US Mother's Day 2017

For the first time in three years, I was able to spend US Mother's Day with Mum. As with UK Mother's Day, my missing it the past two years has been down to her being in Northamptonshire and my being up here in Nottinghamshire. Now that she and my brother are up here, we can spend it together again.

As for what we did, we walked to the Rushcliffe Country Park in Ruddington and back and later had dinner together.

Not so many pictures, as of late

Since late September, I've barely posted any photographs here - 23, to be exact. Back in the day, photgraphic posts were common on Air Nice-to-Livelands but now they're as rare as hen's teeth. There are three main causes for this:

1. Starting university is the obvious one. I have less time to sort through photographs.

2. I photograph less than I used to. In both Northamptonshire and here in Nottinghamshire I'd photographed so much that my pictures were becoming repetitive.

3. The WiFi in my accommodation can be slow and thus, uploading pictures can take a while.

This doesn't mean pictures posts won't be seen here again (I still have a big blog party post to unveil) - it just means they're nowhere near as common as they used to be. For now, frequent picture posts are not a priority.

Ready for the 2016 election

I'm at my mother and brother's house for the evening and night because my brother and I arranged in advance that we would spend the United States election night following the results as they come in. This was what we did for the 2012 election except that on that occasion, we were both living in Northamptonshire under the same roof. Now, we are living in Nottinghamshire in separate occasions but we still wanted to spend election night following it together.

The Northamptonshire departure

It's nearly 10:00 at night and here I am waiting for my relatives from the East of England to pick me up and take me and my belongings back to Nottinghamshire.

The summer holidays are over. Tomorrow, I check in to my accommodation at Nottingham Trent University. As of tomorrow, I will, for the first time ever, be living away from family.

The walks to Nottingham and Hucknall

By this time last year, I had walked to Nottingham several times, as well as undergone a few of my Hucknall walks. By contrast, this year I've only walked to Nottingham from my grandparents' house once, possibly twice, and haven't walked to Hucknall at all. The reason for this is because of the better bus pass my college provided for me on this course, as it gives me unlimited access to Nottingham and to many of the surrounding areas.

However, my bus pass has taken me to other places, such as Calverton and Kimberley, so even if I haven't been doing the long walks I did a year ago, I have been exploring South Nottinghamshire and beyond during this academic year.

Less than a year remaining

I find it hard to believe that yesterday marked a year until President Barack Obama leaves office. The man, who campaigned as an inspirational and transfigurative candidate, has experienced one of the most brutal presidencies in the whole of United States history.

Brutal. Not brutal in the sense of Obama being an authoritarian but brutal in all the criticism he has received and the sheer amount of opposition he has faced at every turn. Every action he has taken or proposed, no matter how insignificant, has received criticism that has ranged from healthy skepticism (which is completely reasonable and expected) to utter hatred and accusations of him being a "traitor", "un-American" and other loathsome terms.

Such language would never have been acceptable under any former president. I think it's important to remember that no matter how much anyone may disagree with Obama and his policies, everything he has done (and still wants to do) has been because he thought it was best for America. He never set out to "destroy America" or to engage in any similar nonsense - after all this time, after all he's been through, he still cares deeply for and loves all Americans, no matter how much any hate him. I also, after all this time, after all I've been through, believe in Obama and I care. I care - about Americans, about Britons, about everyone. Because that's what we should do. That's what "Hope and Change" was about and I believe that message remains relevant.

In January of 2008 - an astounding eight years ago - I lived in Southern Oregon, had two cats, both parents and no official education. Nowadays, I live in Nottinghamshire, have no pets, one parent, some academic qualifications with more on the way and a chance to make it into university. Oh, my universe sure has changed since the pre-Obama world; I am a massively different person to what I was back then.

Northamptonshire December 2015

So, for the Christmas break I'm back at my family's home in Northamptonshire. I'll be back in Nottinghamshire on the second or third day of 2016, as my next college term begins in the first full week of that year.

The county crossing

I wrote/posted this on Facebook earlier and it's good enough to copy here:

"In my travels today, I was unaware that Stapleford is so close to the border than one can simply walk out of Nottinghamshire.

I think this is the first time I've walked (not ridden) out of one British county and into another; the last time I recall walking out of any county was probably from El Dorado (California) into Douglas (Nevada) in 2000 (which was also across state lines)."

The wrong bus

I erred today by boarding the wrong bus, thus officially becoming a member of the "Boarded the Wrong Bus" club. I thought I was taking a longer route back home via the villages; instead, the bus reached the furthest village on its route and turned around, at which point the driver asked where I was going. By then I had already realised my error and had no choice but ride my bus back in the direction from which it came.

Fortunately, my driver was fair. He was mildly stern when reminding me to be a little more careful and he informed me about the route changes but he was fully polite and not aggressive; after I apologised for my error he told me to not worry about it.

While I lost an hour on a route that was a dead-end for me, I enjoyed the ride and had the chance to view more of the Nottinghamshire scenery. Can't complain about that!

From China, with love

My Hong Kong uncle and cousin living in mainland China, both of whom are in the United Kingdom until next month, came to visit this afternoon. They stayed for over two hours before they returned to Nottinghamshire.

It pleased us that they visited; while my Hong Kong uncle came here within the last two weeks, prior to today, the most recent time my cousin in mainland China came here was for my 21st birthday party back in November 2011.

Jaffa Cakes (2)

The person who lost a fight with Jaffa Cakes in Nottinghamshire now appears to have lost a fight with them in Northamptonshire:

Where will they appear next?

Bus interiors

The bus operator with which I've ridden the most has been a company called Trentbarton. Since I've been in Nottingham, I've used their buses on all occasions except for two (the college bus to London and an independent bus operator during my first visit to Hucknall).

I've ridden three of Trentbarton's routes; here are pictures of the bus interiors of said rotes:

This is on the route known as "The Threes", which services Hucknall and some of its surroundings. I took this on my second visit to Hucknall and The Threes buses are notable for their orange colour.

This is the "Two" route, which services parts of western Nottingham, and I took this a few days ago.  This is also the bus I was on that recently avoided a collision. The only Two bus I've observed so far has been yellow.

Last but certainly not least, this is the "Rushcliffe Greens" route. All of my Trentbarton bus rides save for the last two have been on the Rushcliffe Greens, which service parts of southern Nottinghamshire. Rushcliffe Greens buses are usually green but there are a few large and red ones driving and on a Saturday I encountered a black one. Unsurprisingly, the Rushcliffe Greens is my favourite route.

Third half-term over

The third and final half-term break for my Pre-Access course has concluded; I am now back in Nottinghamshire and next week I face two of my three remaining exams: English and Non-Calculator Mathematics. I've been revising for the latter all week although I have performed some revision for the former.

My course is approaching its conclusion. There little of it left.

Easter break over

The Easter break is officially over and I am back in Nottinghamshire. Monday is the first day of my third and final term for my current college course. After the lesson on that day I am to attend a presentation about my next course.

It is shocking to think that we are in the middle of April 2015. It wasn't so long ago that my course began and now its end isn't far away.

The cooling towers

When riding the train up to Nottingham today for tomorrow's control, I photographed the Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station as my train stopped:

I don't recall ever being this close to the power station before; then again, I hadn't ever ridden a train on the Nottinghamshire-Leicestershire line until today, either. It was quite impressive experiencing a close view of the cooling towers!

The power plant has appeared in previous posts of mine: here, here and here.

Away from home in another home

My parents and brother left my grandparents' house less than an hour ago. They had been here all day but in the end, they had to return to Northamptonshire, whereas I'll be here in Nottinghamshire for the foreseeable future. Enrolment day at my college is on Friday, so I have one day to prepare.

Dad, my brother and I went for a lengthy walk this afternoon. Tomorrow, I'll post some pictures from the walk.

Final preparations

There's not really much to say. All day I've been making my preparations for tomorrow, which is when I move out of my parents' house here in Northamptonshire to my grandparents' home in Nottinghamshire. I've packed much more of my belongings than I usually do but as I've said before, the majority of my stuff is staying here.

I have a few final things to pack tonight and in the morning. I'd better get to it. More to come soon.

South Yorkshire images

On the 30th of August, my grandfather took me and my brother to South Yorkshire. He wanted to take us to some more places that are important in our family's history; however, the only pictures I'll be sharing are the ones I took at Rother Valley Country Park. The park isn't quite as significant to the family as the other places we went to that day but it was somewhere that my grandfather used to visit with his children.

Some boaters out on the lake. The water sports that take place at Rother Valley Country Park are similar to those at Holme Pierrepont in Nottinghamshire, such as water skiing and boating. Unlike Holme Pierrepont, which is one long rectangle, the country park has a proper lake containing plenty of room for people to move around.

A shot to show off both a curve on the lake and the most beautiful part of the afternoon.

A water skier; there are ski cables and some jumps in one part of the lake. Not all of the lake is open to boating and skiing.

I was lucky to make this capture of a skier falling into the water! I'm not sure if it's the same person from the previous image.

As with most parks here in the United Kingdom, the Canada geese were present. This trio was after food but stomped off after they realised we didn't have any.

The bare patch on the hill in the distance reminded my grandfather of the ski slopes in Lake Tahoe.

The South Yorkshire trip was the last journey any of us made during the Nottingham visit; the next long drive in a car was my brother's and my return home.

Rufford Abbey Country Park pictures

Some of my Nottingham relatives and I visited Rufford Abbey Country Park exactly one week ago. We had an enjoyable morning and afternoon at this country estate in north Nottinghamshire. Here are four pictures:

A view of Rufford Abbey's front plus its south-facing side. Rufford Abbey was built in the first half of the 12th century and was originally a monastery before being converted into country house in the 16th century.

A view from within Rufford Abbey's court. There was not much to look at inside the court beyond the architecture and the ruins, but it immediately reminded me of the court where Harry Potter defeated Lord Voldemort in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

This structure is the ice house. During the Victorian Era, these buildings stored ice — but not food and drink, as commonly believed. Instead, the ice was transported to homes and used to chill any perishable items stored there. The invention of freezers and refrigerators in the 20th century rendered ice houses obsolete.

This is a mother swan with her cygnets; I have rarely, if ever, seen cygnets and it was a treat to see them. The swans lived in the same area as some ducks; while the cygnets were larger than the biggest adult duck, the mother swan was highly protective of her young and didn't hesitate to show aggression towards any duck that swam in her vicinity.

Rufford Abbey Country Park

The first place on the week's agenda was Rufford Abbey Country Park, located in northern Nottinghamshire. We spent the late part of the morning and a fair amount of the early and mid-afternoon there. Three of us, which included me, then had to go into Nottingham itself to pick up some needed supplies and then my uncle and I went to the cinema. I got back only twenty minutes ago.

I'll have pictures in a future post; I am too exhausted from today to bother with uploading pictures, renaming them and then posting them right now! I expected a big day and it was larger...and more fun...than I anticipated.