... feet-wise that is - mentioned about the new RM Issue footwear doing nasty things to my feet - especially the left foot. The right foot was suffering as well, but that's sorted itself out viz ...
...however, we're still suffering a bit on the left hand/foot side of things - viz ..
... oh yeah, they all get "stuff etc" put on them before heading out for a work stroll - but when I get home - it's fresh air for the feet (and maybe foot odour for the rest of Chez Smiffy !!!).
We're getting there - and unlike so many people these days (as in the workshy !!), a couple of blisters is something and nothing really .... although (saddo !!) something worth posting on here - maybe ?? Off to cook tea now - barefoot of course !!!!!!! .
... been fairly quiet on here over the last seven days or so has it not ? Last Sunday's football up at Mossley was the shape of things to come weather-wise. Did it actually stop raining at all between Monday morning and Wednesday evening ? Not on poor old Postman Smiffy it didn't !! Joyous evenings were spent drying out coats/bags/me etc. Had to switch shoes as well because they REFUSED to dry out - plus my brand new RM Issue trainers have ripped my left heel to shreds - which hasn't been much fun to walk on all bloomin' week - at least a day off today. No football either last midweek - had my eye on Chadderton v Norton United on Monday night (finished 3-3 with a last minute equaliser for the visitors) but weather and general "bleeurrrggghh" kept me in.
At least the weather managed to improve towards the end of the week (as in "dry" !) - and on Friday night Mrs Smiffy and myself together with a couple of friends went to sample the delights of the "Harvey Nichols Supper Club" down in Manchester - a £20 a head three-course meal with free cocktail thrown in. Surprisingly generous portions as well (half expecting some poncey "nouvelle cuisine" style helpings but no !). Naturally turned out to be more than £20 a head with drinks and a few extra portions of stuff adding to the bill - but well worth it (for the record - Mussels in Pastis with a pea puree; Daube of Beef; and Chocolate Tart).
Saturday morning I finished in good time and was able to get over to Hyde by train/bus/walk in time to see the kick-off (makes a change for a Saturday !). Seems like I caught Hyde on a severe "off day". Visitors Bradford PA (one division below Hyde) were by far the better team in the first half, and this continued in the second 45 minutes as well. Hyde didn't help themselves by going down to 10 men when Worsley was red-carded - and Bradford PA did leave it until the 90th minute to score their winner - but it was no more than they deserved.
Snatched a pint in the "Sportsman" after the game - have to say it was a disappointing pint as well (Rossendale Brewery "Rossendale Ale") before home/fiddle with pictures/sleep/wake/buy "Non League Paper"/write this stuff. Quiet day in today I think (apart from the drilling that I will be doing to hang mirror and magazine rack !). Next week's football - probably Mossley on Tuesday (where according to the "Non League Paper" they are playing "FC Untied" in the Manchester Premier Cup - tee hee !!). The visitors will no doubt bring a sizeable number of fans (and probably a sizeable number of photographers as well !!).
... of the death of John Hesketh who passed away over the weekend. John was the owner of Stalybridge Station Buffet Bar and together with Sylvia back in 1997 they managed to turn around what was an iconic, but failing piece of railway/beer history - extensions, renovations, a kitchen, and of course the beer got the place back to the top.
It was of course a (very !) regular haunt of mine during my previous working life (my picture remains on the wall - a "Guardian" article from 1991), but since job change, I don't get in that often. However I'd known that John had been "not so well" for a number of months - a lifelong smoker (who was SO against 'the ban' !) admittedly, but so what ... a full life, a successful businessman (in the graphics trade before the buffet bar), and a well-loved and respected guy. He will be sadly missed.
Look Out !!! Brolly Boy (arty pic - click for big !!)
... OK a bonus game for me - but played in awful conditions (wet/wind etc) ... so wimpy snapper spent first half "under cover" before saying magic word (begins with "b" and ends with "x") and going for it in the second half. A comfy victory for the home side it has to be said ... and here's the pix Mossley Youth 3 Nantwich Town Youth 0
Home - dried out - set to with the pork meal - and I 'mSOOOO well organised in the kitchen that it's all cooking away (veg prepped etc) while I sort out all this stuff - just too good for you guys/gals ... .
... and before I get to the football, can I just say I had a bloody awful day at work today - a walk I've NEVER done before, 70% of which was social housing flats not unlike Hampton Court maze, added to which they were all in "controlled entry" blocks - I had no layout maps - and more to the point no bloody key fobs - which reduces you to hanging about pressing buttons hoping people are in to unlock the bloody entry doors - it happens a lot in t'Oldham/Ashton area but this walk - aaaargh !!
Arrived at the game at 1530 hrs (now you understand !) and was still "plumbing my gear in" when Glynn Blackhurst scored an absolute screamer to make it 1-0 to Stafford -a couple of mins BEFORE I arrived Ashton's Chris Amadi (who IS the danger man up front) had been red-carded - so I missed all that and only got a "blur" on the goal ! So - Ashton down to 10 men yet again (see the Spennymoor thread last week), and it all went downhill from there. Today I took pix (unashamedly) from a Stafford angle - and here they are ...
I'm sure it was a touch embarrassing for the Ashton fans - and I must admit, even as a born and bred Staffordian I myself felt a little uncomfortable about the whole thing, as I DO enjoy my trips to Ashton - great people, good craic and a very approachable and honest Manager in Danny. Let's hope that they realise that Stafford are in a unrealistic postion in the table - and they won't be playing a team like that every week - certainly not a time to panic.
... well the corporate was fun - fed, watered etc - and I think the sponsors are happy with their pictorial memento of the evening - HOWEVER ...
... the football left something to be desired - whilst the "prawn sandwich camera" was having fun, the "there's a bloody game on camera" wasn't so lucky ... see
Reckon I only took about 6 pix in the second half - that's how gripping/exciting/etc it was !! The first "Sack the Boss" message has arrived on the Mossley /Message Board ... a touch premature I feel (especially following a 5 match unbeaten run).
... a sort of "Ex-Mossley Woodley Sports" kind of day - whilst waiting for the bus into Oldham this morning (getting on in Uppermill, because I was expecting to work in Dobcross so was on my there when when I received the "phone call from hell" saying "Not required in Dobcross - can you come into Oldham ?"), spotted Ben Richardson on his way to work. Then, this afternoon whilst waiting in Oldham for bus back home, spotted physio Jo on her way into Oldham. Was this a sign ?? Should I be off to Ossett tonight ?? I think not !
Mossley v Bamber Bridge it is - and it's a "two camera jobbie" tonight as I'm expected to be a bit of a paparazzi for some of the sponsors of tonight's game (Britannia pub). Different I guess !
Work - tomorrow - Royton - definitely (I say definitely but ... !!) .
... blame it on the Co-op at Hurst Cross (near Ashton United) - nipped in there after the game to buy my tea (a pepperoni stonebaked pizza if interested) - and spotted what I can only call ..."The First Mince Pies of Winter"
Now the really scary thing is ... looking at the 'sell/munch by' date ...
... and the Green Man looks on disapprovingly ... ... yeah - 6 WEEKS BEFORE CHRISTMAS !!!Anyway - we'll try and keep some sort of "thing" going on 'twixt now and Crimbo - first impressions on the Co-op offering - nice but no alcohol ...
Covers a lot of this week - certainly "seen the world" at work:
Monday - a walk in Royton Tuesday - day off - taken for the first time in weeks (!) Wednesday - different walk in Royton Thursday - walk in Ashton Friday - different walk in Ashton using one of these for the first time ever ever:
finished at 1700 hrs !
Saturday - heading into Oldham - phone rang - "Can you go to .... Rochdale ?"
... and with 90% of this being unknown walks (and in the case of Rochdale unknown bloody areas !) - and the weather being a touch unseasonal (!), it made for an "interesting" working week. Incidentally, my contract expired on 29th September - no official extension yet but have been "told" it's coming - probably lost in the post - ho ho !
Anyway - finished in Rochdale and got home in time to head for - Ashton United. Football-wise I was in a bit of a quandary today - Ashton United and Stalybridge Celtic both at home in't'Cup while Mossley were entertaining Prescot Cables in the league. Hurst Cross was chosen (I'll do Mossley next Tuesday !) - and the home side were given a footballing lesson by Spennymoor Town who ran out comfortable 3-0 winners.
STS Bonus Pic - What the entire Ashton United team needed - a kick up the ...
Much emphasis was placed on the alleged "two level difference" between the sides - a meaningless concept when talking of Northern League teams. If only the champions of this league had joined the Unibond/Evo-Stik over the last half-dozen of so years ... then there would have been no excuse for this "too far to travel" rubbish - there'd have been at least half-a-dozen north east teams there - and no room for the likes of Chasetown etc etc ... but then again, I've always been an advocate of a three-way Northern Prem/Midland Prem/Southern Prem split ... Chasetown in the Northern Prem ?? Bishops Stortford in the Conference North ? When it gets that ridiculous you can almost understand the "excuses from oop North" - but all it needed was for a few teams to "bite the bullet" early on - and maybe this whole ridiculous position we are now in would never have happened (and that bloody Isthmian League has got a lot to answer for as well - a real anachronism !).
Anyway - enough of my wobbling on ... some pictures from yesterday can be found at
The "Ouch" in the title not only refers to aching joints and Ashton's loss - Stalybridge Celtic also bowed out of the FA Cup - as did Stafford Rangers (a real "ouch" here !). One other notable local departure saw Lancaster City knock out FC United of Manchester ...
Next week - Mossley on Tuesday, and probably (!) Hurst Cross again next Saturday - since their relegation from the Conference North I now only get one chance to see Stafford Rangers "up my way" - and this is it ...
One other pic from this weeks warm weather - a rather large (over two foot in diameter) spiders web in our garden - and it had certainly caught a few flies !
Man of the Match Kayde Coppin plays "Hunt the Contact Lens" - not really though !!!
... excellent performance - and a fully deserved win (which could have been by a much wider margin to be honest !) ...A shame that it was probably all in vain - apparently a slight "registration problem" with one of the Mossley players - and that sort of thing is far more important to League Management Committees than foul and abusive language; foul and abusive players; and foul and abusive ... errr ... tree monkeys. So no doubt Mossley will be removed from the Doodson Cup, banned from any form of football for 7 years - and Mossley secretary will be placed in the stocks on the Market Place for 12 hours (bring your own rotten veg !).I jest - well most of it - the cup place will obviously disappear - but as someone has already pointed out - better a ... ... than three points lost in the league ... and the performance still stands - and certainly is starting to bode well for the future.Last night's pix can be found at ... Mossley 2 Curzon Ashton 0 (Doodson Cup)
... and my tomato plants are starting to "go over" - so there is some rotten veg (OK fruit !!) available if required !!!!!!!!!! .
... OK Mossley have beaten Curzon Ashton 2-0 tonight - and an excellent performance it was as well - but it's nearly midnight .. and it's been a FULL day off (and I've made the most of it !!!) - but I will leave you with a couple of pics to be going on with - as I was walking up to Seel Park at about 1920hrs tonight - this is what I saw ...
... well I liked 'em ... football pics tomorrow - sometime ...
OK - here's Cavell Coo scoring goal number two (promise better tomorrow !!)
.
Late "half-twelve" edit ... just done the evo-stik website to check out other scores etc from tonight ... in the Cheshire Senior Cup Woodley Sports have beaten Runcorn Town 4-1 ... after extra time ... in front of a crowd of ... 22 - I kid you not ! More to the point Stafford Rangers have gone to (top of the table) Northwich Vics in the Prem Div and won 1-0 - huzzah !! .
1) Haircut - Ashton 2) New trainers - Denton 3) New Watch (broke old one whilst "on duty") - Ashton 4) New Bus Travelcard (lost old one whilst "on duty") - Ashton 5) New CD (what the hell - 'twas only £3 in HMV Ashton ... "Pet Sounds" by the Beach Boys - one of those that I couldn't afford on vinyl when I was little - a truly groundbreaking recording it was as well) 6) Birthday card ... for "someone" - Ashton 7) A few beers - Stalybridge & Greenfield (I had an all-day train/bus ticket !!)
... and just for a change - I'm taking it - feel like I deserve it after yesterday's "workday" - once again not getting out until late and then taking nearly two hours (!!!) over one bag of mail - all controlled entry flats (and a right rabbit warren it was as well) - and no key fob for me - so it was a case of ring bells until you find someone in - takes forever !!
Few bits and bobs to do today (haircut, new trainers etc) then it's Mossley tonight for their League Cup game (or should I say Doodson Cup - they've paid their sponsorship so ...) against Curzon Ashton - Mossley obviously looking for an improvement on the August Bank Holiday 0-4 drubbing. Plus - I'm thinking of just taking the 85mm f1.8 lens tonight rather than the big'un - haven't really given it a full 90 minutes anywhere to test out angles/positions etc - why not tonight (less weight to carry as well - it IS my day off after all !!)
One bright spot on the horizon (pun intended) is the weather for the reast of the week - see BBC screen dump:
... that'll do for me - might even break out the RM shorts (last worn in April believe it or not - that's how cr*p the summer has been to be honest !). .
Friday night saw a trip to Oldham Coliseum to see Ira Levin's "Deathtrap" - very enjoyable play, treading that fine line between horror and farce - obviously no camera so ... a stock pic from Coliseum website ...
Saturday - work (natch !) - the words "Saturday off" and "floater" just don't go together !! Still finished in good time to get home etc etc and get up the Mottram Road to watch Stalybridge Celtic take on Gloucester City ... "error-strewn" was probably the phrase of the day - too many misplaced passes; too much reliance on the long ball over the top to striker Phil Marsh (he's worth more than that !); too much dilly-dally on the ball; and trying stuff that just wasn't working, but continuing in the same vein rather than "Hey - let's try this instead". Still - for an apparently "bad day" there was still some excellent football on show from both sides - I can't say 2-2 was a fair result (Celtic should have scored several in the last 10 minutes - but heroic defending and goalkeeping kept 'em out), but ... anyway the pictures at
Sunday saw a walk (turned out to be 11 mile in the end - postie's day off as they say !!) over the Bleaklow area of the Pennine Way - one of those areas where the phrase "Be Prepared" does come into its own (i.e. DO NOT go up there without map and compass) - especially today as the mist dropped as we got towards the top !! Overshot the Pennine Way slightly - probably a matter of 300-400 metres - but soon got back on track, and when you get to Bleaklow Head ... it's plain sailing from there . Today's misty pics at
Home - cook tea (Chicken and Chorizo with mucho veg) - and then this. Next week at work - a veritable "Tour of Royton" - 6 days - 6 different walks (covering everyone's "day off") - fun ?? not so sure ... next week at football - I've not even opened the "Non League Paper" yet ... .
... in the way of decent photographs from tonight's FA Youth Cup game 'twixt Mossley and Stalybridge Celtic Youth teams (FA Youth Cup - geddit ?!?).
Just flicked through the pix from tonight - and it looks like I had a 'mare - which pretty much ties up with my day at work as well. If you've not already received ... the NHS are sending out letters - not just to every household, but to every individual within said household - they're trying to set up some kind of Summary Care Record database (which will probably turn into yet another compuer system b*lls-up that goes over budget !). So today - to every house - to every individual within that house - it was heavy, and I went the best part of two hours over my time (which WILL be booked as O/T tomorrow).
Anyway - pix from tonight need working on (severely !!!) ... watch this space ... OK here's one scratchy effort, just for the hell of it ...
Midweek football is an interesting conundrum - the only two options both involve Stalybridge Celtic ... either "big team" (at home to Blyth Spartans) - or "little team" (Celtic Youth away to ... Mossley Youth in the FA Youth Cup). Reckon I'll go for the "youth" option, purely because next Saturday every SixTameSide is away from home - bar one (yep - Stalybridge Celtic). .
... but I HAVE now done the pictures from Mossley's victory yesterday !!
It's been quite a long day already - this was the scene at 0630 this morning - yes there IS an 0630 on a Sunday y'know !!!
It might be a Millstone glass - but it contained "Two Hoots" (Holts Brewery)
They don't half make heavy weather of stuff England - strange when the commentator said they were ranked number 4 in the world - i.e. just like our 'glorious' football team - I feared the worst from then on !! Still, 41-10 sounds good (not as good as 84-6 like last time but ... good !).
Home - and then out to buy a new bed - job done (eventually !), followed by supermarket, some DIY "tips" (and loan tools !) to daughter and then home to do the pix from yesterday - which can be found at ... Mossley 2 Salford City 1
A fairly tight game as well - in fact it could have been about 5-4 at half-time ! Mossley really must stop playing with 10 men as well (not red cards but injuries - and no subs left - that's two Saturdays in a row now) - still another three points with Mossley now 13th ... seven days ago they were bottom .
Now off to cook some food - as in Pan-Fried Salmon with Herb Risotto - it's 1815 - and I've been up for 12 hours already - eek ! .
... are truly abunant at the moment - reckon one plant is now "on its way out" (first pic) - but hey, for a £2.99 packet of seeds - we have done well - plenty picked already but here's how we stand at the moment ...
... but we have other plants as well - here's just one of the other four ...
... and you came on here looking for football !!! Mossley have beaten Salford City 2-1 - and you'll get some pix later - promise !! Tomorrow morning - I'm going for a "Beer and Breakfast" option (0630 start) to watch some World Cup Rugby ... .
... well Mrs Smiffy still away - back later this evening (so I haven't even started cooking yet !) - so a trip up the hill to watch the young 'uns.
Some similarities to yesterday - Mossley take the lead via the penalty spot - Mossley player gets hat-trick - Mossley score between 5 and 6 goals - it stayed (fairly) dry ... a good win for the Youth team then. It's virtually a new squad from last season (probably something to do with age etc !!), but starting to gel and starting to look tasty. Thirteen goals in two days (another similarity ... I missed the fifth one yesterday and the fifth one today but ... !!) - pix from today at
Time to think about getting that tea sorted - and for you gourmets out there it's bacon-wrapped chicken with a cheese, basil and oregano stuffing, wedgie potatoes with brocolli and red pepper accompanied by beer (me) and wine (Mrs S). Smells good already (in my mind !) .
Bottom plays bottom-but-one ... finished work in good time, quick change and a walk up the hill - bumping into SJNR from the Mossley80 site - his words to me at 1445 hrs were "We might see a high-scoring game today" - and how right he was !!!Mossley took the lead as early as 4 minutes - and this seemed to send an electric "confidence" shock through the entire team - 4-1 at half-time and 6-2 at 90 minutes ... some pix at
... and apologies for missing the fifth goal - not only was I coming out of the club, I was also discussing the "did it go over the line goal" with Darren who was probably the best placed fan to see (he was "dubious" !). Never mind - a first win under the belt, but remember the first three words of this post - there's still a long way to go yet - but as a confidence booster it must have done a helluva lot of good. Hopefully it will continue on Tuesday night against Brazil - sorry Garforth Town.
Meanwhile ... Hyde win again (eight out of eight) and Stalybridge win again (seven and one draw out of eight) - and Droylsden keep playing catch-up with a win as well. Ashton United had a cracking idea for today's game - a "Snappers Day", inviting peeps with cameras to take pix of their game against 'Ensfud Town and submit one for a competition. Sadly they got beat 2-1 thanks to 2 goals from a "Stafford Rangers reject" - Wellecome to Hurst Cross !! Finally Curzon Ashton scored two goals against Salford City - unfortunately one was an "oggie" so it finished 1-1.Might go out for a couple of shandies now, with Mrs Smiffy being away (!)
Midweek looks like a possible trip to Woodley Sports on Tuesday to see them take on Lancaster City - we'll see ... oh and Mossley Youth are at home tomorrow afternoon (have to make sure all the chores are done first mind - and that includes prepping Sunday tea !).
Thirsty now ...
LATE "2330 hrs NOT THIRSTY NOW"" EDIT - it might have been 6-2 .. but I ought to give some credit to the away team today - apparently they have a glut of injuries - including "Dick" Tracey - their top goalscorer (who I DO remember from his Belper Town days) - but they NEVER stopped trying to play football. I did see them against Curzon Ashton back in August ... and they certainly gave them a run for their money as well. So respect to Ossett Albion - they are giving it their best shot - and you can ask for no more .... .
... fairly dry today (a bit of rain in the morning but ...) - and I did that bit of O/T as well (a 'wander' round Uppermill) - home to say "Farewell" to Mrs Smiffy (away on a weekend conference in Bath) - a bite to eat - this - and then off to TV to watch a DVD (tonight's offering will be "A Bridge Too Far" (nowt to do with Stalybridge Celtic - the "Arnhem War type thingy).
Hoping to see Mossley kick-start their season at home to fellow strugglers Ossett Albion tomorrow - assuming work gets finished in time - this week has been Diggle - next week it's Greenfield - one bonus with these "rural country walks" is that the cost of getting to work is actually cheaper !). .
... and was I right about the weather - just before kick-off it was absolutely lashing it down, so naturally I "weatherproofed" the camera in the usual way (punch hole in plastic carrier bag, secure to lens hood with RM elastic band) - whilst doing this Chester managed to score in the first thirty seconds or so ... missed it. They added a second about 10 minutes before half-time from the penalty spot ... but other than that there wasn't that much between the two teams I thought. OK the appalling weather was probably a bit of a leveller, but Ashton never gave up the chase against a well-marshalled Chester defence. Some wet pictures at
Home to dry stuff out (room littered with wet RM gear and wet DSLR gear !!) before giving up and sleeping. Out this morning - yep even more rain (!) - stopped now mind, while I'm inside - d'oh. Fingers crossed for a bit of an improvement tomorrow (poss doing some overtime as well) and Saturday (for some dry football).Oh and this morning Mrs Smiffy could find no tomatoes in the fridge for her salad lunch - she had to have four off my tomato plants instead !!! Loads on there now - just ripening in their own sweet time ... .
Yep ... a pretty grim week weather-wise "out and about" (this week the country atmosphere of Diggle !) - and some serious papier mache at times ... here's the official way of making it (I say "official" - this lady is great - and the music is OK too !!)
... the other option is to wait and see what comes through your door from postie (and our stuff is flour-free !!)
So - wet through again (OK drying out now) - and home to find out tonight's "game of choice" (Ashton United v Chester FC) has been called ON ... so it can't be all bad !
By the way - for those who remember my "grammar police" antics vis-a-vis a certain estate agent in the Mossley area during my "dolescum days" - here's a new one from the same. Can this REALLY be the price (click for big - and NO I have not tweaked/photoshopped) ??
I wonder ... never mind, tea soon and then off to Hurst Cross by frog - sorry bus (it's the Andes you cross by frog - check out/Google "Ripping Yarns")
... makes me laugh anyway - sums up the laughable state this country is in - and the way sooooo many people are being duped ...
Apparently "mid-market retailers reported a year-on-year sales drop of 2.2%" last month ... so the headlines say that it's ALL because of the riots ... hmmmm ... recession, what recession ??
Top three adverts on the TV at the moment are promoting ... price comparison websites ... now that WILL get us all out of the "recession what recession" .... and don't forget those handy companies/websites that have words like "APR 1737%" ...
Police cuts ?? The Metropolitan police have managed to find 1,000 officers to basically "child mind" kiddies to and from school - something to do with mobile phone and MP3 theft ... hmm, no recession here ...
The bonuses of top company directors have risen by 187% in the past decade ... no recession here either ...
In an attempt to encourage use of public transport, plans are afoot to get rid of 675 railway station ticket offices ...
66% of rioters have been remanded in custody for various offences ... as opposed to the "normal" 10% ...
A former (Labour) MP has been charged with expenses fraud totalling £66,000 - apparently the case has been delayed because she was suffering from "ill health" ...
... just a few stories from the last 48 hours
(Football tomorrow - don't panic - but if you can't wait ... Mossley are 2-0 down at half-time and this article is worth a read) .
... as mentioned earlier, with having a Saturday off work, it would be just plain criminal not to make the most of it ... which was why I was at Stalybridge Bus Station at 0945 on Saturday morning, returning to the same spot some 11 hours later ! In between time, a jolly day out - comfy coach, comfy company, DVDs, "lunch/tachograph stop" in Hampton-in-Arden (near Solihull), lots of "flatlands", a few alcoholic beverages - and a game of football as well.
I don't think I saw Stalybridge Celtic at their best - too much long ball stuff to be honest - but at the end of the day, three points is three points and the unbeaten start to the season continues (although Hyde FC still hold the local "bragging rights" with seven wins out of seven). Some pix from the day out in Cambridgeshire ...
... still on holiday - still remembering NOT to go into work - upstairs bathroom has had a "paint job" this week (something for the unemployed/students to do !!) - so before either of same had got up this morning I put some new floor covering down (OK not "exactly" new - leftovers from downstairs but ... hey !!).
Job done - so I went for a walk - last October I did a bit of a walk from Oldham to Grotton along the "old" railway line: OldhamGrottonRailwayOctober2010
- and I promised myself I'd one day check out the Oldham to Ashton "old" railway line. Today was the day ...
Not as straightforward/obvious this one - certainly a bit trickier to follow up at the Oldham end - but we got there in the end - I think !
Tomorrow - no work - so am going for BIG football trip (with apologies to "5 mins up the road Mossley" - the road to Wembley may start tomorrow (v Runcorn Linnets) - however Saturdays off are so few and far between - you've just got to go for something ... big !
Histon here I come ... . Saturday Morning Edit - you won't know this but - when you're getting closer to Ashton, the old railway line actually goes past the back of Joe's house ?? Fascinating ... .
Arsenal are interested in Belgian defender Mark de Man. Apparently, they are also interested in his compatriots, striker Skor de Gaulle and goalkeeper Bloek de Schott. .
... and so Monday brought the "local derby" 'twixt Mossley and Curzon Ashton ... and true to form, the home team got stuffed by a team of players who:
a) didn't want to play for Mossley so went elsewhere; b) apparently weren't good enough to play for Mossley so were sent elsewhere; c) saw an ex-Mossley manager - and joined him elsewhere; d) the other two players in the squad ...
... naturally (for the time of year) - the weather was pretty "sh*te" - you work a week in the rain - have a day off - and stand out in the rain - such fun !!! (also an excuse for the slightly "blurry" feel to some of the pix - because I was "out there ").
So ... I turn in for work this morning to be told "Isn't this your holiday week ??" Apparently it is (cue "What a Plonker" comments) - hey-ho ... however ... "while you're here do you mind doing 5 hours overtime ??" ... so I did ... One interesting pointer of course is ... if it's a weeks holiday, I've got Saturday off ... so I can (football-wise) go for something different/long journey etc etc ... we'll see what might be tempting ...
.
After a wet (and some !!!) morning at work, I managed to get to Hurst Cross about 10 minutes after kick-off - to find Ashton United already 1-0 up - here's the rest ..
and lost out on Quiz Night at the Britannia on a bloomin tie-breaker ... tomorrow (well today) - a truck-load of stuff to do in the morning - and a local derby in the afternoon ... .
Also .. it would be good to instil the same frame of mind into some of the "older but obviously not wiser" who have crawled out of the woodwork following recent events ...
Really am .. what has this country come to ... the rich and powerful are laughing at us all whilst we the "lower classes" squabble and argue amongst each other and decide whether 4 years for stealing a bottle of water is actually long enough when compared to 6 months for tax evasion/expenses fraud totalling thousands, maybe millions of pounds - something that causes far more permanent damage - or let's sit back and watch the financial gamblers on the Stock Markets screw up our pensions, our futures and and any hopes that our youngsters may have whilst listening to the corrupt at the top saying "We're ALL in this together" - while jobs are lost and wages are frozen and rail fares rise by 8% ...
No ... 4 years years for stealing a bottle of water is FAR too lenient ...
I despair - I truly despair ... going to the pub (which no doubt is also full of self-righteous b*st*rds that have NEVER done anyhting wrong in their entire lives ...)
Starting with the birth of the "High Peak Beer Company" - Stockport Market Hall Tuesday/Thursday/Friday/Saturday 0900-1600 - over 100 bottled beers and ciders - also draught cider and perry. This comes to you courtesy of Corin - partner of Laura (who used to work in the Computer Department at "THAT place" - you know 'Simon bloody skint bloody bust bloody Carves') - good luck with this new venture !!! Here's the article from the August 2011 edition of "Opening Times" - the local CAMRA magazine ...
Next a cheap house beer in a local pub in Mossley - viz ..
(apologies for pic - it's off my phone !!) - a touch smoother than the normal "Unicorn Bitter" (and 40p per pint cheaper too !!!!)
Plugs over - unless you count this as a plug for the "Manchester Evening News" - or a plug for the UK/North West economy ... back last year (just before I finally "leapt off the dole") I posted summat on here about the MEN "Jobs Supplement" - in those days it was advertised as "12 Pages of Jobs" - and I "broke it down" somewhat (check out the original post if you can be *rsed). So - 14 months on - and I spot this billboard outside ye locale shoppe ...
hmmmmmmmmm .... especially when you consider the "12 pages" of 14 months ago actually equated to about 6 ... God only knows how the 5 pages break down ...
... and finally - I mentioned some "slightly less than green" tomatoes yesterday - here they are ...
I've now got the bug - look out next year - I'm going for a big of fruit & veg growing "BIG TIME" (our potato sacks arrived just too late this year !!).
... or maybe Toms (why not go for a title that "jumps out" ???)
The magical tomato "adventure" has hit a problem - as in one of the stalks just "snapped off" due to the weight of toms/way it was planted/whatever ...
... which left me with ...
First word I heard was wash 'em, dry 'em, wrap 'em in newspaper and stick 'em somewhere dark ..." - which is what I did - I later found out that I could have tried to rescue the stalk by putting it in water and changing it every day and after a while re-planting - whatever ... there's still three plants 'hanging' in there - and a couple of the toms are heading towards the "red" colour as well.
Football - can't be bothered at the moment ...
Politics - can't be bothered at the moment - although this side of things has really opened my eyes on the views of certain people who I would have put down as friends/drinking/footy buddies ... there's SO much I could say on the whole thing - but I have to be careful as if I said something like "The Government is POO" - or "Let's Wreck Mossley on Friday Night" - I could well end up being A) hung drawn and quartered B) Jailed for Life C) transported to the colonies - 'exceptional circumstances call for exceptional sentencing' (unless you're a corrupt politican/ corrupt TV mogul/ corrupt newspaper hack/corrupt football star - so many role models to respect - HA ! ) an eye for an eye etc ... I've even seen/read well-known(and some not so well-known) racists advocating Sharia Law (as if they've any clue what this actually is !!). It's so sad to see the so-called "lower end" of this country basically kicking sh*t out of each other while the REAL criminals are just sitting in their (very rich) Ivory Towers laughing at us all ... just the way the 'Rich and Powerful' like it.
Amazing to think that back in the early 19th Century, Manchester saw the "Peterloo Massacre" - and these 'rioters' were subsequently lauded ... and did anyone watch "Quadrophenia" on the telly last night ?? .
... in between vistitors last night (with associated barbie), a walk round Curbar and Froggatt Edge today (more pix to come), and cooking more food tonight (mostly barbie left-overs !!!) ... I'm trying (!) to get my head around the intricacies of back-focussing, front-focussing and lens micro-adjustments on the 50D - having "played" with a couple of different lenses today - I'm starting to think that the 70-200 is having "issues" with the 50D (in fact I DID mention it a week or so ago after the Curzon/Barton game, thinking it might have been a "SmiffyTwitch") - many ways to test/solve - including banging it on the 20D for Tuesday night's footy ... as wll as printing off some fancy autofocus test chart ... damn - I've got to go to work in the morning as well !
Ashton United v Matlock Town Curzon Ashton v Radcliffe Borough Eastwood Town v Droylsden Hyde FC v Worcester City Nuneaton Town v Stalybridge Celtic Ossett Town v Mossley
Take your pick ... and kick the over-hyped, over-priced stuff into touch ... .
... and it was nowt to do with "safety reasons" ... tonight's game of choice was to be Oldham Boro v Daisy Hill in the North West Counties League Division One. However the weather put paid to that ... and I got wet during the day as well !! .
... are the state of things to come ... remember (if you're old enough ... otherwise Google) ...
Brixton - - - - Toxteth - - - - Moss Side
30 years ago ...
I DO NOT CONDONE LOOTING ... but I support wholeheartedly any protest against the sh*t we are all suffering now - and the sh*t that we will ALL be suffering as it all gets worse - which it will - witness the financial markets of today - these are the short-term financial "decisions" that are killing people's savings, people's pensions, people's futures. Yes - unemployment will rise, and IS rising (despite the ridiculous figures/lies that the "government" are spewing out) - but the global financial crisis is gonna hit more than the 18-25 year olds in this country - it's gonna screw the 50-60 year olds as well - we're already being told we've failed on our pension contributions (NOT OUR FAULT) - we're being made redundant after giving faithful/loyal service to companies (NOT OUR FAULT) - goalposts are being moved all the bloody time (NOT OUR FAULT) - we've done what everyone told us to do from age 18/21 - now - at age 55+ we're being sh*t on - meanwhile the government is telling peeps to work until they're 90 or something like that - and so the 18-25 years unemployment continues to rise ... the powder keg is there ...
Meanwhile - on message boards/Orange/BBC/comment options we still get the "hang the b*st*rds" vitriol from the "I'm All Right" sector - who are mostly clueless about what's really going on in this country (and 95% of 'em can't even bloody spell - just goes to show who are actually running the asylum) - wait until some of these self-righteous b*st*rds get sh*t on as well - it WILL happen ...
London today ... the rest of the country to come (a shame that a REAL protest WILL be hi-jacked by the low-life who have spent their life screwing benefits out of the country - this is where it all goes wrong). Don't forget though - we do have a government that condones this sort of rioting when it happens in Libya/Syria etc ...
... with the 'big guns' of FC Halifax Town at Ashton United - and FC United of Manchester at Stalybridge Celtic ...... I had to go for the "unusual" of course; I mean how often will you see a team from Bedfordshire "oop north" for a pre-season friendly ?? OK it transpires that they were apparently on a stag do in Manchester on the Saturday night - and looking at the game, it DID seem that a few minds were not quite on the football side of the weekend !!
So - a comfortable win for Curzon in the end, with some pictures at
... still not "quite there" with the new camera - when using "centre-point" focus, some pix seem to be drifting to the right a wee bit - I "think" it might be me twitching slightly as I press the shutter, because it's not a consistent fault with all the piccies - hey-ho ... "the more pictures I take the luckier I'll get" (mantra according to Snapper from Belper Town !!)
and yes it was a fairly "easy to recognize" Curzon Ashton team as well, with about 95% having played at Mossley over the last couple of seasons; and the afternoon stayed dry as well - which was more than can be said for Saturday morning when I copped for it big style - thunder, lightning, typhoons (well not quite - let's just say A LOT of rain !!). Back out "in the countries" for the first three days next week - and I also notice that most of the "local" pre-season friendlies have finished, what with the league games starting next Saturday - I'm sure we'll find something though ... .
I know of this train - 'tis the 'Scarborough Flyer' that runs every Friday during the summer - I was waiting for my bus to work at 0915 this morning - but all I had was my phone ...
.... and don't talk to me about work today - won't go into detail (i.e. about all the stuff that should have been done before I arrived ... but wasn't !) , but the first letter I pushed through a door was at 1150 hrs - as in ten minutes to midday. OK so I got some O/T today ... but from a customer point of view and even from a Smiffy point of view ... it's just wrong ... plus it was once again a "new walk" for me - which also makes it longer. Hey ho ...
Hoping to start on my agreed time and finish at a sensible time tomorrow in or order to get somewhere near 90 minutes of football - wait on ... .
... or "About time you slacker" (picture-wise) - I got there in the end (only 48 hours behind !) - not totally brill but I have been having some problems with lenses ... I think they're OK but ...
In short, Stalybridge Celtic are starting to look useful; much improved from the team that played Man City before my hols !!
Day off today - but I went into work anyway (just had a holiday - need the money - plus subsidising two scroungers at home as well) - and got suitably WET. And yes - Mrs Smiffy and I DID go to see the final part of the "Harry Potter saga" last night - in glorious 2D of course (what's with this £2-10 "uplift" for 3D films - plus 80p for the spex - obviously just another large company - I'm talking Cineworld here - taking the p*ss - and the profits ...) - very good it was too - just a few "deviations" from the book, but all tidied up (well Voldemort was suitably "tidied up" at the end !!!).
Struggling to play catch-up on the main "Six Tame Sides website" - amazing what a week - well nearly 10 days - can do. We'll get there ... Saturday looks like a trip to the Tameside Stadium to watch Curzon Ashton play Barton Rovers of the Zammo League (bit of a bugger really - Mossley have a friendly "down the Butthole" at Shepshed Dynamo - it would have been nice to take a wander down there and see some "old friends" ... but hey that's recession, redundancy and a new working pattern for you - well for me anyway !!).
... in more ways than one - work OK - another "new one" to tick off - strange weather though ... VERY humid - only gripe this week so far is Housing Association Flats - in some of the blocks there's just no-one there, so "NO ACCESS" is this weeks 'endorsement of choice' !!.Other "chunks of "normality" ...- listening to someone on the radio this morning telling me (and all other over-50s) I've NOT been putting enough into my pension scheme/schemes (it wasn't a comedy programme either - just another one of these moneygrabbing short-termist bar stewards from the "financial sector" - you know the sort - thieving scum)- tomatoes - have been doing really well in my absence (although I had sorted out a watering schedule with "homeboys" whilst we were away ) - here's one pic ...
I tried to count the whole thing (4 plants) in total - and I got bored after 70 ... so an 8 seed packet for £2-99 is certainly going to pay for itself ... OK - I went to the Orkneys ... and - like it or not - everyone should (?) go to this small village (more like a hamlet really) just to say "I've been there ...". There are signs pointing you there, but no signs to say "you are there" ... however, here's a small piccie taken in the churchyard of said place ... apologies if it upsets/offends anyone - but you just HAVE to do it (they even sell mugs in Kirkwall, so ...).
Up for some football tonight (Stalybridge Celtic v Chester FC) - just been thinking ... this new camera has yet to do a Saturday afternoon game - plenty of time yet - it's only JUST August !!! .
Dagenham and Redbridge 1-0 Torquay United
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