West Yorkshire

[Carruthers]

Originally Posted by Sundae

I excused Carruthers because he's a Southern softie, but really.

I am mortified. I'll have you know that Yorkshire is well represented on both sides of my family.

My 4 x Great Grandparents were married in Kirkby Overblow (10 miles East of Otley) on 17 Dec 1770.

Really, a chap can only take so much, you know.

[Sundae]

Oh shush. You're a silver Southern fox. You sly devil you.

Last pic.
I've been after a cat for Dads for nearly a year now. They're not allowed pets where they live, any more than they're allowed daughters.
But as he gets more confused, he misses having a pet more and more.
He grew up always having an animal in the house, and when we were children there was always something furry in the house to love. So Mum (who now cannot leave their flat without him, because of his dementia) asked me to look for something weighty and furry he could have on his lap.

I hoped batteries would make the cat move as it's supposed to, but apparently the circuits are corroded. It's not the small amount of money I paid that made me cry. It's losing my hero, piece by piece and being so fucking impotent.

He's not that far gone that he would think it was a real cat. It's just that the weight and fur may be a comfort. And I bought it second hand from a carboot sale because we don't know if he'll love it or hate it, and I can't afford to take the chance.

A cat that doesn't even work from a carboot sale for his birthday.
That's why I cried.

[limey]

Hugs, Sundae. X

Sent by thought transference

[DanaC]

*hugs*

Damn, hon, now I want to cry.

[Sundae]

Oh hey, Christmasteers! It's a few salty drops into a duvet that has seen far worse.
(it's the silly things that hurt worst isn't it?)

But it's still a cute heavy catskin, and I'm still bloody gorgeous.

[DanaC]

Yes it is, yes you are and - it's actually a really good idea, that cat.

Aside from the short term adoption of a stray dog who we had to give up when we moved house (which we did with alarming regularity during our first years together) Jude and I were not able to have a dog for the first 7 or 8 years we lived together - one Birthday, he bought me a giant dog toy - a plush, wrinkly dog (like a Shar Pei) about twice the size of a westie terrier.

I called him Arthur. And, though I never stopped wanting a proper dog, and mooned over every dog saw, having Arthur did help - it was nice to give him a big hug and imagine he was real.

[Sundae]

I honestly don't think I've posted these ones here.
Ask for explanations if I haven't and you're interested. It's not mine btw.

(I cannot explain why I am standing in such a strange position though. I know I had clean knickers on)

[Sundae]

Today was Cherry's Special Adventure.
I have one planned for Easter Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday too.
This is all to keep me clean and sober and occupied over Easter, which was always a big deal in my family home. People were far more cavalier about being there at Christmas. It might be a Catholic thing, it might just be a family thing. But I got The Weeps at the idea of being stuck alone in my cold dirty flat, eating dry cereal in bed with no family, no cat and nothing to do, so I had to make plans to make sure there wasn't another trip to hospital.

That's the sad bit over.
Although there is a bit of an angry bit to come.
Well you have to warn people of this these days. Apparently. Rated R; one occasion of language and all that. I think they should list all the swear words on the poster so people can make their own minds up...

ANYWAY. We are talking about a religious festival. One which is important to most of my blood relatives, my Godfather and none of the other people I love!
Otley erects a 30 foot tall cross on the Chevin every year. It is visible from most of the town, although not from my bedroom window. Not that I do anything in here Jebus could disapprove of. Not even eating prawns.

I tried to get a photo of it as I walked to the launderette, but it just did not show what was visible to the naked eye, thanks to the light angle and the fact I was trying to take it on a mobile phone.
Here is what I managed. I blew up the photo, so you can see there IS actually a cross, and the full piture shows the location.

Yorkshire Evening Post's write-up of the lifting of the cross. Not of my trip to the launderette, which I think features in next week's News.

[Sundae]

Right.
I have been cleaning my flat s.l.o.w.l.y with a few minor spurts of effort and one really frenzied attack (so far - that was only Tuesday).
I still have not uncovered my camera. I think I have to assume that it is gone, left or stolen somewhere when I was in a drunken stupor. Serves me right I suppose. But all the chickens come home to roost when you really are trying to sort your life out.

I've been getting by mostly with my mobile phone camera, but I never really and truly learned how to use it. I thought it was just point and shoot. Now I find out it does have settings, but I don't even know how to access them. They may as well be pre-Rosetta Stone hierglyphs.

What I'm setting up is that I had the most fantabulosa day, so flipping photogenic (the settings as well ) and all you get is miniatures. And yet I haven't manually changed a thing since the photos I took in Hedben Bridge. Or indeed the WALK TO THE LAUNDERETTE BEFORE I LEFT!

I just thank my lucky stars that my years of being on here and taking point and shoot photos have made the majority useable.
And anyway, it's just an illustration, I'll never be a talented photographer like some on here. I'll try to show you with words instead.
I'm just cross because I was only there for a day and wanted you to SEE things I might not understand fully myself. And the phone was right there too.

Angry Bird bit over.
Write up next.

[Sundae]

First leg was Otley to Leeds. It is for most journeys, but as I've said before, I've learned to love Leeds now. Not enough to make it a Special Adventure though!

Walked past this van, which I have probably seen many times when it was open, but was too fixated on the pizza to appreciate the vehicle. Old war horse that it is.

I was on my way to get a quote to have a new battery put in my watch.
The quote was OUCH. But I did it anyway because I'd just sold all four series of The Walking Dead DVDs, and my two Hannibal ones. And have been living on muesli and water for a week.
Bloody hell it's good to have the old boy back on my wrist. Photo is accurate timewise - I picked him up at the end of the day. They replace the pressure seal and water test and all that and everything.
A Tag never loses time. It goes through a period where the second hand jumps by ten seconds each time to warn you the battery is low, then stops. It was originally conceived as a divers' watch, so it can't mess about. Because I dive all the time, me (ahem)
I did buy it ten years ago when I could afford it.

[glatt]

Originally Posted by Sundae

A Tag never loses time. It goes through a period where the second hand jumps by ten seconds each time to warn you the battery is low, then stops.

That is cool. My Swiss Army watch does no such thing, It just dies.

[Sundae]

Next leg - Leeds to Saltaire.
If you're interested, these (wiki) and (community website) will give you far more accurate detail than I can remember. But it is a beautiful place.
I've wanted to go there ever since Bill Bryson praied it so highly in Notes From A Small Island.

Very useful and interesting noticeboard. Genuinely.

Coming up from the station.

[Sundae]

I wandered past the first shop and took a pic of something that caught my eye. The ram actually. Took a pic for you.

And then these! As you can tell I had to actually go inside, because I thought they were so delicious I wanted a reasonable photo.
They also sell other fabric animal heads, including a hare. Limey if they'd had one in stock I'd have bought it for you and damn the consequences. But they didn't, because karma prefers me to have toilet paper.

I swore after buying my £7 train ticket, I'd spend as little as possible. And I nearly succeeded. Especially as I was out until gone 19.00.
But the first flipping shop got me so excited it's a good job I didn't just have a thousand pounds in my tights.

[DanaC]

I could have sworn I'd posted about your camera - but can't find the post.


If it's the pink one, then it's at my house - Carrot found it digging toys from under the couch. He was chewing it when I took it off him - but didn't look damaged.

[Sundae]

Titus Salt was extraordinary for his time, and wanted his mill workers to live away from the smoke and smog of Bradford, in the fresh open air. They should also have one dwelling per family (anyone who has watched Who Do You Think You Are? regularly will remember details of people listed as living on landings and staircases in the official census!)

But he was teetotal and abstemious, and expected his workers to be.
Fair enough.
But his town is no longer dry.
This place made me smile.