Tomorrow will be less relaxing. I’ve been tasked with getting the cover picture of a magazine which means a trip to Leeds/Bradford in the hope I can get a suitable picture, so expect a rolling blog from my trip. In the meantime, here’s a selection of pictures from today’s outings.

Hincliffe’s full English with added black pudding…
A selection of local bitters in the Wainhouse Tavern.
Winning! Or not….
A snack before supper. Sat at my desk with one of Bolster Moor’s award-winning pork pies.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Thank you!