Diary of a Musician.
Over a period of nearly 50 years playing, many interesting things have been seen, read & experienced that are nothing to do with music. Come to think about, it I’ve forgotten most of them! But here will be recorded odd things that appealed to me. They may be from long ago, or right now. Just click on the little picture to read the text concerning the item.
1. Crows.
Encounters with, and observations of, crows
over the years; and some thoughts resulting from these.
2. The Lizard.
Reminiscences of lizards many years ago; and more recently, one which
lived in my car for about a month, unharmed. And better still, good photographs
of the Common Lizard and the Sand Lizard, the only British species, by
permission of the photographers. (All 3 thumbnails link to the same page).
3. The Pen Room; & Tyria jacobaeae
A short paragraph on how a bicycle ride led me to discover a
small but excellent
4. The Brandwood Tunnel.
A very brief description of the southern portal of this canal
tunnel.
5. Trolley ’buses.
The
last day that trolley ’buses ran in
6.
The tumble dryer.
Some observations - you may find them too lengthy - on the
incipient démise of my 18-year-old
tumble dryer, and some of the impressive design features found within, upon
partially dismantling it.
7.
Vespula germanica.
An attempt - rather successful
for an amateur I thought - at photographing a wasp, which I thought at first
was a very big Vespula vulgaris
indeed, but which turned out to be Vespula
germanica; which are large in any case.
8. More Wildlife Photos.
Emboldened by 7 above, I
launched out on an alternative career as a photographer of wildlife. Here are
shots of the Gatekeeper butterfly, plus the Ivy-leaved Toadflax, the Red
Admiral butterfly, and the Woody Nightshade, or Bitter-sweet.
9. Still More Wildlife…
A further expedition took us
to the Harborne (
10. The Time of the
Heterocera.
After all the butterflies
(well, three anyway…), it seemed to be the turn of the moths to present
themselves compliantly for photographs. But alas, the shooting of moths is far
more difficult! Still, 3 common species are show here.
11. Odd Things.
It’s true that this page
already is a repository for ‘odd things’; things not do with 78 rpm records,
Jazz &c. But I just read something that struck me as being so remarkable,
that it ought to go here, so have started this further sub-section to house it,
and any other similar things that may turn up.
§1 The amazing ‘homing instinct’ of an ass. 1816.
§2 An email from me to my
ex-wife (2007) concerning financial institutions.
§3 An extract from Cosima Wagner’s diary
(1880) concerning the ‘homing instinct’ of a dog.
12. The Pontcysyllte canal
Aqueduct.
A couple of photos. of this
superb canal aqueduct, finished in 1805 (I think), which conveys the Shropshire
Union Canal over the River Dee valley, a few miles east of Llangollen, Wales.
13. A Nature Ramble in
The 29th August to be exact.
We were playing at the Bude Jazz Festival, but just had one session in the evening
of Wednesday 29th. Some good friends suggested a walk along the cliff path
southward from Bude. These pictures were the result.
14. 3 old American
‘Stereoscopic views’.
I just found these
‘stereoscopic’ cards, dating from the early 1890s, in an old folder, where they
had been forgotten. One is of cotton pickers in
15. The Rock Men Speak
Forwards!
This one is about Flash
Gordon, you know - or will do if you are quite old now - about the 3 cinema
serials that appeared between 1936 & 1940: and in the last one, Flash
Gordon & Co. meet the Rock Men. They speak backwards, so we tried to make
them speak forwards… Did we succeed? Just click the picture to find out!
16. A Day in the Life of a
Penny.
This coin, approximately 1,600
years old & yet of no especial value, set in motion a train of thought
which I decided to record here. Also, it tells you how you can make very cheap
but effective cuff-links. ☺
17. The 2008 Quest for Leptidea sinapis.
Why would anybody want to see
& photograph this small & generally inconsequential butterfly, the
‘Wood White’? Well, I do; although I can’t exactly tell you why. With any luck,
this page will chart the success or failure of this Quest. We’re beginning
early in the season!
18. Clearing The Shed.
There is a small shed at the
top left hand corner of my garden. After moving into this house in September
2007, the task of clearing its contents was finally undertaken on a bright
Spring day in late March 2008.
18a. The Shed Fights Back!
In May 2008, some problems
still remain with utilising The Shed, even though it has been ‘cleared’.
19.
A brief excursion to the
historic City of Lichfield to visit the cathedral.
20. Two views of Snow Hill Station, ca. 1973.
In early January 2009, we have made speed to fill in
the irritating gaps in this Diary, and have used things from the past. And have
waxed nostalgic, as you will see if you bother to read this stuff; items 20 –
22… <8^)
21. Playing Jazz for Charity, ca. 1965.
The
22. “A Band of my Own” – 1987 – 199?
For some years I actually had my own band. Eventually,
the demands of getting gigs, ’phoning around, organizing things, carting the
P.A. gear about, setting it up & taking it down &c., got the better of
me. Now I just work for others who do all that sort of stuff. As for me, I just
try to play as best as I can on their gigs.
23. A short walk on the
Lickey Hills, December 2007.
What better way is there for a
Brummie, of ‘Blowing away the cobwebs’ after Christmas 2007, by going for a
bracing walk on the nearby Lickeys? Even if we do end up in a city centre pub.
listening to Jazz!
24. A short walk in the
Here we go again, a year
later! These few photos. were taken on Boxing Day (26th December), when we
ventured forth for some fresh air. The air was very fresh indeed – we had not
taken our gloves, and wished we had!
25. Butterflies: Two New
Species in the Poor Year 2008.
After our débâcle – or fiasco,
whichever you prefer 8^) – in searching
for the Wood White butterfly (see 17 above), is there anything that can be
salvaged from this deplorable year? Well, we did manage to photograph two
species new to our camera during 2008…
26. The Great 1mm Pencil Lead Mystery.
Why can’t we easily get 1mm leads for our propelling
pencils any more? Including some pencils only a few years old?
Also, how success was finally attained with the kind
help of a sympathetic correspondent from
27. The Harlequin Ladybird is
Here To Stay…
A couple of years ago, somebody drew my vapid attention to the advent of the Harlequin Ladybird in this country. About 18 months ago
I thought I saw one in southern Oxfordshire, and a couple of weeks ago another in my house. Today I saw many of them!
28. Diary Resumption – Canal, Tardebigge.
After a long period without
much in the way of travel, walking and enjoying the outdoors, we have begun
again in June 2010.
A few shots along the
29. Monkwood Bird &
Butterfly Reserve – early July 2010.
A much delayed follow-up to
our two visits in February and May 2008 – see 17 above. It was excellent to see
a butterfly reserve
going full tilt as it were;
the weather was sunny and at least 7 species were on the wing, some in
abundance.
30. What is it like
underneath Spaghetti Junction?
When undergoing the appalling
tedium of going north (or south) on the M6 through the
So have I, especially when
trying to join (or leave) the M6 at this Junction 6. Click on the above
thumbnail to see what it’s like underneath.
31. Catching Up – A Miscellany…
A number of visits to places
that might be of interest. King’s Norton canal junction; Wightwick Manor
(above);
Chedworth Roman Villa; Kinver
Edge, plus a couple of butterflies.
32.
Kingswood Canal Junction.
A few shots
of Kingswood, near Lapworth, where the Stratford-on-Avon and Grand Union canals
are linked.
33. Ironbridge, plus a flying visit to Wroxeter.
Several visits would be necessary to take in this
World Heritage Site, famous for its industrial development. This was our first
one, but we couldn’t resist going a few miles further on to see the Roman
remains at Wroxeter, a few miles further north.
34. The Clent Hills; but mainly
Popping out for a walk up one
of the Clent Hills to work up an appetite for breakfast; but most of this page
is about a visit on 2nd January 2011 to Croome Park, near Pershore,
Worcestershire; a major restoration project by the National Trust.
35. Family shop in Snow Hill,
My father (unlike me!) was a
successful businessman. Here is a photo. of one of his shops, and some memories
of it.
36. A Miscellany of Photos.
for 2011.
I think we are slowing down or
something. The last pictorial item in this diary is No. 34 above, and is dated
3rd January 2011. It is now November 2nd, and no more have been added. What
does it mean? Click the picture above to find out.
37. Two short walks in &
around Birmingham.
Almost no people appear in our
‘Diary’ shots. We’re not sure why that is. I suppose the countryside needs to
be peaceful or something like that. However, we intrude into the above image in
order to give scale to the river by which we are standing. What river? Click
the image for elucidation!
38. Grove Park, Harborne, Birmingham.
After slogging in front of the
PC all morning, a short 45 minute wander around a local park seemed a good
idea, especially is it was a fine day. Also, I had promised a friend who used
to live near here many years ago, some photos of it – so here they are, Chas!
39.
Two local nature reserves.
Two
days of slogging in front of the PC was preceded, then
followed, by visits to two more nature reserves of the BBCWT (Birmingham and
Black Country Wildlife Trust). One is an old one, one is very new. Why not
check them both out by clicking on the little picture?
Revised 11th January
2012.