Ice Skater Leeds

Picture of Ice Skater Leeds.

Following my visit to the outdoor ice rink set up in Millennium Square, Leeds when the rink was shut for resurfacing of the ice I made another visit to catch some skating.

I photographed this young woman for two reasons, mostly because she looked like she could skate and also because I managed to catch one uncrowded shot of her. There were quite a few people on the ice on this one afternoon, many of them just perambulating around the rink in one big moving mass of people.

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Mission Milk - Briggate Leeds

Picture of Leeds dairy farmer Simon on Briggate, Leeds.

Walking along Briggate in the heart of the Leeds shopping district I chanced upon some Yorkshire farmers promoting their Mission Milk campaign.

In the above photo can be seen local farmer Simon, who has a dairy farm here in Leeds. I spoke with Simon and asked him about his farm, he keeps Jersey cattle on his farm and he has invited me to go over to his farm and meet them.

The aim of the Mission Milk campaign is to highlight the serious situation facing dairy farmers, at a time when milk is selling for less than water on many supermarket shelves.

The Mission Milk campaign ius being run by the National Farmers Union (NFU) and the National Federation of Women's Institutes (NFWI).

I like many people care about what I eat and drink and for too long the supermarket chains have had too big a say in this. I also think that farms and farming have become isolated from our lives. My little sister used to teach in inner city London and used to take the kids to the city farm, because too many of them think that eggs come from Sainsburys (insert any chain here).

I look forward to seeing Simon again and meeting his photogenic Jersey cows.

Ice Rink Leeds

Picture of ice skating rink Leeds city centre.

For the 11th year running ice skating has returned to Millennium Square in the centre of Leeds.

Leeds Ice Cube rink is operating till the 6th March 2011, visitors can take lessons in skating from professionals on the ice.

When I visited Millennium Square to see the skating a few days back the rink was closed to the public whilst ice resurfacing was taking place.

Because of the angle the above photo was taken at it does not really give a good idea of the area of ice available to skate on. Ice Cube Leeds is the largest outdoor ice rink in the UK with 1200 sq M of ice.

Child of Leeds

Picture of Grave of Child Leeds.

It is not often that I would hesitate before putting a photo and post it with a story on this blog, but tonight I have.

I was walking around a cemetery here in Leeds a few days back when I came across a section that was dedicated to the graves of young children. Normally I like graveyards and cemeteries because they can be a rich vein of social history. These graves and headstones that I normally photograph and document are for people long gone and also their children too. But this was different, these monuments if that is what you could call them were for children who were still grieved over.

I will not name the cemetery, nor give any details. But I will say it made my eyes water.

Big Garden Birdwatch - Take Part

Picture of House Sparrow

This weekend it is the Big Garden Birdwatch organised by the The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).

For more than 30 years the society has got ordinary people to go out into their gardens and make a note of the numbers and kind of birds that visit for 1 hour. If you do not have a garden you can do it in a local park. You do not need to be a bird watcher, it is fun, free and easy to take part.



You can download a bird ID sheet from the RSPB site like the picture above. Thats it, except a pen or pencil to mark the birds down and 1 hour of your time. If you have kids, I think that many of them would love this. This is a UK wide event so if you live in England, Wales, Scotland or N Ireland you can take part. If you life outside this area you can still look at the results, last year 2010 the most common bird in UK gardens and parks was the House Sparrow, just like the one in the first photo above.

Since the RSPB started the Big Garden Birdwatch we have lost half the number of House Sparrows and three quarters of the Starlings that there were at the beginning. Think how quiet and dull our lives would be without these birds around us.

To take part click this link to the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch. Remember it is this weekend 29th and 30th January 2011.

When is a Gate Not a Gate?

Picture of field gate with boulder near Bramhope, Leeds.

Walking down a country lane near Eccup reservoir not far from the village of Bramhope I saw this gate at a field entrance.

The gate of course was not what got my attention it was the stone boulder lying in front of the gate. Having traveled around Yorkshire quite a bit I have a pretty good idea why the boulder was placed there. This stone I would guess weighs a lot more than my car and neatly blocks access to the farms field. I think that this is a deterrent to travelers who might like to spend a few weeks with their caravans parked in the field. Having at first hand witnessed what happens to any piece of land they occupy I can well understand why most farmers would not welcome them.

This gate and field belongs I think to the farm where I photographed the sugar beet being harvested.

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Sugar Beet Harvesting

Picture of beet harvester near Bramhope Leeds.

Although I now live in a town I have spent quite a few years living in the countryside and spent some of my childhood living adjacent to open fields and farming. So when I saw this large farm machine digging up some kind of crop I had a pretty good idea what it was. Just to get the facts I spoke with one of the farm hands and they were harvesting sugar beet for use as an animal feed.

In the photo above you can see the beet near the top of the elevator. The gulls were picking at the worms unearthed by the previous pass by the harvester.

The area between N Leeds and Harrogate is really nice farm country with a mix of arable and sheep or cattle. Just a short while before I took this photo I was watching a couple of red kites soaring over the fields. A short while after I saw 3 jays, but before I got my longer lens on they had flown off.

These fields were quite close to where I spotted a cat on a stone previously.

Haworth Churchyard at Dusk

Picture of Haworth Churchyard at Dusk.

After walking around the village of Oakworth and meeting and meeting Alfie I came home through the village of Haworth.

Leaving Haworth, the village here in Yorkshire that was home to the Bronte family of writers just around dusk I walked through the churchyard and took the above photo. The large old house in the background is the former parsonage that is now a museum run by the Bronte Society in honour of the now famous Brontë sisters – Charlotte, Emily and Anne Brontë.

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Meet Alfie

Picture of Alfie the Border Terrier.

I was walking around Oakworth, not far from Leeds when I came across a dog being walked by his owner. This was Alfie and he is a very friendly and curious border terrier who is nearly 3 years old.

The village of Oakworth is best known for being part of the film The Railway Children, 40 years ago.

I have tweaked the photo of Alfie a little, mostly to remove the greenish tinge to the wall that he stands on and I feel I have kept his spirited in the photo. Before you ask, no he was quite a good climber before I met him and jumped up onto the wall to get a better view of his village.

The main road of the village of Oakworth that goes down to the railway can be seen in the background of the picture.

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Black Swan

Picture of Black Swan on river Aire at Leeds.

No this post is not about the nice young actress Natalie Portman in the current movie Black Swan, this is an entirely different thing.

Walking around the Whitehall area of Leeds prior to making my way to the Oddfellows blue plaque unveiling I was very surprised to see this swan on the river Aire.

This large bird is native to Australia and I have not seen one for quite a few years and never expected to see one swimming happily on this Yorkshire river among a few mallard ducks.

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Leeds Odd Fellows Plaque Unveiled

Picture of Leeds Odd Fellows plaque Unveiling.

Today I finally managed to be there at the unveiling of a Leeds Civic Trust heritage blue plaque.

The blue plaque, No 126 so far, was installed on a building in Queens Square, Leeds that once housed the Leeds Odd Fellows headquarters in the city. This blue plaque celebrates the history of the Oddfellows and their connection with the City of Leeds.

Celebrating over 200 years of making friends and helping people, the Oddfellows are a mutual, not for profit friendly society. The current Oddfellows date back to 1810 when the Manchester Unity was founded as an independent Order.

In earlier times the Oddfellows often met in taverns and today there are pubs whose names such as the Oddfellows Arms give away their origins as meeting places of the Oddfellows. There is a pub not far from where I live called the Odd Fellows Hall and although I only vaguely knew about the Oddfellows I assumed that there was a connection.


Picture of Kevin Grady director of Leeds Civic Trust at unveiling of Oddfellows blue plaque.

The words on the blue plaque are...

The 33 lodges of the Leeds District of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows Manchester Unity Friendly Society were administered from here 1910-1979. They offered workers and their families mutual financial protection in times of illness, unemployment and bereavement. Facilities here included meeting rooms, a ballroom and a club.

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Leeds Petrol Prices

Picture of Shell Petrol station price sign, Horsforth, Leeds.

I was pulling out of the Shell station on the Leeds ring road at Horsfoth when I saw the Price sign and remembered the recent post about petrol prices by Gunn White at Stavanger Daily Photo.

The light was beginning to go when I took the above photo this afternoon. The prices are 126.9 unleaded and 131.9 diesel, these prices are in UK pence per litre.

Behind the white van on the right can be just seen part of the Woodside Tavern, which I must post about sometime in the near future.

Polar Bear Coat?

I came across this advert in an old Leeds trade directory, it was quite a while back since I first copied it but it is pre 1914-18 war.

It was the subject matter that got my attention.

The advertisement for the International Fur Store on Regent Street in London reads "The finest furs in the very latest fashions" and goes on "Surpreme good taste". Now I am not a tree hugger or squeamish but there are in the drawing a polar bear, squirrel, two foxes, a seal with pup and what looks to me to be an ocelot. Perhaps it is just as well that fashions have changed as I really cannot think of any excuse for wearing the fur of a polar bear, unless you happen to be a polar bear!

It also says "Carriage, motor and travelling rugs in great variety" and "Gentlemen's fur lined overcoats ready for immediate wear"

Old Style Music

I remember my first couple of music CDs that I bought. cannot recall which was first of the two. There was Brothers in Arms by Dire Straits and A Feather on the Breath of God composed by Hildegard of Bingen.

Not really sure what the last music CD I bought was, but think it was most likely for a technically challenged friend.

I use my phone as a music player or else my laptop and yes I have decent floor speakers so I can get good sound. Just do not have a CD player these days.

There has much written in the press these last few days about HMV struggling. Well I am sorry but I first fell in love in a small local music store and I feel sure the execs at HMV shed no tears when many small independent music stores faded away. Sitting on her mothers sofa listening to LPs, of which I seem to mostly recall The Carpenters. This was a time both many miles away (8 hours by car - Google maps) and many years also. That said, if I hear Karen Carpenter it seems just a short while and just a few streets away.

The music CDs in the photo above are not mine, I took the photo at The Leeds Library.

Data Storage - Old School

I saw these old wooden card file drawers at The Leeds Library and could not resist this photo.

It is amazing how far data storage has come in my short lifetime. I guess my Blackberry probably could store more data than these old drawers.

I hasten to add that The Leeds Library does use a computer system for day to day operations. Perhaps these are there because they are decorative and they have been there a long time.

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Japanese Anemone

Picture of Japanese Anemone Flower growing in a garden at at Leeds University.

Very wet and windy here this last couple of days, so here is a flower I snapped back in the summer. I saw this Japanese Anemone growing in a garden just around the corner from the steps of the Parkinson Building at Leeds University.

VTOL Duck

Picture of mallard duck in take off position

I have always loved feeding ducks, since I was a small boy in the local park. Today I still cannot resist watching them on the local canal, even if someone else is feeding them.

Shortly before I took this photo a small boy and his mother produced some bread and quite a few of the ducks on the Leeds - Liverpool canal were very keen to get there first including this one in the photo. It was only when I looked at the image later that I thought this mallard looks like it has VTOL vertical take-off and landing capability.

Birds Eye View

Probably not the best picture of the clock tower on the old post office building in City Square Leeds but I wanted to get the pigeon in the photo.

I took this photo back in the summer, hence the blue sky and green leaves on the trees.

The clock in the tower has for faces each of 6'6" and was built by Wm Potts and Sons of Leeds. The former Leeds General Post Office was completed in 1896.

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Gooseanders On River Aire

Picture of goosanders On river Aire.

Over the Christmas holiday I walked along the river a few times not far from where I live and came across a duck I had never seen before.

This is a pair of gooseanders on river Aire, the female is the one with the brown head colouring. The goosander is a diving duck is known as the common merganser in N America and the are a breed of duck that feeds on fish.

This was the nearest I could get to them because they were over by the far river bank and I do not own a bigger lens.

Captain Scarlet

I had reason to go into a post office today and after queuing for maybe 15 minutes it was my turn and I wanted to get my moneys worth so bought this Captain Scarlet stamp as well as posting what I went in there to do.

The post office was not the one at the Saint Johns centre, but most city centre post offices are now best avoided unless you have no choice.

These new Royal Mail stamps celebrate the work of early TV animator Gerry Anderson, the stamps are Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet, Joe 90, Fireball XL5, Supercar and Stingray.

I missed the Stingray one else I would have bought that, I loved Troy Tempest and Marina was probably my first love.

Musical Milly

Milly may be only a young Yorkshire Terrier but already she is an accomplished jazz piano player.

Today Yorkshire, tomorrow Ronnie Scotts!

Meet Charlie Simone

Picture of Eddie Stobart Truck at Horsforth

I have thought about featuring one of these trucks on my blog for a while, but this is the first one I have been able to catch with my camera.

I guess most of my UK readers will know something about Eddie Stobart and their trucks.

In 1976 Edward Stobart and his fleet of eight lorries moved to Carlisle to be closer to the M6 motorway. One of Eddie's quaint habits was to name his lorry cabins with female names, this has continued to this day.

Eddie Stobart was perhaps the first trucking company here in the UK to realise the importance of corporate image. Their drivers always had to wear a shirt and tie, also the first four Eddie Stobart owned trucks were named after model "Twiggy" and singers "Tammy" (Wynette), "Dolly" (Parton) and "Suzi" (Quatro). This long standing tradition continues today, with the exception of I think one truck named after Valentino Rossi, they all have female names.

I worked for a long time in national distribution, so I would not be surprised to bump into a Stobart driver that I knew.

Today Eddie Stobart have 1850 tractor units similar to the one in the above picture and each of them are named. This one is called Charlie Simone, I do not know why the driver was not an employee but rather an agency driver. The truck names are often chosen by a driver and could perhaps be the name of his mother, wife or daughter.

Unusually for a trucking company they have a fan club and people can be Eddie Stobart truck spotters, members can get fleet lists and join the spotter league all this at club stobart!

Tempus Fugit Horsforth

Picture of Undertakers Clock at Horsforth, Leeds

I passed through Horsforth this afternoon (a town within the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds) and as is usual I had my camera with on the lookout for Photos for the Leeds Daily Photo.

I saw the above sign on a wall outside a local firm of undertakers, the clock is nothing special but I loved the ironwork on the bracket holding the clock up. No it was not 8 o'clock, think clock may no longer work or is very wrong.

Money is not everything But...

 

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Ok the camera is not that great but it is not a camera it is a smartphone, if I want to take great pictures I use my Canon.  The are two things I never leave home without, my Canon and my Blackberry .

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Now Thats a Cup of Coffee

Since I started this photo blog two years back, I have been learning more about the art of photography, or at least trying to. I am I think more experimental now with my subjects than when I started.

I was at a friends cafe looking at the coffee beans and took a few shots, the one above is I think the best.

Beer Heaven in Headingley

Picture of Bottles of beer at Beer Ritz Leeds

I do not know much about beer, I am more of a cider drinker and no not Frosty Jacks. One thing I do know I cannot imagine that there is a better stocked specialty beer off license here in Yorkshire than Beer-Ritz in Headingley.

I was walking around close to the Cottage Road cinema when I discovered Beer-Ritz, tucked away down a side street. I knew from the window display that this was a shop where substance is far more important than style.

Beer-Ritz is run by people who take their beer seriously and they stock more beers than I have ever seen in one place. That most likely applies to their ciders too. They have bottled beers from all over the world, so if you want Porter, Pale Ale or something from Finland this is the place for you.

Picture of Beer Ritz Headingley

Beer-Ritz is at:
14 Weetwood Lane
Leeds, West Yorkshire
0113 275 3464

Bank Holiday Walk

Picture of Jubilee Monument, Farnhill Moor.

Yesterday my friend John and I went for a Bank Holiday walk up above the village of Kildwick.

I had mooched around Kildwick before a couple of times, the Leeds - Liverpool canal meanders through the village. We walked through the village and out up above the village onto Farnhill moor. This was new to both of us and eventually we found ourselves stood next to a large white painted monument with a cross above it, the Jubilee Monument.

The monument was built in 1887 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria, which would explain the entwined VR carved into the cross. Nearby there are some large stones with carvings on them which explain the erection and the restorations of 1935 and 2000. The monument was painted last year by people from the villages of Farnhill and Kildwick, this we know because up there we chatted to a local man who pointed this out that both villages were involved.

I asked John to stand next to the monument to give an idea of scale in the picture.

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Free Leeds eCards

Picture of an example of Leeds eCard.

The more observant of my readers will have already noticed that for some time there has been the facility to send any of the photographs on the Leeds Daily Photo as an electronic postcard, these are known as eCards.

There are now more than 730 pictures of Leeds with some of them from further afield on the Leeds Daily Photo and any of these photos can be sent free by using the Send Free eCard link just above the top right hand of any picture on this site.

Pictures to send can easily be found by either searching for a keyword in the search box at the top right side of any page on this site or by scrolling down through the Sitemap page.

There is an example of a free eCard in the above picture, note at the bottom there is a message but I had trouble cutting and pasting whole eCard!

Meet Milly

This is Milly a Yorkshire terrier pup, Milly is four months old and belongs to a friend of a friend.

In the two years that the LDP has existed I have never before known anyone who had one so when I had a chance meeting with Milly I thought photo for the LDP! Milly was not at all shy and very curious but was encouraged to peek over the sofa.

Even when fully grown Milly will be a small dog, but Yorkies as they are known locally are not Handbag dogs, they are well known for their boldness and are not usually timid.

The Yorkshire terrier is not the only dog breed from Yorkshire the Airedale terrier also originates from here.

Greengrocer in Headingley

Picture of Vegetables in a greengrocers shop in Headingley, Leeds.

Here we are a brand new year, 2011 and my post today is one long overdue about a long standing family business in Headingley, Leeds and it is... a greengrocers!

Here in North Lane next door to the butchers shop is a greengrocers in a shop that has traded as such for around 100 years. R K Harris & Sons have been a family run greengrocers here for 35 years and prior to that it was called Hammonds.

Josy over at New Providence Daily Photo commented on my post about Steve the butcher.. But, ehm... what is a "greengrocer?" I am pretty hazy about the origins and indeed history of greengrocers and surprisingly so too is Wikipedia. However here in the UK they are shops that have been around for at least 200 years selling fresh vegetables and also fruit. Back in Victorian Leeds around 1881 there were quite a few shops trading as Fruiterer, so I suspect that either back then fruiterer was either a posher description of greengrocer or they just sold fruit. I notice that on their business website R K Harris & Sons describe themselves as High class fruiterers since 1972.

Normally for a shop like this one I would stood outside to get a few pics of the frontage with the fruit and vegetable stacked up outside but on the day I visited it was misty, overcast and they were packing up for the day. I am interested in social history and have access to The Leeds Library so I will look further into this subject and post more a later date.