Bills Posts

What comes first? The chicken or the egg? The photo or the story? In the latter case it depends upon the context. This has just come about as I was reading an article in the latest issue (No. 251) of Black+White Photography. Is it unreasonable of me to say that the article was borderline heart rending, but I couldn’t relate to the pictures? The pictures had no context for me. For some reason, I couldn’t get the thought out of my head that it isn’t just the photographs. The photo’s can be of anything. What drives the photos are the people and the story. If you have a story, the photos almost don’t matter, but if they are good then they obviously massively add to the story. I wrote most of that paragraph about an hour ago. Is it stating the obvious? Probably.

These two pictures of the same Alleyway; Beamister’s Lane. I’ve written about this lane before. The lane in the pictures are as they are today, but with the weird narrow picture is a rather feeble attempt to cut off signs of the 20th Century. I wanted to do that to attempt to give you a view of what the lane may have looked like in the 1850’s. This is the time the Press Gangs were very active in the town, and it was quite likely that, if you walked down this alley at the wrong time, you might feel the tap on the back of your head, and wake up on board a Naval ship, with a headache, indeed more than one headache, because you would now be part of a very brutal regime, and there would be only one thing you could do about it. Why would you risk it?

I think what I am trying to do is put my self into a position to do some creative writing, but of non-fiction. I’ve also written before about the creative writing classes I’ve attended at St Vincents. I said to the tutor the first time I attended that I wanted to creatively write non-fiction, which although that sounds counterintuitive, is apparently a thing.

Last night I said I would be focussing on Fences this morning. These two are the fence line for the sports grounds at Spring Garden Lane the second is one of the gates in to the St Georges Barracks complex. I took a few other pictures of fences, but for fences, these were the most interesting.

Now, here’s a thing; I try not look at a screen an hour before I settle down to. Sleep. Tonight it hasn’t worked. This is why I like to try and get my blog done around 7pm. So that I don’t have this last minute panic. Ever y Thursday (most Thursdays) I chair the Isle of Wight Radio Society Thursday Night Net (TNN) from 8 until around 9PM. We have also started having zoom sessions as well that carry on after the net closes. I tend to get wrapped up in those, and then almost forget to do my blog – unless I have done it before.

I am not going to say I will leave it until tomorrow at this stage. So whilst tonight’s post might be short, at least I’ve done something.

Today, the latest edition of B&W photography turned up. It doesn’t seem that long ago that the last issue arrived, and well actually it isn’t that long as the last issue was published later than normal. But that’s OK, I love reading the magazine and looking at the pictures, so happy with that.

What isn’t a dilemma is that Bede’s An Ecclesiastical History of the English People arrived today, so as you can imagine I am quite keen to start that. But, it can wait. It’ll still be here in a couple of days.

I’ve already reported that I’ve had my Nikon out over the weekend, planning with it. I haven’t taken it out on my morning walks. It’s almost a case of too much to carry, but also too many hands needed, but that’s OK, I think what I can do is for the time being limit it to weekends, that way I can concentrate on it, and not have to think about other things. What I do need to do is expand my horizons in terms of photography, so for example tomorrow I will focus upon…fencelines, singularly unexciting you might think. Actually I’d agree with you, but you never know, I may turn up some interesting (I’m not going to say exciting)) pictures.

Naturally, if I see anything else interesting, I shall try and grab that also. As I am sat here though, I am running through fences that I shall encounter on my walk, some I know well, I don’t doubt that there will be some that have never occurred to me to think of. So, lets see how it goes.

Two thirds of a year, 8 months, 244 days. I don’t know whether to be surprised that I am still here doing this. I must have had the intention to try at the outset, I probably am a little surprised. I’m definitely not going to say it has been easy. The seven day strategy has certainly helped, but also the ability to ignore it when I want to. I think I’m probably formulaic in my writing, by that I mean boring, and probably repetitive.

I wrote a piece in my facebook post this morning. I tried to put some meaning in to it. Only for the sake of demonstration, I reproduce it here;

I heard on the radio that the bunkering ship the Whitonia was flitting between linkspans, keeping her charges well fed. The Mon St Michell slid gracefully in to the harbour, disturbing only a little the still waters within, and a solitary tug meandered out, perhaps for a stroll or perhaps to shepherd a bigger ship in to the harbour. For the first time this year, the sun has crept above the horizon. End of sample

When I re-read it, it’s not that good.

I am between books. I have a book due from Amazon. By the Venerable Bede, An Ecclesiastical History of England written around AD731. Is it Religion’s Domesday book? Mixed with Britains Pilgrimages I’m going to see if it fits as ,y book of the moment. From an historical perspective, it should be an interesting read.

I may comment, assuming it’s still going at 300, otherwise we are on the way to 366, and I am seriously wondering what comes next.

OK, so I know the picture has nothing to do with railways. I can’t even make a link with Portsmouth Railway Station as it is just out of view.

A couple of days ago, I finished reading The Gosport Historic Records and Museum Society’s leaflet, Gosport’s Railway Era published in 1975. It’s taken me quite a. While to read it. And, in doing so along with reading the Gosport Journal has made me wonder if I shouldn’t reread Leonard White’s The Story of Gosport. It’s likely to put things in to a slightly different context to the first time I read it, probably a couple of years ago now.

Gosport’s railway era spans a relatively short period of time, and was not without its tribulations. Competition amongst railways companies, and towns especially Portsmouth meant that the railway in Gosport would be commercially vulnerable from its inception. What (or who) kept it going in the early days was Queen Victoria, using intialy Gosport Station as her jumping off point for travel to Osborne House on the Isle of Wight. Then later, with that short extension in to Clarence yard, punching a hole through the ramparts that were Gosport’s defences. That extensions last duty was to carry Victorias body when she died in 1901. The line was never the same after that.

It’s surprising to read that there were not more accidents on the Clarence extension. It appears that goods wagons were transferred form Gosport station to the yard by gravity, being started on their way, personnel had to run beside them to apply the brakes before they flew off the end of the pier. Must have been interesting in winter.

The era cam to an end in June 1953, when the last commercial passengers service ran. It’s a pity that it did end. It always saddens me when a railway line closes. The only saving grace is the legacy that the railway leaves; the excellent bus route & cycle track, the remains of the historic station, and the fascinating story of the extension in to Clarence Yard.

Just in case you didn’t know; a very little bit of the extension with tracks remains, just a few 10s of yards, along with the tunnel through the ramparts, which sadly, we can’t walk through, but it is clear.

A fascinating read of yet another feature of the interesting history of Gosport.

It was suggested that we get away from the house for a walk and a picnic. I must admit that I was a bit doubtful that I would enjoy it. We went to West Walk Forest of Bere
https://goo.gl/maps/zXkUozpQRvvZGddw9

A walk through a managed forest, so good tracks. As I suspected, it was busy. But, not so busy that we didn’t feel safe and not able to enjoy ourselves. We walked just over three miles, and it was a slow one, but that’s OK. We didn’t quite get lost, but we did turn right, when we should have turned left. That mistake might have added half a mile to the walk, but not to worry, it was worth it.

After all that, it was very nice to sit down to a small but very adequate picnic – we made sure we took our rubbish home with us. It really was a very pleasant interlude, and we will definitely go back.

I have to confess that I have been seduced by the iphone camera. It’s easier, and the pictures are of an excellent quality. But, they are not as good as my Nikon, with my Tamron 18-400mm lens it is an effective camera, and whilst the sensor size is only slightly bigger than the iphone, the quality of the glass is significant and there is a quality to a Nikon picture that I don’t get with the iphone. I shall continue though, to use both cameras, but whereas I have been neglecting the Nikon, I am bringing it back in to use more frequently now.

Yesterday, the 9th of April 2021, barely two months before his 100th birthday, His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip ended his tour of duty on earth. Time to rest Sir, duty done.

The smoke in the picture is from one of the rounds of the 41 gun Solemn Death Salute. I was at the waterfront.

I arrived at the waterfront about 4 minutes before the salute started. Fortunately, there weren’t very many people where I was. I had wanted to go up to the Falklands Gardens, but there was a large crowd there (as there was on the other side of the water, Spice Island. I really don’t want to be in large crowds at the moment.

I’ve been able this week to reach my Walk1000 target yesterday, so any distance walked today and tomorrow are a bonus. I did my normal route, with about a 1 mile diversion added on. I took my main camera out with me. But I’ve yet to look at the pictures I’ve taken. It was a very pleasant walk, taken a little bit early for a Saturday as rain was threatening. As it happened , the rain when it did arrive, was very light. Apart from the solemnity of the time, it was a very pleasant walk.

It wasn’t that last night was the worst. I haven’t really had a worst. Towards the beginning of this exercise, I was concerned about writers block, But to me the immediate answer was; if I have it, write about it. That works.

Last night was just a rush, I had almost but not quite forgotten to do the post, it was my bed time, I was tired and I realised that I hadn’t done the post. There was no way I was not going to do something – I’m not going to not do a post after a 239 day run. There’s another big way point only a few days away. I’ve been waiting for it, and I’m not going to miss it. The next big point will be The One – it’s what happens after that I need to start thinking about.

At the moment, the blog has a purpose, well it has two; for me to write, and for me to reach 366/366, what do I do? 367/366, 01/365 or just drop the numbering and keep writing, the writing becomes the purpose. In reality, that is what I am aiming for. But the writing has to have a purpose. Now, I’m going to start looking at a wider range of blogs, one I particularly like is the Dorset Rambler;

https://thedorsetrambler.com/

The author of the blog has an eye for the picture, and a pen for the word. In Dorset, he has one of the most photogenic areas of the country, and he can write. Now, the flaw with this argument is that do I really think that Gosport doesn’t have a “photogeny” (is that a word – but hopefully, you know what I mean) on a par with Dorset? do I heck!

I just need to find it is all. And the words of course.

I nearly didn’t do tonight’s post. A Thursday night is a busy evening for me. As a licensed radio amateur, I run the Isle Of Wight Radio Society Thursday Night Net, then I go on to Zoom for a bit of a follow up chat. Both are really nice, and I very much enjoy them. I try to get my Project 365 post and this post done before I start the net. Tonight though, I go distracted and I was just about to go and get ready for bed when I realised I hadn’t done my post. Well, I can’t let happen especially as there is another important goal coming up in a few days time.

Tonight’s topic is writing. Except, I can’t think of much to say about it. It is not so long ago that we finished our 5 o’clock run of Downton Abbey, and I enjoyed it so much that I wanted to watch it again, so when I’ve had the chance I’ve been binging it. So I finished the second run this evening, well everything except the film that is. The last time we watched it as it was included with the streaming service, I think it was Now TV, but it’s not there now, so I may have to rent it off Amazon, which is a bit frustrating. Now I have to find something else. I need to go and have a look at my YouTube subscriptions as I haven’t watched any of those for a while, so the backlog of them is starting to build up.

I’m sorry this is a bit of a rushed post tonight. I definitely have problems with writing if pushed to do so, even if this last two paragraphs flowed quite easily.

It was a rough night. I awoke at around 0300, had trouble getting back to sleep, only to be awakened again by a cat being sick. That was it then, couldn’t get back to sleep. I was in two minds whether or not to go for my morning walk. But, as usual I’m glad I did. It was cold, a very clear sky, so it was lovely to be out.

Every morning I top up the bird tables (two of them) with a mountain of food and make sure that the feeders are topped up, then it’s back in with a sneaky eye on the bird tables to see who turns up first. Over the course of a week it’s a toss up between the starlings and the pigeons. I must admit, I would prefer to re-position the bird feeders two of them are hanging off a tree and the other two are really up against the fence. The sparrows do use them, but I get the impression that they would be happier if they were all hanging off a 4-way feeder out in the open.

The wagtails are back. I was concerned when we put the garden furniture out that we had frightened them away. They have changed slightly, they prefer down the bottom of the garden, but I was watching them this morning, and they were particularly bouncy. I interpret that as them being happy, but of course I don’t really know.

By the end of the day, the mountain of food has gone, but there is always residual, so the birds don’t starve. I’ve just been watching a pair of magpies. They have a bad reputation, but they are a lovely looking bird, and it is nature, so I don’t mind. I am so pleased to see the sparrows using the bird feeders. They really are a delight to watch. If I could do things right, I would get another camera to watch the feeders. The first one, aimed at the table is a delight.

I’m eagerly awaiting the arrival of the butterflies they are about, but not very common at the moment. Hopefully, the wild patch will develop and cause more of them to appear.