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January's PicturesI did try and take a picture of this memorial in Victoria Park two weeks ago but the TYTN II was rubbish. At this time of year and this time of day the sun is behind the memorial making it impossible to take anything but a silhouette of it, the Pentax however allows you to choose the where to take an exposure reading from an then shift the focus. I still reckon that a simple film camera would produce better results. With my arms and as my Wife reports my face coated in bike oil this Saturday this is the best you're getting I am afraid. The house now smells of citrus degreaser and bike oil from putting the bike back together. There is the usual trail of black oil around the house which as you can imagine gets me no brownie points. With more work to go tomorrow setting the bike up for the morning commute on Monday I'm sure the doghouse is getting nearer. Going back to the picture, the poppies at the bottom of the memorial are to do with a service that happened last weekend which is connected to the fact that the Air Cadets were in Manchester last weekend but I still don't know what that was for. Any ideas?
With a jam packed weekend I was desperate to take some time out to take some pictures despite this. The weekend was filled with a swimming lesson and a Strictly Come Dancing thing in Manchester. Neither of which involved me directly but affected my weekend nonetheless. After parking in Victoria Station and being charged an extra 20p (in)convenience fee for calling them to pay for my parking because all the machine were not working and failing their voice recognition twice (“D” I said not “B”), we dropped my Daughter and my Mother-in-Law off at the MEN Arena and drifted off to go to Urbis to view the Hidden Manchester exhibition. It's an interesting small exhibition which was a little like a watered down and much reduced Urban Explorers photo album. Before all of this my breakfast of raw garlic on toast with tomatoes and olive oil was discovered by my Mum mentioning that there was a strong garlic smell as she sat across the table from me when we took a small break in Urbis's coffee shop. I had to hold my hands up for this one. My Wife described it as a garlicky waft that was coming off me as I passed people, even when I was holding my breath. This is just a quick picture of the Manchester Wheel reflected in Urbis. Nothing much to comment other than I took loads of pictures like this thinking they were all great but only got one average-ish picture. There were other pictures but they may have to wait for another day. Such as a picture of the names of those who died in World War I who worked for the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway. There's also a picture of the Air Cadets lined up in formation for a ceremony in Manchester Cathedral. But they can be left for another day.
Whilst in New Mills before the Bridge Picture I noticed this Fire Exit. I can't imagine anyone getting out alive from this building unless they had a key for the padlock. Looks like a Crystal Maze problem to me with people shouting “get the other key you only have 20 seconds... Oh we've lost the Crystal”. I suspect that the gate would be open during business hours. This being a Sunday it will be closed, but it still it does look a little bit strange. You do tend to wonder what would happen if the greenery were to start blocking the exit whether the door would open padlock or not.
Not a great day for pictures. It was overcast and not very bright which gives a sort of overall lighting that provides no depth to anything, despite this we went to Torr just for a walk out. I think this picture at least gives you some depth. The picture here is Stan Brewster's Millennium Walkway. It's a really impressive walkway that swings round giving you a great view of the mill in the left of the picture. I did take some pictures of the mill but to be honest because of the light it was difficult but they may see the light of day on a busy weekend when I don't take any pictures. There is a plaque at the end of the bridge that explains that 5 years after finishing the bridge Stan Brewster was killed in the bombings in London on July 7th. Also nearby there are remains of another mill and right next door what I would call a backward Archimedes Screw. Normally used for moving water uphill this Archimedes Screw is used to supply half the power requirements of the Coop. Water pours in the top and drives the screw around generating energy. If you want more info then you can if you really want to read the Screw's Blog though I think you have to be pretty interested to keep going back. Update For those interested here is the Plaque at one side of the bridge.
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