Life by Squares – D5

Background: I forgot to shave this morning so my chin was stubbly. I chose a really heavy book to read next and so my shoulders ache. I’m typing this in the living-room and so there’s a glare on the keyboard. I’m listening to Radio 1’s Dance Anthems as I type and so my attention is split. I ate lunch really late and so I’m caught between full and hungry. I took loads of photos when I went wandering in York today so I’ve had to leave some out.

The weather was a bit muddy and so I was struggling for inspiration at the start. Consequently, you get something as strange as this from King’s Straith:

It is a view of the river Ouse. But barely.

Skipping straight past the Notice of Forfeiture taped to a restaurant that had metal sheets bolted to all its entrances, here’s a snap I snuck up to take on Tower Street:

Looks to me like one of the sentries is sleeping at his post, which is a dangerous thing to do today because there are Vikings about!

I wonder what do you make of this shot. I tried half a dozen times before I got what I wanted:

The background is the muddy looking surface of the river Ouse. The foreground is all from a single tree parked beside Skeldergate Bridge. Well anyway – I like it.

What you see in the next shot, on Buckingham Street, is the empty house of a homeless person:

It sure ain’t no palace! Not sure where the homeless person was, but I’m pretty sure those belonging are safe. I mean – would you steal anything from here?

I’m skipping these shots: a church-spire juxtaposed with a crane; a couple of drowned arches; the seagulls foaming the water as they fish for lunch; the woman in the red top and tight trousers stood on the corner; the man-made tunnel with a white car inside; the sun almost (but not quite) making it out from behind the clouds; and the quiet row of terraced houses and instead I’m giving you this from Newton Terrace:

In the background are the York city walls and in the foreground is the quiet, gentle, leafy suburb-like street that the walls are protecting from the marauding hordes outside. Yep, like I said – the Vikings are back.

I also skipped these: the lane called Carr Lane that you would not be able to fit a car down; the drunken posts (and no – it wasn’t the fault of my camera this time); and the coaches parked next to a No Parking sign (albeit on the other side of the river). This gives us the opportunity to move straight to this sinister looking shot from the banks of the Ouse; specifically on Terry Avenue:

The level of protection for the site was weirdly over the top. The original fence had been reinforced by new planks of wood, a heavy wire mesh and then something like a coarsely woven mosquito net. That thing in the middle is a drill, but what are they going to be boring for here? Oil? Water? Or perhaps they are going to be fracking for gas on this site! Strange days indeed.

Something a little more innocuous next. This is a shot of the grass banks leading up to the city walls on the corner of Price’s Lane and Bishopgate Street:

Those daffodils are going to look spectacular in a week or so. I arrived a little too early – sorry about that.

Skipping over: a lazy shot of the Ouse with scabrous looking building covering the banks; and photographical evidence of Clifford Tower being stormed by a huge pack of rabid tourists. Instead – look what they did to this tree on Fewster Way:

Cruelty!

Finishing off with a photograph from the end of Browney Croft of the sun finally showing signs of breaking through the clouds:

It was an absolutely beautiful day after that.

And the weather was good too.