The Lurker

I'd better not to do the quiz..... It's a beautiful morning here, looking out over Borough Market Junction. Just a shame that I am in the office!

I'd rather Jack - the Reynolds Sisters (apparently voted 91 in the worst 100 British songs of all time....!)

if it's any consolation I've worked out its 6,640 days until I get to 65.....

In Bexley, there are plenty of Crays

No Cars Go - Arcade Fire

but the lower league clubs don't want to be farm teams for the premiership clubs. That kills their dreams of getting to the top flight - that dream may not be realistic in most cases, but when I used to regularly go and watch Northampton Town in the lower reaches in the mid to late 90s, Northampton played league matches against Fulham, Swansea, Cardiff, Burnley, West Brom, Stoke, Man City, so its not an impossible dream. In fact Northampton beat Swansea in a play off final one year, having beaten Cardiff in the semis. The local rag still referred to the one season that Northampton had in the top flight (ergo a relegation year) as the 1965/66 Glory Days. That dream would be lost.

Along the lines of: a woman spends the first 12 months of any relationship getting her man in line and the rest of it moaning that he's not the man she first met......

and the Mrs was out last night so I listened to: Go Away White - Bauhaus Talk About the Weather - Red Lorry Yellow Lorry Bloodsports - Suede Weight of Your Love - Editors But it might have to be Thunder and Consolation next (see above post)

Jealous!

Isn't it Mackeson's stout? Which rather spoils the wordplay. and yes apparently they do

I had a first this morning when I saw a squirrel leap suddenly into a neighbouring tree and what I think was a sparrowhawk land on the fence. Needless to say the local magpies weren't very pleased. My five year old, who I was helping get dressed at the time, said he had seen the magpies chase a bird away earlier. I've heard birds of prey crying out last summer - I think they were nesting on the 17 floor building that dominates the station area of Sidcup - but that's the first time of I've seen something like that in the garden

Went to Hall Place yesterday (between Crayford and Bexley) and had a reminder of just how wet the winter was; there is an old flood channel mid way through the grounds that is now permanent running water and one of the ornamental sunken gardens is now a roped off lake - the ducklings looked like they were loving it.

One Bullet - New Model Army

The last time there was a decent crowd at Sixfields was probably the sell out FA Cup game vs Man Utd in the late 90s! Happy to see the Cobblers survive.

This from SEMG: http://www.semgonline.com/steam/sclass_01.html Probably doesn't add too much to the above. There is also a picture in P Ransome Wallis' Southern Album (which I was given for my third birthday in 1970 and still have, pretty battered, at home) of it Bricklayers Arms

Red Right Hand - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

With the weekend coming it's time for me to wish the mighty Cobblers well in their match against Oxford. A point will bring certain escape from relegation.

Our House - Madness

I live in Sidcup, and grew up in Kent (but have lived in other places too) One day I may get round to building the OO layout I've dreamed of, based on a sort of Tonbridge in the BR steam era. I'm also interested in railway history. But mainly I just lurk.

I used to live in Northampton and was always surprised when this was described as East Midlands. It used to get East Anglian TV - the football was presented by Ally Brazil - but the local CoOp was the South Midlands

Is a garden railway useful at harvest time in the US - bring the veggies in on flatbeds?

Other Voices - The Cure

I once saw Northants play in an early season one dayer - I think it might just have been into May rather than late April. Mercifully the day remained dry, although overcast and the beers kept me pleasantly warm inside. The next day I looked in the mirror to shave before heading off to work - my face was beetroot red. I belatedly realised that I had sat facing the wind all day and had been windburned! I got a lot of stick at work that day....

Come Together In The Morning - Free

One from the Czech Republic for you. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-27137939 I'm also amazed that none of the car drivers appears to get out and see if the old boy is OK