Animal welfare statistics for August

Not a brilliant month for rehoming as so many people are away on holiday, so only 3 cats, one dog and a guinea-pig placed, although several animals are reserved and should go out in September.

24 dogs, 25 cats and 2 rabbits were neutered and veterinary treatment was given to 270 dogs 151 cats and 26 rabbits. Treatments for the month were 90 animals up on August last year, possibly because of the credit situation, but more likely because of the general increase in the cost of treatment at private vets.

The case of the cat dumped in a box

I'm still wondering whether this was a bizarre practical joke or what.

At about 12.30 am on Saturday morning I had a call from the duty nurse at the Vet School to say they'd been phoned by someone with an injured cat claiming to have been told to contact them by the RSPCA National Control Centre.

This was odd in itself, because the University out of hours emergency number isn't available to members of the public; normally someone who found an un-owned injured cat would be told to take the cat to the nearest available private vet and that the RSPCA would pick up the cost of emergency first aid. The owner of an animal already registered with our clinic would have the branch mobile contact number on their registration card and is supposed to phone that, not the NCC nor the Vet School.

Neither the nurse nor I were at our best and brightest after being woken at that time of night, but we agreed that I should phone the cat's finder and the NCC to try to find exactly what was going on and how badly injured the cat was. If the owner wasn't known, there wasn't any way to find out whether the cat herself was registered with the clinic, so she'd have to go to a private vet in any case if she was in too much of a bad way to wait until the regular session on Saturday morning.

After midnight the surcharge on vet's fees goes up to £140 round here, so I was not a happy bunny. I phoned the caller first and established that he'd found the cat tied up in a cardboard box beside the road. He'd decided to call the RSPCA because she was limping and not interested in food or drink and was calling all the time, but she didn't really sound to me as though she was in such a desperate state as to justify spending the cost of a minor operation to get her seen immediately rather than in 8 hours time. I tried to explain this to the caller, who clearly wasn't happy about it, but left him with a promise that I'd contact the NCC again on his behalf and definitely arrange for the cat to see a vet even if not right now this minute.

Meanwhile the cat really was kicking up a racket in the background - sounding in fact suspiciously as if she was "calling" as in "on heat" rather than because she was hurt. Assuming the story about finding her in a box wasn't a leg-pull, being in season could explain why she was dumped if someone couldn't or wouldn't pay to get her spayed.

Phoned NCC as I was beginning to be suspicious that the cat finder had actually called some other organisation who were aware that the Vet School provide the inpatient care for our clinic and that was how he'd come to get their number. They didn't have any record of a call from the finder's address that night and confirmed to me that they would definitely have passed a call about a cat being dumped in this way to an inspector (an offence has clearly been committed) even if they'd advised the caller that they wouldn't be able to arrange for someone to pick the cat up before daylight.

I then phoned the finder back to see if he could confine the cat until morning so that one of us could take her to the clinic, only to discover she'd jumped out of the box, escaped out the front door, jumped the garden fence and legged it into the darkness. I suspect the final upshot will be a phone call a couple of months down the line about a stray cat having kittens in someone's garden.

Shardlow Car Boot Sale, on Bank Holidays.

The next Shardlow Car boot sale is on Bank Holiday Monday, August 31st 2009
7:00am to 12:00 on Shardlow Village Hall field, The Wharf (Western side) Shardlow

Booters £5.
Buyers admission 20p

This is Shardlow Car Boot Sale as seen on Bank Holiday Monday. August 2012

This car boot sale only takes place on Bank Holidays spring - Autumn so this is the last one in 2009.

My map location for Shardlow Car Boot Sale:


View Shardlow Car Boot Sale in a larger map

Shardlow Car boot sale used to take place on the land at the back of the former Grove Hospital but this was demolished in 2007, since then the car boot has taken place on Shardlow Village Hall field.

Webcams in Derby and Derbyshire, new local webcams now online

I maintain a list of all the current webcams I have found that feature content from within the city of Derby
and the County of Derbyshire.

I have just updated my webcam list to include some new ones that you may not have seen before.

See my local webcams here :
Webcams in Derby and Derbyshire

For each webcam I have listed what type of webcam footage it offers and if you need to install a Browser plug-in to view them.

The most popular webcam in Derby is of course the Peregrine Falcons on Derby Cathedral, this webcam has been in place since 2006
and attracts online visitors from around the world and is extremely popular.

The City Derby needs some more webcams, can you help by providing a webcam stream for the city?
We only have 2 webcams in Derby, that's very poor ! We can do better than that

Just think of how many people out there in Derby have permanent broadband connections and a computer that is "always on"
and have a nice view out of their window.
Also lots of businesses around Derby that could have a webcam to generate publicity for their company, How about a pub cam.

Its so easy to setup a webcam these days it would be great if we could put Derby on the "webcam map".
In recent years it has become possible to buy what is known as an IP Webcam which is the simplest method of getting a webcam
online. All you have to do with an IP Webcam is connect it directly (via Ethernet cable) or wifi to your Broadband Router, it
has its own web server built in. you just configure the camera via a webpage and thats it ready to go.
I will be posting full information on how to set one of these up in a future post so watch this space.
In the meantime you can follow my instructions using some free software to get your Derby webcam online.

I have added several new Derbyshire webcams that may be of interest, these are.

1) Mercia Marina in Willington, Derbyshire looking out over all the Narrow boats moored at this new marina on the road between Findern and Willington.
2) Quarnford in Buxton, Derbyshire located on the highest village shop in Britain!
3) Monsal Dale, Derbyshire looking down the Dale towards Monsal Head and the River Wye.
4) Ecclesbourne Valley Railway, Wirksworth, Derbyshire. A choice of 3 webcams to look at!
5) Newhall near Swadlincote, Derbyshire. Part of a weather station website.
6) Ram FM, Iron Gate, Derby. This offers a view looking down onto Friar Gate from the Ram FM studios.

This brings the total webcams in Derbyshire to 17, come on lets see if we can get more online for the County.

If YOU know of any webcams in Derby or Derbyshire that I have missed or one that you have just set up and want promoting then post a comment
to this and I will add it to my list for you.

See my current webcams list here :
Webcams in Derby and Derbyshire

Thanks
Andy
www.derbyphotos.co.uk

1st Saturday at Emporium 61

Emporium 61 on its first Saturday's trading. It will look more "RSPCA-like" once we've got planning permission for the permanent sign to replace the rather weedy temporary one and finished the displays inside.

Until we've recruited more volunteers and a deputy manager, opening times will be:

Monday: closed

Tuesday: 10.30 — 5.30

Wednesday: 11.30 — 6.30

Thursday: 10.30 — 5.30

Friday: 10.30 — 5.30

Saturday: 10.30 — 5.30

Sunday: 12 — 4.00

Andrew and his team have now got the back room into shape and would be delighted to receive incoming donations. If you need to drop off something by car, please phone the shop on 01223 312 802 and they will arrange for you to unload at the back of the shop (from Paradise street). Good bric-à-brac, ornaments etc. are all very welcome as well as clothes.

Please, please DO NOT use dog flea treatments on cats

Ten minutes to midnight and wide awake after taking a call from the emergency 24 hour vet who has a client with no money whose cat is having seizures after being treated with over the counter flea powder intended for dogs. Treatment costs are likely to amount to several hundred pounds, all from an attempt to save the £10-20 it would have cost to get a safe and effective anti-flea preparation from a veterinary pharmacy.

The video below is from the Vetstoria site and gives more information about permethrin insecticide poisoning in cats.

Book, The History of Bemrose School, Derby, 1930 - 2005

I helped with this book when I took many photographs for it with Marilyn Thompson, It features 15 of my own images along with many many others and is a great book for any Bemrosians out there.

The History of Bemrose School, Derby, 1930 - 2005
ISBN-978-86071-620-4
Moorleys Print & Publishing, Ilkeston
Published in June 2009

This book has just been mentioned in the local newspaper..

This from The Derby Evening Telegraph on August 18th 2009
"A BOOK exploring the history of a Derby school has proved a big hit, with more than half the copies printed already sold.
Launched in June, The History of Bemrose School spans 75 years of school life and was complied by former pupils over five years.
The idea came about after Donald Sarfas, 89 – among the first intake at the school when it opened in 1930 – met Marilyn Thompson, a former Bemrose librarian.
They advertised in the Derby Telegraph for ex-pupils to share memories, many of which feature in the book.
About 550 copies of the 1,000 printed have already been sold, through Derby Museum and Art Gallery and the publisher, Ilkeston-based Moorleys Print and Publishing.
The firm's Peter Newberry said the book had sold well.
He said: "As people have bought and read the book there have been quite a few comments and we have considered producing a revised edition in the future once the current run has sold out."
The book is priced £12.95 from Derby Museum and Art Gallery, in the Strand, from Amazon



 or by visiting moorleys online shop.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Details about The History of Bemrose School, Derby, 1930 - 2005

There can surely be few past and present pupils of Bemrose School, Derby, who feel indifferent about their time there or who take the view that their Bemrose experience had little or no impact, for better or worse, on their subsequent lives and lifestyle.

A book giving an account of the first 75 years (1930 – 2005) of the school is therefore to be warmly welcomed. For that account to include among its many contributions at least one from someone who was among the first intake way back in 1930 is truly remarkable, and the book is enriched by Donald T Sarfas’s reflections on those early years and also by the chapter on the distinguished man after whom the school is named.

It is entirely appropriate that the authors and compilers took a chronological approach based around the work and legacy of each person who has taken on the mantle and daunting task of being the school’s Head Teacher. It gives the book its overall shape, and the ability of the various authors to offer not only narrative but, in many cases, insightful evaluation also adds greatly to the interest. It is the perception within some of the observation that is particularly striking, so that a whole host of people whom one never had a chance to meet come alive on the page and cease to be mere names.

Most striking of all is the realisation, which comes from the book, of the extent to which all pupils who attended the school in those first 75 years have been ‘creatures of their time’. Even within the time period 1930 – 1971 during which the school had the comparatively uncomplicated remit of being a Grammar School for Boys, pupils’ experiences were largely determined by the social, political and economic context in which the school was operating, by the facilities available within that context and by the staff, including the Head Teacher, who happened to be in charge at the time.

Thus, for all that a mid-1930s pupil would find he had in common with a pupil from, say, the 1950s, what would and does strike each of them are also the many differences as the school sought not only to move with the times but was also a prisoner of them. For the many staff who served the school for 20 years or more during its grammar school years, the extent to which they had to come to terms with changes of regime is something that the book highlights well. The change, for example, from the end of the Macfarlane to the initial Bennett years brought with it contrasts in operational style which the respective authors touch upon and with which those who experienced those years will readily identify.

Most fascinating of all in many respects is to read not about the years when one was there, but about the years when one wasn’t: how different things were for the lads who attended the school during the war, for example, when fields were lost to sport in support of Digging for Victory. I also greatly enjoyed the account from someone who joined at 13 plus. Written with feeling, clarity and insight his is a most welcome addition to the overall coverage. Those particular contributions are some of the strongest in the first part of the book.

For all the excellence of much of the narrative and analysis of the grammar school years, for me the most moving and gripping contributions lie among some of those which cover the years 1972 to 2005. These accounts contain some first class writing, and among them are some honourable attempts to give a fair and balanced view of the many trials and tribulations that beset the school as it found itself at the mercy and whim of national politicians and cash-starved and sometimes ideas-impoverished local councillors.

It is clear that since 1971 there has been many a heroic attempt made by those who continue to love and honour the school to keep the school (as an institution and as a site) afloat in the most tempestuous of conditions. Those of us who have little or no knowledge of the years post 1971 owe these brave writers a particular debt of gratitude.

The book is so wide ranging in its coverage that within it there is something for everyone. Nobody will agree with everything that is written about the years that cover their own time there, largely because this book is not so much “The History of …. “ as “A history of …” with room for personal contributions that are frequently idiosyncratic and anecdotal. Agreeing with it all does not really matter, however. The writing is often partial, and as such is both evocative and provocative, with much of it coming from the heart. Some of the views and recollections will doubtless fuel many a tavern conversation for years to come.

The publishing of this book is a very worthwhile, commendable enterprise. I hope it is sufficiently successful as to warrant a second edition. That would then create the opportunity for the publisher to make various amendments and additions that the collective wisdom, knowledge and memory of hundreds of Old Bemrosians are already bringing to Moorleys’ attention.

Thanks
Andy

Willington car boot sale every Saturday and even Mondays !

This is Willington Car Boot Sale which takes place every Saturday morning, Yes SATURDAY !

This is held at Willington Sports and Social Club, There is a small amount of parking available at the back of the club and a large field opposite the car boot sale. Also a lot of buyers seem to park on Twyford Road (A5132) but you need to be careful parking on this road as its a rather fast road.
In good weather there are so many booters that they are on every bit of space around including the road side.



At one point this car boot sale was taking place on some land off Frizams Lane but they have not used that for a long time. This is one of those car boots that is not too large that you don't know where to start but not too small that there is hardly anything to buy. Or at least that's what I've found, being outdoors the weather is going to make a difference to how many booters are there.



Willington Car Boot used to have a website with lots of details about this car boot which was on www.krazybooters.com but that seems to be dead now.

The Saturday boot sale runs from March to the end of October.
Sellers are allowed to setup from 7am and buyers are allowed in at 8am
Entry price (on foot) is 50p for Adults, Kids are free.
A sellers Pitch is £7 for Cars and £10 for Vans and Trailers.

Willington Monday Car Boot Sale
The Monday car boot sale runs from June to September.
Monday sellers are allowed to setup from 9am and buyers are allowed in at 9:30am

As with most smaller car boots this starts to thin out at dinner time so get there early.

How to find Willington Car Boot Sale.
If you are viewing this blog on an iPhone in Safari then click the link below for a exact mapping point that you can use for driving directions on your iPhone.

Smartphone Drop Pin Mapping link here.

Map:

View Willington Car Boot Sale in a larger map

I have listed other local car boots on my blog, use the search box at the top/left of my blog to find them. Tansley being the most famous car boot.

Thanks
Andy

Stray cats again: MICROCHIP!

Some of the most difficult situations we face happen because we don't have any way to find out the medical history of animals brought in because they appear ill or injured. Obvious traffic accidents are relatively straightforward, but it is much more difficult where the animal found is ill rather than injured. Even apparent injuries may not be what they seem, as it is possible for a bleeding tumour to appear like a partially healed and infected wound.

These are the other side of the debate about euthanasia; if you trawl the web you will find lots of people accusing the RSPCA of putting down animals who might have been saved, but very little discussion of the potential for suffering if we wait too long.

Nowadays, many vets don't have their own facilities for keeping inpatients over weekends and it is difficult and expensive to keep a terminally sick animal brought to us on a Friday for a reasonable length of time to give their owner a chance to locate them. If an animal has obviously hopeless injuries such as a broken back, there's no doubt that euthanasia is the right decision; the cases that keep us awake at night are the ones that might have a long-term condition that's normally controlled by medication.

My own cat, Fern, is a perfect example of what might have happened if she hadn't been chipped. She is epileptic, but her seizures are well controlled so long as she has tablets morning and evening. A couple of years ago, she wandered off and, after two weeks without medication, she was continually fitting. She was very fortunate that someone saw her and took her straight to a vet, who was able to scan her chip, identify where she lives and what medication she needs.

If we're asked to help a stray having fits with no knowledge of any previous history or way to find their owner, then the prospect is much more bleak. Seizures are a symptom that can be caused by a variety of things, some treatable, some hopeless, and it's difficult for a vet to make a sensible treatment plan even without the problem of providing long-term hospitalization if that's what's needed. (If an animal with an owner has a fit at least the vet will usually know whether the animal ever had one before and how old it is).

If you have a cat or a dog with a long-term health problem, please treat this as an urgent reason to get them chipped.

Some pics from the preview evening

The carrier bags were actually hand-printed by some of the volunteers to a design by Andrew, our shop manager.

 

 

 

 

South Derbyshire Heritage News 2003

My website has been featured in many magazines and articles over the years but I have never got around to mentioning them as there does not seem a suitable place to put them on my website.
Now I have a blog this seems like the ideal place for such things.

Click on the scan to the left from South Derbyshire Heritage News back in April 2003 about my website, Quite funny looking at the images I happened to use in the article, Derby Hippodrome Theatre at the time was in good condition, liitle did it know how it would end up just 5 years later !

South Derbyshire Heritage News is available to view online which includes some back issues too.
Heritage News is published three times a year around April, August and December.
It is circulated to all parish councils / meetings, amenity societies and historical groups within South Derbyshire, and is also distributed to libraries and to local press contacts.

If you enjoy reading about local history then take a look here at the Heritage News editions online.

Rutland Electrical and Diy shop, A good local shop

I'm always keen to support local shops where possible and I can definitely recommend "Rutland Electrical & Diy" at 38 Rutland Street, Derby.
I have used them several times over the last few years for plumbing bits and the odd electrical part. I even had to do an emergency plumbing job and they sold me a great pipe cutter and a 1M bit of 15mm pipe.

Its one of those tradditional shops that seems to sell absolutely everything, the shelves are packed to the ceiling with stuff and yet they seem to know where everything is.

I recently visited to get a part for my bathroom sink, the hot tap had stopped working, turning it anticlockwise did not make any water come out apart from a very small drizzle. So I turned the water off and used a adjustable spanner to undo the fitting. I could see it was all covered in limescale.
I took it to the shop and they went straight to the location and got me one.
The new one only cost £3.95 which I think is quite reasonable for the whole thing with washers on it.
Took just 20 seconds to fit the new one and the hot tap is now fully working again
The part I bought was a Single Vavle standard tap gland.

Streetview image of this shop.
The entrance to the shop is actually on Princes' Street.

Here is a photograph of my bathroom sink with the tap gland removed, the old one and the new one ready to go in...

iPod Touch iPhone, Safari web browser lock up. How to fix it guide.

Last night my iPod Touch developed a problem with the web browser.
While looking at a webpage about home brewing Cider:) Safari locked up, clicking on the bookmarks did nothing, trying to type a web address in did nothing, clicking the back arrow just made the back arrow stay lit.
Turning the iPod Touch off and back on did not fix it either. Even tried connecting to the computer and syncing iTunes but still no luck.

Safari seemed to be locked up for good and nothing would fix it, not even clearing all the cache and history or turning off Java.

I did eventually find a way to fix it, it was similar to the lockup on a iPod Video.

Do this to fix it:
1) With the iPod/iPhone on, or in standby mode, press two buttons at the same time as per photo below

(1) The home button (the one at the bottom) and (2) The power button (on the top edge of the iPod/iPhone) and keep them pressed, after a few seconds a new screen will show which has a red arrow which says Slide to power off.


2) Slide it across and the iPod Touch/iPhone will power off with a swirly thing in the centre for a couple of seconds.

3) Now press and hold the power button until the white Apple logo shows, it will show for 10 seconds followed by about 20 seconds of blank.

4) It will then power up in the normal way.

5) Slide the power on and goto Safari and you should now see that its working ok again.

This also works on my iPhone 3GS and I think also the 4G iPhone too !

Hope you find this useful. Please leave comments if it did.





Andy

Personal Antivirus, Removal of this nasty Malware Spyware from your PC

If you are reading this then you have probably googled "Personal Antivirus removal" after finding
that your PC has this program installed and you are getting lots of warnings about being infected with
Trojans and viruses and it stating that you need to PAY for the full version in order to clear them. DO NOT PAY ANYTHING, READ THIS...
I suggest you print this out so you can refer to it and follow it.

I have the answer for you here on how to get rid of it, very easy to do, no techinal knowledge required or editing of Registry keys and
no need to buy any removal software.

Background to this problem

Yesterday I managed to completely remove Personal Antivirus from someones computer.
They reported that there was a orange shield on the right side of the Windows status bar
which was saying the pc was infected with a trojan. Also Facebook and other websites were not working, web pages were redirecting
or showing a warning that the pc was infected.

When I was able to see the infected pc for myself it was obvious that this was some sort of spyware, The Norton Antivirus 2009 icon (yellow circle with green tick) was on the status bar as normal.

When I double clicked on the orange shield on the status bar a program panel showed "Personal Antivirus" as per this screen grab.


As you can see if you are not aware of things such as spyware then you would panic about the warnings it is showing you. This is
so you are forced into paying money.

I then ran Internet Explorer to google "Personal Antivirus", but every website that I tried to click on would be redirected after a few seconds to
a different website which made trying to fix the problem rather difficult.
The way I got around this was to install Firefox browser, to do this I searched for Firefox and clicked the link and then clicked the
download link asap before it had chance to redirect the webpage.

Here is a link so you can get to it now.
http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/
As soon as the download button shows start clicking it repeatidly until it shows the download file selector.
Install Firefox, you now are able to search the internet without being redirected as the Personal Antivirus infection does not touch
Firefox. If you don't install Firefox then you are not going to be able to do anything as Internet Explorer browser has been hijacked.

After reading many guides on how to get rid of this I managed to find a cure that worked perfectly.
Follow my guide and it WILL get rid of it.

1) Press Alt,Ctrl,Del at the same time and click on Task Manager
2) In the Processes tab click on the program PAV.EXE and then click the End Process button and shut the window.
This should have got rid of the orange icon from the status bar.
3) Run Windows Explorer (My Computer) and navigate to your C drive location here
C:\Program Files\Personal Antivirus\
4) Delete the entire "Personal Antivirus" folder and all its files.
5) Using the FireFox browser you have installed (dont use Internet Explorer) you need to download the
"Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware" software, this is free (you only have to pay if you want real-time protection)
Get it here:
http://download.bleepingcomputer.com/malwarebytes/mbam-setup.exe
6) Once downloaded install the software by running mbam-setup.exe
7) When finished installing, double click icon "Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware", it will update with the latest
spyware definitions.
8) Click Quick Scan and allow to complete the scan, it will find many infections while doing this.
9) Once its finished it will pre-tick all the infections and you simply click on "delete selected" and it will remove them
and ask you to reboot.
10) When the PC reboots you should find that Internet Explorer is now working ok, no more redirecting.
11) The final thing to do now is to rerun "Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware" but this time select Full Scan and leave it to scan every file.
12) That should hopefully have cleansed your pc of this nasty spyware.

If you found my guide of use and it sorted out your problem then please comment.

Broadband Speed test, how fast is your Broadband?

Here is a screen grab of the results of broadband speed test ran on my computer.
There are several of these speed test websites that you can use to test your broadband internet connection speed, some are better than others.
The speedtest.net site is one of the best I have found, You can even have this as an app on your iPod Touch which is handy if you are trying to find the fastest wi-fi connection if there are many to chose from.

As you can see in these results my Download speed is 9.58Mb/s and my upload speed is 0.49Mb/s

If you would like to test your connection speed then visit www.speedtest.net
Then wait for it to find your nearest server.
Click on the box above the map which changes to Begin Test, it will then perform a download speed test followed by an upload test.
Do not use the PC while its doing the test

After a few seconds it will display your results.


On Cable I.S.P.s the upload speed is always a fraction of the Download speed, ADSL broadband does not suffer from this. At the end of the day most people download stuff rather than upload stuff so it does not really matter.

Tips:
When you want to run a broadband speedtest it is important that you make sure your internet connection is completely idle. That means don’t have ANY programs running that are going to use your internet connection. i.e. e-mail clients such as Outlook, Outlook Express, other tabs on your internet browser, Instant messenger applications, P2P programs such as Vuse, Adobe updates, Java updates, Virus definition updates etc etc.

Make sure there are no Windows Automatic Updates going on, look for the yellow shield on status bar at the right of your desktop, If there are then let these complete downloading and install them and reboot your pc before starting the broadband speed test.

By the way if you want to know for sure if your connection is idle then you may want to turn on the "Modem status icon" (Just like a dial-up connection used to have)

I have found a way of making the modem status icon appear when using broadband. (Windows2000/XP only/Vista)
i.e.) The small flashing pair of boxes icon that you used to get on the bottom right side of the task bar when your old 56K modem used to establish a connection to the internet.

I found this very handy as it means you can now see traffic to the internet again and it ALSO has the added bonus of allowing you to kill all internet data packets by right-clicking on it and selecting disable. Thus stopping all connections to your pc.

For Windows 2000/XP/Vista systems only, with Ethernet connection to modem.

1) Minimise all windows so you can see the icons on the desktop.

2) Right mouse click on the "My Network Places" icon and select Properties from the pop-up menu. This should display a window showing Network connections.

3) Right mouse click on the "Local Area Connection" icon and select Properties from the pop-up menu.

4) In the Properties panel - General tab you should see a tickable option at the bottom with the description next to it....
"Show icon in notification area when connected."
On vista machines I think it says "show animated icon"

5) Enable (tick) this box and click the OK button.
Close the Network Connections window.

6) You should now see a status icon in the bottom right hand corner of your windows status bar which will allow you to see traffic.



Be aware that some I.S.P’s will throttle your bandwidth at certain peak times of the day if you have exceeded your allowed daily download limit. Using the Broadband Speed Test you will be able to see if they have done this to you.

Its funny how we accept broadband for granted these days, if like me you grew up in the days with dial-up internet then you will appreciate just how much technology has improved over the years. Back in 1997 a common connection speed for dialup would be 33600, on a good day it may have connected faster. Hard to have imagined back then that in 12 years time the speed would have increased by such a big amount.
Imagine trying to watch a HD Youtube video on dial-up.

Of course back then if you were on the internet then you could not use your phone line, how old fashioned is that !

Video, timelapse drive Chaddesden, Spondon and Borrowash

Here is my latest driving video, filmed on Sunday. This is a journey starting in Chaddesden, Derby and going through Spondon and Borrowash out to the Betterboots Derby Car Boot Sale.

http://www.betterboots.co.uk/

This video is rendered in Widescreen HD so you can choose to see more details if you have a fast pc and very fast internet connection.

Willow Tree Tea Rooms, Mercia Marina, Willington

This is Willow Tree Tea Rooms at Mercia Marina in Willington, Derbyshire. Mercia Marina opened in September 2008, driven past it many times but not stopped before.
The tea rooms offer good quality food and nice service, you can sit on the veranda and watch the many boats going in and out of the Marina.
For a pot of tea for two and two very large tea cakes it was £4.20, Very quick service.

Mercia Marina Website

Opening date for Emporium 61

Emporium 61: our new charity shop at 61 Burleigh Street, Cambridge CB1 1DJ will open for business at 10.30 am on Friday 21st August. We hope you will think it has been worth the wait.

E61 will focus on high-quality vintage/retro fashion, kitsch, collectibles and accessories. A veritable Aladdin's cave.

Raising funds and awareness for the RSPCA Cambridge & District Branch.

The phone number for the shop is 01223 312 802.

View Larger Map

Our bookshop at 188 Mill road will continue to improve its offerings of second-hand and antiquarian books, prints and music now that more of its storage space is available to dedicate to shelving.

If you live closer to Newmarket, why not visit our wonderful shop at 156 the High Street.

Derby Hippodrome Theatre, 17 months later

I took these two photographs this morning, It shows the extensive damage that was done during "roof repairs" way back in March 2008.
My god what a mess this building is in!

If you want to see the Derby Hippodrome roof being "repaired" then watch this video.

More info :

Derby Evening Telegraph Hippodrome section

Derby Hippodrome Website

Another video about this poor building.

Very nearly there...

The map below shows how to get to our new charity shop: "Emporium 61". Burleigh street is pedestrianised, but there's ample parking in the Grafton Centre car park if you're coming from outside Cambridge.

If you're planning to drop off donated items and need to unload from a car, you need to go to the unloading area in Paradise Street which runs parallel to Burleigh Street. If you're using a satnav device that uses postcodes, entering CB1 1DR should get you into Paradise street. At the moment we are still fitting out the shop, so it would be very helpful if you could wait another couple of weeks before bringing your donations.

We will be announcing the definite opening date very soon now...

View RSPCA E61 in a larger map

Melbourne, Derbyshire by car video now live.

Here is the driving route map

Peniston Lamb was a resident of Melbourne Hall in the 18th Century and in 1770 he was created into a peer, he took the title of of Lord of Melbourne. His son, the second Lord Melbourne, became Queen Victoria's first Prime Minister, and the Austrailian city of Melbourne was named after him! How many people know that!

Another of Melbourne's claim to fame is Thomas Cook, born in Melbourne in 1808, famous for bringing cheap holiday travel to everyone.
Thomas Cook was born in a cottage (now demolished) in Quick Close, at the top of High Street.
Thomas Cook died in 1892, having established his company as the pioneer of popular travel.

Another resident was Rowland Mason Ordish (1824-1886), he was an engineer noted for his work on the single-span roof of London's St Pancras railway station and also our very own Derby Market Hall in 1866.

Derby Inner Ring Road construction Progress, Aug 11th 2009

Here is part of the new Derby inner ring road as of 11th August 2009 at 7:12am.
This part goes from Abbey Street upto the top of Babington Lane, passing through Gerard Street and Forester Street on the way.
This week the road works have started at the junction of Babington Lane, Normaton Road, Burton Road. This is where the new part of the inner ring road I have photographed will connect up with a new roundabout going in at the top of Babington Lane.

Derby Car Boot Sale - Better Boots, A new car boot for Derby!

This photograph was taken at the very first Betterboots Derby Car Boot Sale which was on Sunday 9th August 2009.

UPDATE October 11th : This car boot is now closed until spring 2010

This car boot sale is not too bad a size and is a good alternative to the one on Derby Cattle Market. Seemed to be well organised, plenty of booters to look around.

The difference with this car boot and others is that there is no need to get up at 5am and struggle trying to set up your items to sell while people are trying to buy stuff from you, looks like they have addressed this problem by having the booters setup time 8am-9am and only then are the buyers allowed in.




Location :
Its just off the main Nottingham Road between Borrowash and Risley
Sat Nav postcode : DE72 3PD

Entrance fees: Adults: 50p, Children: FREE, Parking is FREE.
The Boot Sale is open to buyers from 9am, The sellers Stalls can be set from 8am.

More info :
The Better Boots Website.

My Interactive Map for this Car Boot :

View Better Boots - Derby car boot sale in a larger map

I also made a driving video of how to get to Derbyboots from Chaddesden, Derby.
Watch the video here : Drive to Betterboots Derby Car Boot.

New video - Derby by car, Five Lamps to Markeaton Hotel July 2009

Here is my latest video of Derby Streets by car, this time a short journey from the Five Lamps area to the Markeaton Hotel pub then to Ashbourne Road (A52) via Marketon Lane.

Interactive map of the route.

If you would like to see photographs from the past of the Markeaton Hotel then do take the time to look at this website that has been setup...

The Markeaton Hotel Allestree Derby - Personal Memories


Cheers
Andy

Black Flying Ant Day in Derby

Yesterday afternon (August 5th) was Black Flying Ant Day in Derby. See my photograph here of one that landed on my bin.

It may be something that you remember from your childhood, I personally remember this back in 1976 when you used to get long hot summers (remember those !).

I'm sure you have all seen this day when Swarms of Black flying Ants (Latin name : Lasius niger), unfurl their wings and take to the skies in an annual mating ritual.

I used to have a web page that had a record of past events...
In Derby Black flying Ant day happened on Tuesday 14th August 2001.
In Derby Black flying Ant day happened on Wednesday 9th July 2003.

Derbyshire by car video, Makeney to Little Eaton via Duffield Bank and Eaton Bank in HD

Derbyshire by car video : Makeney to Little Eaton via Duffield Bank and Eaton Bank.

I made this video on the way back home from a project for Heage Windmill which I will be posting here soon.

Route Map for this journey :

View Makeney to Little Eaton by car route. in a larger map

Derby Cathedral Green, 360 degree then and now (night and day) photograph.

Try it:
Derby Cathedral Green 360 Degree night and day photograph.

If you are familure with my Derby then and now collection of fading images then you may like something I have created.

This Derby “then and now” is a bit special as its actually an interactive spherical (360x180 degree) virtual reality then and now photograph.
You will need a broadband internet connection and a web browser with version 8 or greater of Adobe Flash player (i.e. any pc that works with YouTube will work ok.)

The initial view that you will see when it loads in is of the Industrial Museum in daylight. If you move around you can also see the Cathedral Swing Bridge and Derby Cathedral.
You can drag the view around using the mouse, simply click and drag the view in the direction you want it to move (the same as Google Streetview).
You can look in every direction including up and down.
You will notice in the top left of the view are two red buttons, if you click the NIGHT button after a few seconds the view will swap to the same view but at night.
The viewpoint you will be shown will be the exact same view that you had before in daylight.
At the bottom of the photo are some icon buttons, these allow you to control the view as well. If you click the right icon (fullscreen toggle) this will make the viewer fill the entire screen to give you a better view. Simply press escape to exit the fullscreen mode (same as the Youtube fullscreen player).

Give it a go by clicking here...
Derby Cathedral Green 360 Degree night and day photograph.

The two 360 degree images were taken on the 3rd April 2009 when this was all brand new.

Please leave comments if you liked it.

Building bridges with other charities?

There's a discussion on Petstreet about one member's experiences after winning a day shadowing an RSPCA Inspector. Also, see her fuller diary of the day. It's very interesting to see how we appear from "outside", in particular how difficult it is for other people to understand how the RSPCA's somewhat chaotic structure grew as the result of the decisions of local branches over a timespan of more than a century.

In our case we have a clinic, but no animal home purely because the branch committee of 50 years ago identified a welfare need for low cost pet care and negotiated a deal with Cambridge University to get cut-price treatments in return of use of the clinic for training new vets.

In the case of Stubbington Ark in Hampshire, the branch committee presumably decided they wanted a shelter and raised funds for one. HQ animal homes tend to be more strategically placed in that HQ will realise that there´s a problem with finding placements for animals in a particular region and build a home to fill that need.

Cambridge branch uses a combination of care at private boarding kennels, fostering by individuals and transfers to Block Fen which is our closest HQ funded shelter. The advantage of using private kennels is that (if we have the money!) we can increase the number of available spaces "overnight" rather than having a building with fixed limits. The disadvantage is that private kennels are not usually geared towards rehabilitating animals with behaviour problems etc.

Where there's a long-established HQ run home there is a tendency for the local branch to wither away because all the public interest — donations, volunteers etc. — tends to come to the home rather than the branch. In the long run that tends to mean that the branch can't afford to supplement the places provided by the home with fostering or spaces in boarding kennels. I suspect that having an active branch also improves relationships with other charities because they're more likely to meet us day to day. I certainly don´t get the degree of antagonism the Maidstone inspector seemed to find and we regularly come to arrangements with the local ferret rescue, Cats Protection, Blue Cross etc. if we have facilities & they don't or vice versa.

I´m afraid at the end it does come down to money. We've never yet been in a position where we were telling our inspectors to put down healthy animals, but a year ago we were very close to the point where we'd have had to. This is why it's so vital that we make a success of our new shop.

B&Q Metal sculpture, does anyone know what its about?

This wonderful metal sculpture can be found at the new B&Q off Osmaston Park Road (1 Peak Drive). The sculpture is in the far corner of the car park in front of B&Q to the right of the entrance.
There is no information plaque nearby to tell you about it so not sure who its by or what it represents.
Next time you visit B&Q wander over and have a look at it.

Seems to be a leafy plant steam with some fruits on it, mounted on a round base that has 16 vertical parts that contain embossed panels. These panels seem to have a mixture of nature “plant leaves” and tools and screws etc.

Does anyone know anything about this sculpture? If so please leave comments to this post.

Filling the Ark: Animal Welfare in Disasters

Filling the Ark by Leslie Irvine is a thoughtful discussion by one of the "new wave" of animal advocates. The author is an associate professor of sociology at the University of Colorado, Boulder and also a volunteer with her local humane society who took part in the efforts to save pet animals following the devastion caused by Hurricane Katrina. She documents the huge suffering and loss of life which took place in livestock and research animal facilities and which received very little media coverage and argues that we should be pressing for effective risk reduction efforts for these animals. Intensively farmed animals are often much more vulnerable in emergency situations than dogs, cats or horses because they are closely confined and unable to make any efforts to save themselves. Leslie Irvine argues that emergency preparation should be part of welfare standards for farm assurance schemes for food production animals and of animal care and use standards for animals used in scientific research. This is an important book which should be on the shelves of anyone involved in campaigning for improved conditions for animals.

Incidentally, anyone interested can view the emergency preparedness sections which are part of the Freedom Food welfare standards.

Rejoicing over shop slightly premature

As we weren't allowed to transfer the initial rent payment at the same time as paying the rent deposit and paying for the fixtures & fittings, I'd rather hoped we would be able to pay the landlord by cheque, which is a straightforward process that can be done by post.

Sadly, like everything involved in the never-ending Burleigh Street Shop saga, that would be too easy, so Kit and Janine will be turning up in person to initiate the payment at the branch of Cambs. Building Society which opens on Sundays.

With any luck this will be the absolutely final step before we can get the keys and we will be able to make a start on cleaning and decorating next week.

The banner above is Andrew's absolutely inspired design for the shop frontage. Note that the phone number is only a dummy as we've not got a line installed yet.

If you are interested in volunteering to help with setting up the shop, please ask Andrew or Ffiona at 188 Mill Road. If you would like to drop off donated goods by car there is vehicle access and a parking space at the back of the shop from Paradise street, but for the moment, please still take donations intended for 61 Burleigh street to 188 Mill road as we'd like to do a thorough clean before moving in any stock.

View Larger Map