I’ve had a varied life…

Posted on March 4, 2025 Posted in Memories, UncategorizedTagged Art, Cars, Cycling, dailyprompt, dailyprompt-1867, eoroies, Hubby, Life, Together, Travel, WorkLeave a comment

You’re writing your autobiography. What’s your opening sentence?

I’ve had a varied life, most of it devoted to art, but I’ve also managed to cram a lot of experiences into it.

I would then go on to detail sow of the art work I have done, but also the adventures I’ve had with my hubby, who was a most eccentric man. Our main mode of transport when we were younger was by bicycle and then a series of pulled old cars that consequently meant we had a lot of situations to deal with. My jobs were also varied and I would talk about as much as I could without disclosing personal information. I am not sure if it would be interesting to anyone else though?

Parking…?

Posted on August 8, 2024 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Car, Cars, fluorescent, Life, Parking, parking restrictions, racoon, search engines, traffic warden, vanLeave a comment

I asked WordPress to show me a photo from it’s free photo library of ‘parking restrictions’. So I was slightly surprised to see a racoon nesting in a tree! I do wonder what criteria it’s search engine uses. But it was amusing so I’ve posted it.

Why am I thinking of parking? I live on a street with residents only parking. I don’t mind if other people park up as long as I can fit in but recently builders have been parking up while renovating buildings in the street.

Today I saw two men in yellow fluorescent jackets wandering up and down the pavement. One seemed to be writing something in a book. Dreaded parking wardens. They ticketed a van. If the owner had knocked on my door I would have lent him my car parking pass. But it’s a good job I didn’t as I now have a visitor and she needs it.

Warmest September on record

Posted on October 5, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cars, Climate change, diesel, Environment, global warming, Government, Heat, Oil, Petrol, Power, September2 Comments

I was just watching the news and so far this September is the hottest ever recorded in history, and the year is heading towards the hottest ever too.

Meanwhile our government has decided to cancel a high speed train project and instead wants to support car drivers. They are going to have some kind of war on potholes in the streets! They don’t want to slow traffic to 20 miles an hour in built up areas, although it means children would be less likely to be killed in accidents where the current limit is 30 mph.

Also the petrol or diesel car is seen to be better than electric vehicles. Our government is putting back the date when cars have to be electric from 2030 to 2035. Firms that were planning for the 2030 date and retooling their workshops now have to rethink what they are doing.

And the government have signed off on a new oil field in the north sea, but the oil and gas from there is due to be exported to other countries to be refined and we will have to buy it back at inflated prices!

But as long as our Prime Minister can travel on private jets all must be well with the world!

Parking

Posted on May 19, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Annoying, Cars, Council, Difficult, Email, frustration, Internet, Life, Parking2 Comments

I just realised my parking pass is due to expire and I’ve only just realised it. In the past out council used to send out a reminder. No more. They have closed the building where you could apply for them in person. Now the choice is either via email, or by post.

The postal service only has a 74% next day delivery rate, and there is no assurance that it will arrive in time.

My email is not working yet. I’m booked to get it done on Monday (long boring story, the repair man has been ill). But not everyone has email addresses. Not everyone with a car is online.

So I rang up for the address to send my information to. It’s a PO box, meaning there is no physical place for me to hand deliver my documents to. If it goes to a PO box, then the council courier service needs to sort the mail and deliver it, meaning there is another time delay added into the mix!

Better get my email sorted out!

Oily sheen

Posted on November 17, 2022 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cars, iridescence, Oil, oily sheen, Science, single layer of atoms, Tarmac, Time3 Comments

Iridescence caused by a single layer of oil spread out over water. I used to see this when I was a child on the school playground, I don’t know what had been spilt. I also remember seeing this sheen on the tarmac on roads when I was young. But now cars are less polluting the phenomenon has reduced. But obviously some cars still leak oil. Will this happen when all cars are electric? Doubtful, but who knows when that will be.

Wasted journey

Posted on September 17, 2022 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Annoying, Cars, Driving, dual carriageway, football match, Life, Roads, Soccer, Traffic, traffic jamLeave a comment

Sometimes you can tell things are going to go wrong. A ten minute journey turns into an hour long trek, at a snails pace. Sitting in a line of traffic to the main duel carriageway I took a left turn to take ous down a side road. That was OK so we proceeded to some traffic lights and turned there. Mistake, at the end of that road is act junction. Everyone was turning right, back down to the duel carriageway. I was turning left. I finally managed to edge out of the junction. Then stuck at more traffic lights, stuck coming down the road to a major roundabout. Queue on the roundabout, queue on the main road into the town we were going to. It became apparent that everyone was trying to get to the local football match.

So, I missed the person I was going to meet. I could not communicate with them as my messenger app is not working. I don’t have their phone number. So all we could do was trek back home. It was slightly better going the other way, but I’m irritated and frustrated. And I hate traffic.

Reflected

Posted on September 12, 2021September 12, 2021 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cars, Chrome, Classic cars, Day out, Etruria, Industrial museum, Life, Poem, Poetry, ShinyLeave a comment

You’re so shiny

I can see my face

Reflected in your paint

Chrome work polished

To a mirror like surface.

Silver and Maroon,

With black fittings

You sparkle in the sunshine,

Drawing admiring glances

But watch out for

Sticky toffee fingerprints,

Icecream smears

A day out of dangers

To your paint work.

Car festival

Posted on September 12, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged car festival, Cars, Classic cars, Etruria Industrial museum, Fun, Trent and mersey canalLeave a comment

An Austin car, a Morris J B van, a Lymes bus and a Triumph motorcycle.

Drawn at the Etruria Industrial Museum classic car festival today. I’m thinking of sharing a few photos later. It’s hard to draw freehand with a shaking left arm, so I ended up fighting the lines onto the paper.

I tried to include the details as well as I could. Distances and gaps between different parts of the vehicle may not be accurate but I tried my best!

Cat in window

Posted on October 31, 2020 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Cars, Cat, Dogs, Fun, Sleep, Staring, TV stand, Washing, Window, WindowledgeLeave a comment

The cat was staring out at the street as we arrived home, he’s nosy, likes to know whats going on. He likes watching cars but will jump down if he sees a dog. I think he’s been sitting in the window more recently because the outside cat has been coming in and he’s out of the way there. He seems content. He almost knocked the TV off its stand last night when he got tangled in the curtains. Now he’s lying on the floor, sat in front of the heater, washing. He’ll be back on the windowledge later. X

Looking out

Posted on October 1, 2020 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Boy cat, Cars, Cat, Factory, Fun, Girl cat, Hill, Play, Realm, Upstairs, View, WindowLeave a comment

She often looks out watching the cars and vans racing up the hill. Looking at birds flying up to the factory roof, playing with the mobile on the window. Jumping down and clawing my legs under the desk when I go to type things up. This is her territory. She’s upstairs and her brother is downstairs. Both in their individual realms. They sometimes meet to play and chase. She’s a happy cat, she is mistress of all she surveys.

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Cars