A Dalmation on the Tube
Dalmations don’t have the reputation of being the brightest of dogs and perhaps this is why you don’t see too many. In fact, I don’t think I’ve seen one since I moved to London.
So it was quite a surprise to see one behaving very well on a lead in the depths of Highbury and Islington station this morning.
A Smart 277 Hybrid Bus
Of all the routes near me, the 277 generally has the worst buses. But as I generally only use it for a couple of stops to get to and from the station, I can put up with it.
Imagine my surprise to see that this morning, a brand new Alexander Dennis Enviro 400 hybrid bus, appeared to be heading towards Highbury and Islington station with 277 proudly emblazoned on the front.
I’ll treat it as a mirage until I see it again.
Bus and Tube Information at Euston Station
When you arrive at the station in a city or town, you often need information to complete your journey to your final destination.
Bus and Tube Information at Euston Station
Most London stations have information booths like this provided by Transport for London at Euston station. I’ve never found such a booth in Manchester Piccadilly and I meant to check Liverpool Lime Street today, but forgot.
They say this about buses at Liverpool Lime Street on the National Rail website.
‘Arriva’ and ‘Stagecoach’ operate a network of daily, frequent bus routes around the city and also to nearby towns. For route maps and timetables: http://www.arrivabus.co.uk and http://www.stagecoachbus.com/merseyside
Liverpools main bus station (on Roe Street) is about 4 minutes walk from Lime Street station.
So should I assume there is no booth. How do you find out what bus company you need?
The same web site gives this for Euston.
Bus route maps are available from Transport for London’s website.
There is no mention of the excellent booth, although the link does point to bus maps for Camden.
There is also no way to contact the National Rail web site, to kick them into line. So we are just Self Loading Cargo left to our own devices.
The BBC’s Description of Today’s Torch Relay Leg
The Olympic Torch is going from Bolton to Liverpool today. I was drawn to their description of the leg on the BBC’s web site.
Through Lancashire and down the coast to Knotty Ash, made famous by Ken Dodd and his Diddy Men characters, via Aintree Racecourse to Liverpool, home of The Beatles, two top football clubs and once known for its wealth as the “Second City of Empire”.
In my view Liverpool may not now be the “Second City of Empire”, but it’s certainly the Second City in the UK.
The description is accompanied by a picture of a horse jumping to victory in the Grand National. I thought for a moment the horse was Red Rum, but the picture is more recent, the colours are wrong and the horse doesn’t have a sheepskin noseband.
Eat your heart out Manchester!
Where’s your historic city centre, world-famous racecourse and amazing river? To name but three!
Off to Liverpool Today
I’m going to watch the Olympic Torch Relay in Liverpool today. It’s going straight through the University, where C and I met. I will just walk up the hill to the Victoria Building.
The weather looks to be reasonably good.
If you are watching the relay on the Internet, today promises to be one of the most architecturally spectacular days so far. The flame is going past the two cathedrals, through the City Centre, past St. George’s Hall, under and over the Mersey and then the evening celebration will be in front of The Three Graces at the Pier Head. Remember that a lot of the centre of Liverpool is a World Heritage Site called the Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City.
The Olympic Torch will feel at home as it passes St. George’s Hall, which has been described by Nicholas Pevsner as one of the finest neo-Grecian buildings in the world. In 1967 or 1968, during Panto Week, the students organised a hog roast in front of the hall. I doubt anybody would be allowed to do that now!
A Fitting End For A Junkberry
This kid has the right idea about what to do with a Junkberry.
His was an old one, whereas mine is new and unused, as I can’t work out how to use it.
I think I might find a suitable road-roller.
All The Way To Eastfield for a Loaf and a Moan
This afternoon, as I had nothing better to do, I decided that as I’d failed to get any bread this morning, that a quick trip to Eastfield was in order. Waitrose didn’t have the bread I wanted, but they did have a brown Genius and one of Genius’s excellent fruit loafs. So I bought both and then went into O2 to moan about my Junkberry. It’s not their fault, as they didn’t come up with the crap design. I think to be fair too, the Junkberry bubble has now burst with the share price heading towards Antartica. I’m afraid I don’t buy products from losers, unless the price is absolutely right.
I’ve already had an e-mail from Tonik, saying that my two old Nokia 630i will be back with me soon. In fact, knowing couriers as I do, I suspect that they’ll get my phones from Enfield, quicker than O2 could swap my phone.
I can do without a phone in the interim anyway, as no-one outside of a few people and scammers ever phone me these days. And the things I want to do with the phone, like texting where buses are, it can’t do.
I Can Now Cook Scrambled Egg Again
I’ve now got my new cooker, which fits neatly in the space, where the other one made itself a nuisance.
My New Zanussi Electric Cooker
The space at each side can be used, whereas the other cooker was so wide it just blocked the cupboard doors from opening.
I can now cook scrambled egg again.
Scrambled Eggs, Smoked Salmon and Cold Potatoes
I didn’t have it on toast, as my local Waitrose won’t stock any bread at the moment, so I used smoked salmon. Coeliacs, like me, often cook extra potatoes and eat them as snacks, so I added some to the plate, as I have a massive bowl fill of them.
I think too, that I’m feeling better, as the cooker is not creating all those oxides of nitrogen, that could be poisoning me.
Iran Gives the Old Phrase of Neck-Tie Party a New Meaning
Iran has now started prohibiting shop-keepers from selling ties in Iran according to this report in the Guardian.
How long before they make it a capital offence and give life to the old phrase?
I’m Getting Paranoid About Waitrose
Coeliacs are very particular about what they eat.
My list of must-have foods apart from the usual things, like meat, fish, vegetables and fruit includes :-
- Waitrose seeded, thin-sliced loaf. It makes good toast and lovely sandwiches.
- Waitrose semi-skimmed goats milk. As good as any, and there is no smell.
- Eat Natural gluten-free toasted muesli with vine fruit.
- St.Helen’s Farm semi-skimmed goats milk yoghurt. I have this with my breakfast cereal.
- Rowse organic honey. Again, I have this with the breakfast cereal.
But my branch in Islington does its best to annoy me :-
- They haven’t had the thin-sliced loaf for weeks. But they always seem to have the thick-sliced, which has the texture of the stuff with which they make IKEA furniture. It is ideal for making sandwiches for masochists!
- Recently, there have been days, with the full-fat goats milk, but not the semi-skimmed.
- They haven’thad this for months, but they’ve always got lots of unsold packets of the buckwheat version. So it means, I have to go to Sainsbury’s next door.
- I make sure, I always have the yoghurt in the fridge, as sometimes this isn’t for sale.
- The same applies to the honey.
And then of course there’s the check-outs, which were designed by a man or woman with two perfect hands.
It is any wonder, that I’m getting paranoid?
I suppose this afternoon, I had better go all the way to Eastfield to get a loaf.
The Anonymous Widower 