Platform Spaz

Overwhelmed by literally no requests for another train vid', here's one I took in the week.

Alas when I was at Sandy railway station at the start of the week, a colleague spotted me and came over for a nice chat. This kippered my plan to take advantage of the fast trains that hurtle through from London to Peterborough (4 every half hour, counting both directions!)

Check this out - with TOP digger action about seven seconds in. You can kinda' see me in the window so I'm sorry if that disrupts your viewing pleasure.

I am pleased to report that I am at Ma and Pa's today where I will soon be reunited with my bucket (for car cleaning purposes) which I left here aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaages ago.

Some cleaning to follow!

VX52 and Onions...

I woke at 5 and stayed in bed for an hour listening to a hat trick of Radio 4 programmes that covered birds living near The Wash, trains on the Settle to Carlisle railway line (smart!) and thirdly, chickens!

Up and about now and it is a bright, possible day.

I am going to prepare roasted onions as a starter to dinner today and I will roast them with a little goats' cheese and olive oil, and maybe some thin ham. How very Islington!

In order to do the above I need to take a drive to the supermarket in VX52, an increasingly rare treat. I miss going to places in my car.

Top far east action!

My ever excellent brother has been in Macau and Hong Kong this month and he has sent me some pictures today. The things he chose to photograph absolutely underline just how well he knows me and how easy it is for an older brother to be there for his younger sibling. 

Top smart transport and concrete and escalator action!

Honk!

Just to fully reassure you that I am not a complete train spod, here's a quick vid' I took yesterday on my Blackberry. 

I have been doing lots of train travel these last six weeks and I have honed my spod spotting skills, and perhaps I have acquired some new ones too. Every station has train spotters and people registering rolling stock and engines! Anyhow, always entertained by a fast train through, I had to make do with this semi-speedy affair.

It's all going wrong!

The result of my train travel was a productive and very pleasant day in our Regional Office at Banbury in Oxfordshire. It's a civilised and gentle part of the world but it's not big on doorframes for a tall chap.

I have been at home, WFH or back home each night all week; a rare treat.

Shinkansen

How could I not blog THIS!?  

Now I am not actually a train spotter or number gatherer as per recent accusations but show me any 30 something bloke who doesn't have a small bit of time for a fast train and I'll show you the secret to alchemy.

You can't go wrong with a train, albeit  one that runs a touch over 6000 miles from BS5.

Great bit of content by the BBC!

Mmmm Hmmmm - that IS a tasty burger.

I think Barack O pulls this off but old man Joe doesn't look quite so comfortable. 

Each of them has an amazing lack of simple courtesies (such as please and thank you) , but maybe that's an American thing as both seem polite chaps in general.

Anyhow, I liked this little vid' of staged normailty as it were, and Barack O was quite witty when it came to paying.

I wonder if Barack and Joe shot the shit out of anyone afterwards like Jules and Vincent did in the movie?

Chelsea Barcelona later after Arsenal's exit last night.

Trains tomorrow for work (I'll take my spotter book, Suburbia) !

Gooner, gooner gone... :(

I am a bit disappointed at Arsenal's exit from Europe and I think Arsene did a credible job to get that far with a youthful side. Now I don't care for Alex Ferguson and I think he is an ignorant, chewing-gum obsessed Scotsman, but there is no denying his form and his record, and WOW that Ronaldo free kick was fantastic. Good for Man U, good for both Ronaldo's goals.

I had to text updates to a pal in Israel - she couldn't get to a TV set and is I suspect also a bit hacked off today.

I'd love to see a Man U - Barcelona final! It would just be a bit more exciting than Man U - Chelsea.

Fact fans...

Well now fact fans, here's a little slice of travel drama for a working Area Manager. Over the next couple of weeks I am leaving Bristol Temple Meads (pictured) on the train for various journeys. 

I have just used our office booking system and secured trips as below, covering 756 miles give or take a random extra 140 from wherever I end up near Edinburgh on one unkown mystery tour.

Bristol to (and back) .....

Sandy via London

Banbury via Didcot

Cardiff Central

Exeter St Davids

Matlock, Derbyshire

Love it!

It's still fun despite not getting a seat on 40% of journeys at the very least.

All a bit Islington...

Tonight I cooked a leg of pork to see me through the week - it is an efficeint way to eat. I roasted it in the oven and to the roasting dish I added a diced onion, a lime, cumin seed, mustard seeds, ground ginger, merlot  and some apple. These caramelised deliciously and I added them to some olive oil in a ramikin. 

Here's the Islington part, and it's a part I would normally find a bit wanky, along with a cafe latte and a lack of tie wearing.

Tonight I had griddled asparagus with salt, lime juice, olive oil and goats' cheese - man with the caramelised stuff and a glass of merlot it was FANTASTIC (as was the company) ! I fear a chunky sweater on the horizon and crapping on about lentils in the week to come - and a dreadful desire to vote Labour, ban public schools and cease tie wearing altogether. 

NEVER!

Here's Winsto' to remind us of decency and the right way. Phew.

Word!

In the week just closed I was all over the place with work, as has been my recent fortune. In amongst days here and there across counties, railway stations, meetings, stores and bird sanctuaries I made time to come back to BS5 on Thursday night for the Confirmation service at my local church.

Quite quietly and with no real reference to anyone else but my tremendously thoughtful and kind Vicar (pictured) I decided to press on and go for it; it is a decison of about 25 years' contemplation, and 18 months (to last week) of serious thought. Anyhow, I did it and enjoyed it, and in a service attended by 120 folks, eight of us were confirmed. 

I read the first reading to the congregation before being Confimred by Mike Hill the Bishop of Bristol. I had not met him before but he is a cool chap who speaks inspirationally and with an Antipodean twang that is born only of a UK heritage, I think. Most enjoybale it all was and I like that I did it. Ironic that he has a Jewish heritage when he is a Bishop in the C of E, but then I suppose all Christians are Jews really.

I am not trying to convert you or promote it by any means, but just to tell you that it gave me pleasure.

Not in Scotland.

Today my brother has gone to Macau, prior to coming home to the UK for a month's stay in a week or two (I am looking forward to that very much) . I am afraid I could not place Macau on the map, and hey, it's not in Scotland, as was my first impression. I Googled it and found it near Hongerrs. It has a tower so I am hoping my brother will take a picture of that and the odd passing bus to share with me next time we elbow a bar in the UK.

Later today I am heading into new food territory under attractive and close supervision; I am going to put some asparagus stalks onto a hot griddle pan with a  little olive oil and some salt. Apparently it's really tasty - reports to follow.

Back to work tomorrow though in fact I am WFH which is a top Brucey Bonus.

A happy b/h weekend here!

Beans in Brimingham.

On Friday just gone I had the day off. This was on account of working Good Friday. I took a trip on the train and went to Selfridges in Birmingham's Bull Ring. It's a smart 5 floor store with some great TVs, loads of wanky fashion concessions, and a whole floor of food and sweets. I spent quite a lot of time in the foody bit, where for 20,000 pounds you can buy this Bull, made entirely of Jelly Beans!

Home Friday night and into a great bank holiday weekend!