GOOSEY GOOSEY GANDER

Whither shall I wander?

Upstairs and downstairs

And in my lady's chamber.

There I met an old man

Who wouldn't say his prayers,

So I took him by his left leg

And threw him down the stairs.

(More fun with lino-cut printmaking!)

Five minutes from my desk: Tall Tales

In 1962, while still being built, the BT Tower overtook St Paul's Cathedral to become the tallest building in London at a total height to 190 metres (620 ft) - height includes pointy ariel bit.

Once they finished it the BT Tower was taller thank the Millbank Tower down by the River SW1 (which had been put up faster) to once again become the tallest building in the country, titles it held until 1980 when the Nat West Tower in the City was completed.

COMMUTING, WE ALL DO IT!

Oh well we all have to commute at some stage in our lives, this week, school half-term holiday week is when the discomfort is acute. Last evening a teenager trespassed on the track at South Ruislip Station and threw two train companies into chaos (Chiltern Railways and London Underground).

How far can you go? Long-distance commuting to work in England and Wales has increased by a third over the past decade, according to researchers from Aalborg University in Denmark, who came all the way to London to report their findings to the annual conference of the Royal Geographical Society. More than 800,000 workers now travel more than 30 miles to work. Extract from The Guardian Feb 2012

Tube Trouble

Meanwhile The Rail, Maritime and Transport union has rejected a pay offer worth up to £500 for London Underground staff working during the Olympic games. The RMT, which represents thousands of tube workers, said the money was not an adequate reward for being on duty during the event, which will see a huge increase in passenger numbers across the capital for weeks. Extract from The Guardian

DON’T COMMUTE IN JULY

Companies are putting there life on hold during July 2012 because commuting (into London will be/may be more than unusually unpleasant. Heard in recent meetings.

ABU DHABI: HEADING OUT

Last day of conference yesterday.

A R&R short trip down town early last evening: Stumbled across parking lots trying to find the Corniche, abandoned the idea and took cabs across to the Emirates Palace Hotel - a landmark of gold and marble. Fatigue setting in.

Whole team more than ready for sleep and gave thanks for the non-availabilty of alcohol as it was The prophet's birthday.

Saturday: Today. Project Office closed up. Everything stacked in reception, for the airport bus.

Home. :)

ABU DHABI DAYS

Show opens.

My walk on music Moves Like Jagger.

Then its up on stage, opening remarks and then over to the first speaker, links to the next, and so it goes.

And so it goes on. I do the wrap at 17:00, all on time.

After the show: Back to the Project Office, then through Reception, ice ordered for room.

Arrive before ice to have the vodka cooling whilst a swim.

Back down from pool to room.

Hot bath. Iced vodka.

All on time.

One of Bron's December iTunes mixes - glad I packed the speakers.

ABU DHABI daiquiri

Here we are, day 3 and we open tomorrow.

Minor chastisement from one of the speakers for making too many changes to one presentation! Oh Well!

Sunny (outside).

Sets being built still undecided about my walk on music.

ABU DHABI DELIGHTS

The balance of Sunday, through until noodle soup in one of the modest hotel outlets, was spent trying to turn dull presentations into communication of brilliance. Time flew and so to bed.

Today dawned clear and bright although there was apparently fog out at the airport during the night, delaying planes to London which had the knock on effect of delaying all delegates' flights out of London. Ooops!

Oh well, we ready ourselves in the project office for the arrival of 140 people at sometime!

My high spot today was a walk across to the Crowne Plaza for a haircut.

Illustrated here: The hotel and a landscape of Abu Dhabi captured on the way back from me haircut.

Commuting Home for Christmas

Up and down the country we were hurrying home to love ones. Cheek to cheek, toe to toe on the overcrowded trains, taking advantage of the services before they are reduced for the Christmas break.

Hurry Hurry Quick Quick!

Featured here the edge of Platform 3 at Marylebone Station in London.

NIL BY MOUTH

Laparoscopic Appendectomy: Drawing on the NHS

Bron recently underwent an operation and the recovery ward presented a good opportunity to get some drawing done.

Loads of interesting equipment, Ward Sister, shuffling patients and visitors out of place, meanwhile I am eyeing up the chocolates on the adjacent patient’s bed table.

Train Times

I am thrilled to be connected with Train Faces

Train faces is a super-blog inspired by Jay Snelling and aims to put the art back into the art of travelling! Well done Jay! I will be dusting off some of my earlier commuting captures to be one of the 'regulars'

"The train now leaving from Tim's Moleskine is the . . .. . "

When did I last wear that jacket?

The other day, in a desperate attempt to look smart I dug a seldom-used jacket from my wardrobe and fished this boarding pass from the last time I had worn it.

The memories of a few summer days and eating in restaurants by the River Nile came flooding back.

LATE RUNNING TORTOISE

In case we sometimes feel that our local train companies are without consideration this caught my eye on the commute home a few weeks ago a notice brimming with compassion

Only two nights prior the entire Chiltern Railways network was plunged into disarray because five cows had wandered onto the line in the Gerrards Cross area.

The Ark now arriving at Platform one is the late running?

Gran Turino

Fun and excitement last Sunday:

Rise at 03:45 catch the 07:10 Ryan Air yellow 737-80 to Turin. Catch an airport bus to city centre. Arrive at the Golden Palace Hotel, typically Italian, dark marble and dim lighting. 12:30 pm work through to 01:30 am Monday with highly talented team of individuals, 23 people including me, on a new business pitch.

Arise 06:45 on Monday morning, micro-breakfast and see pitch team off on the coach to the client’s office! Catch taxi and race through cobbled streets back to airport for 10:10 Ryan Yellow back to London-Stanstead.

Fast, fun, fulfilling.

Featured pictures: Strange bridge, Chinese business man is taught how to tie a tie by his driver, picture of two lovers, taken from the airport bus

Happy Monday, check your diary

Yesterday when visiting my father in the badlands of Essex I saw this not five minutes walk from his house. Truly, the Only Way is Essex.

Martyrs on the Hill

Up the hill to Amersham on a fine Saturday afternoon. Walking on a path, through sown wheat up Amersham Hill to the monument erected in the 1930's to commemorate the 'Amersham Martyrs burnt 100 metres from the spot where the delightful '30 edifice stands. Larks in the air and clouds scud across the sky.

From the Amersham web site

The memorial was built to commemorate the Martyrs who were burnt at the stake in 1521. The Reformation had some roots in the Amersham. Prior to the Reformation, Lollards were condemned by the Church for such actions as reading the Bible in English and meeting and developing their own ideas.

As punishment and to deter others, 6 were burnt at the stake high above Amersham, so the flames and smoke would be seen by all and act as a warning. The daughter of one of the martyrs was forced to light the fire.

Essex made simple

British television viewers faced an almost insurmountable dilemma on the evening of Easter Sunday; whether at 22:00 hours, to change channels from the wonderful programme on Elgar (In the bleak midwinter) to view another episode of The Only Way is Essex.

Meanwhile, the current issue of Reveal magazine is carrying this wonderful guide to who is who and who and done what with and to who/whom.

The portable studio

Lots of people have asked about what I use for materials, for my drawings.

Here are the not-so-secrets of the trade.

Moleskine Sketchbooks I use the large size. A Moleskine watercolour book is lovely too if you like the long landscape format. And watercolour in my experience does not work with 'standard' Moleskine paper.

Crayons Caran d'arch Neo Colour II and smugging and blending them on the page is great with wet finger-tips.

Pens - Anything by Pilot especially the G2 and G4 (extra fine points) ranges are wonderful. Uniball pens also excellent.

Watercolours - my watercolour box (not seen here) is 30 years old now, It was bought for me by my first boss in an ad agency! Sadly the colours need replacing every year or so - I use Windsor and Newton half-pan size watercolours go for 'artist quality' not 'student quality'

All this kit can be easily packed away in a small bag (oh! don't forget a small water bottle and a glue stick for appending bits and pieces and tickets etc to the page) and you are all set!

Meanwhile in another part of the forest

Here is strange encounter today when my friend Chris and I were on our Saturday morning bike ride

A padded jacket that appear to be floating and then resting gently on a tree branch! Part of the attraction was the colour of the coat blending into the shades around it.

The colour world of hand-cooked crisps

The in-store merchansising/display teams for Real Crisps have been doing great work around London with these wonderfully colour displays at many food shops in the West End of London!

The full story on the appetising art is here

Bedtime reading

As Megs continues to blaze a trial through the hallowed halls of the Social Sciences Faculty, in her final year at Leeds University her book stack/reading list continues to impress.