Human Lifestyle

Bit groggy this morning as didn't get to sleep until after 3am and the air bed wasn't brilliant, with a bit of a leak, so it became flatter as the night drew on. But there was cereal for breakfast which is always the best way to start the day, for me, and some of the conversations from last night continued until lunchtime, when other folks drifted away, and then at 2, I went out to Canon Park station, as agreed, and met Ruth, my friend from college days, and we caught up with our various bits of life story for an hour and a half in the park, mostly sitting in the walled garden. It was lovely to see her again as she is one of my longest standing continuous friends.

However Ruth had to go and see her parents and was then heading out to a party, so at 4ish she got in her car and I walked through the park back to Paul's flat. I was amazed at some of the huge trees on the outskirts of the park and in surrounding streets, some are vast Sequoias more suited to an arboretum, not residential streets! Nice anyway!

Paul was having another party this evening, with some different guests, and I again helped to prepare a bit of the food.

First of November is synonymous with remembering the love ones we lost. In general i don't need to go the cemetery to remember family. I think of them during the year or when i do something they would also do, and not specially that day. Also the fact that cemetery's are full of wonderful stone, which is used to make horrible kitsch tombstones. The nice modern/new tombstones are very rare in general. In Brussel there are several cemetery's, but one of my favourite ones is the one in Dieweg. This cemetery is a piece of art, it's not enormous, and there are no new tombstone, everything is very ancient. There is a feeling of "a lost world". I passed today 3 hours, and i can see that i didn't felt alone in a strange way.

I found this coffee table Friday night at my favorite cheapy thrift store for $5.99. When I went to purchase it, the guy told me it would not fit in my car, and that everything was "cash & carry" (I was wondering, "since when?", but I didn't say anything). I wanted to pay for it then and come back to pick it up (in like, 30 minutes!), but he told me no go. He said the store closed at 8pm and so I planned to come back before closing. Well when I pulled up at 7:20, I noticed everything had been pulled inside (there's normally lots of furniture outside) and the doors were shut with 2 guys chillin' outside. I asked them if they were closed, and dude said "Yes." I told him I was confused, because another guy told me they closed at 8, and he shrugged his shoulders. He said they closed at 7:30, and even though I still had 10 minutes, they were closed. I was so pissed!!! How are you closing 10 minutes before scheduled!!!!???? If I would've known that they were closing early, I would've been more pressed to get my A over there! I knew it would be a lost cause, because I don't live that close to the place, and I wasn't planning on interrupting my routine to get there at 10 am on Saturday, only to find it gone. I should have tried to get it in my car instead of letting him tell me it wouldn't fit--I never do stuff like that. It would've been so easy to sand, repaint, and sell for a profit. I'm still kicking myself today.

Got up early enough to get all my stuff together and jump on the bike at 10 and head off to the station, where I caught the Grand Central service to London just before 11am.

I met a nice woman on the train (in the seat next to me) who recognised me from the talk I did in Northallerton, and we chatted all the way down. She was going to visit a family member with her two teenage children, and we got on well... covered a lot of subjects in two hours!

When I got to Kings Cross I decided I wanted to go and see the Thames... and find somewhere to have lunch... so I got the circle line to Embankment and went up on the bridge where there was a busker playing a pan (steel drum) so I ate my sandwiches listening to him play. Memories of Trinidad!

I decided not to go to Tate Modern but to get the Northern Line to Edgware... found an internet cafe to do emails and blog, then made my way to where I'm staying tonight.

Paul, who's about the same age as me, lives with his parents following a business venture which didn't work out, and they are away so he decided to have a few people over, and Lisa, one of his close friends, invited me following our meeting in May, where we got on well primarily due to our views on sustainability and social justice. When I arrived, Paul and his friend Naomi were just finishing getting ready... in fact there were a few jobs yet to be done so I helped by mopping the kitchen and bathroom floors, as asked.

I also helped chop veg for dipping, and potatoes fo roasting. People turned up in dribs and drabs after work and as they could get to Edgware from as far away as Dagenham and even one from the Welsh borders. The conversation flowed and the food was good. I always enjoy meeting new people and Paul has a diverse bunch of friends ranging from a nightclub entrepreneur through to a teacher of adults with learning disabilities. I really enjoyed the evening and the company of these people.

Paul had provided some blow-up mattresses and things to sleep on, and half a dozen of us slept in the big living room.

It is not Halloween yet and we have already had a major snowstorm. My house received 20 inches. The last time this happened to Denver was 1997. Here are a couple of photos.

A day with not much on the agenda apart from at midday we were due to collect our friends' son from the station, as he's come up from Leamington Spa for a couple of nights to spend time with our boys.

Also, Gill had booked her bike into Cycleworks to have the handlebars replaced.. the more or less straight ones were giving her backache, but she thought that curved ones would be easier for her. She'd asked at Cycle Heaven and they said they wouldn't do it! Weird. So she asked at Cycleworks, which is our nearest bike shop, and they said yes, and today was the day. So in the morning I cycled her bike (me on mine, holding her handlebars with my right hand, with hers freewheeling alongside) down the road and left it there. Mid afternoon, I went down and got it back. On the way back in the morning I popped into St Nicks and got my preserving pan back.

So the rest of today was filled with sorting stuff out in the garden, moving things around, digging out a compost heap, putting stuff from the small Compostumbler into that pallet bin, refilling the Compostumbler, tidying up my messy plastic bag habit, setting up the new wormery.

Then in the evening, amongst other things, I did lots of paperwork... wrote an article for a magazine, wrote a couple of important Fiddlesticks emails, made several rail times phone calls, and more.

Later on, got myself ready for a trip down to London tomorrow. I've been invited to a party and a Fiddlesticks booking. I'm using the Grand Central service on both journeys as it was the cheapest.

Distance: 9 mile loop
Elevation gain: none, flat
Dogs: Not allowed
Critters: Birds, birds birds!

Barr Lake is a State Park filled with waterfowl. I went there to try out my new 500mm Canon lens. The lake was too low to get very close to the birds but the scenery made up for it. All the marsh plants were high and dry and a fall-ish rusty color. The weather was also sublime, particularly knowing that the following day it was supposed to snow!

I was surprised at how built up the area is around the lake. There is one large shopping mall nearby and the ubiquitous Starbucks a few miles away for those who need their fix. It was not long ago that Barr Lake was practically "in Kansas" it was so far out on the plains. Humans are encroaching here as well.




The park contains a nice nature center, which puts on educational programs. There was the typical stuffed birds and animal skins. I wrapped the fox skin around my neck and struck a naughty, aristocratic pose. Fortunately, only the ghosts of the birds lining the walls were there to poo poo my shameful behavior. The nature center also has a solarium with a nice couch overlooking an extensive bird feeder. Numerous Sparrows and Blue Jays could be seen hopping about feeding area.





The trail around the lake is a broad dirt road intermixed with side trails and board walks. While long, it is any easy walk. Since we were all loaded down with camera gear we only managed to travel 1.5 miles to a gazebo that juts out into the water. From there we saw the resident Bald Eagle on its perch a mile away. Some large deer with huge antlers could be seen cowering under the shrubbery near the eagle's nest. The closest birds were only 0.3 miles from the nature center however near a nice shaded sitting area.




I have no idea if the water level in Barr Lake is seasonal or if drought has kept it low. For now it is better enjoyed as a broad panorama vice a photographers mecca.