366 Photos - 144 /366 - A Monday Not in the Office!

[byslantedlight]

Instead, I started the day by going here... Jodrell Bank!

They've got a nice little visitor centre, and it was fun to wander around and find things out. Did you know that the Lovell telescope (*points upwards*) could detect the signal from your mobile phone if you were on Mars? Apparently so... *g*

The off to Manchester, with relatively little fuss. I must admit that it was nice to have the sat nav to guide me into the city, as the YHA is in a spot that wasn't here (well, in the same accessible way) when I lived here. Which, granted, was nearly twenty years ago - eep!

The canals have been rather cleaned up - enough that people can choose to barge down them and stay the night, apparently. Nice to see that some things have stayed in the same place though - the old John Rylands Library, and the Starbucks I was so excited to see in town, back when it was the first and only one in Manchester, and Marks and Sparks, and... um... Waterstones. *g*

Having a quiet night now, though suspect it may yet go horribly wrong cos I think the girl in the other bottom bunk has got a cold... eep! I'm trying to hold out awake until 11pm, too, but that's a whole two hours away - I'll never make it! Trouble is, if I go to bed too early I'll wake up dead early as well - like 5am silly-time early... Ah well, we'll see how we go. Cross fingers the mattress is reasonably soft - I gave in and brought my own pillow, but you can't exactly bring your own mattress, and they do tend to stock up with firm ones at the YHA...

Comments

[miwahni.livejournal.com]

Jodrell Bank brings back memories of my favourite book series, when I was a child. All about an English boy, a student at Cambridge, who is co-opted into the British space exploration program and ends up being the first person in space. I loved those books, from age eight all the way into my teens.

What was creating the pattern of light on the front of the building in the last photo? It looks like the sun was being filtered through something, causing those starbursts?

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Love the sound of your book series - do you remember what it was called at all?

I think the light was created from reflections of the sun on the windowed building opposite - I think. I couldn't tell one hundred percent, so I just settled for magic... *vbg*

[miwahni.livejournal.com]

Magic works for me!

The books were by Hugh Walters; I think I've mentioned before that I've searched for them and occasionally one or two will appear on ebay but they're asking ridiculous prices for them. You can read about the first one here; if I could only get my hands on one of them, this is the one I'd choose.

They're so dated now - IIRC in most of the books they're using calculators and slide rules on board ship without a single computer in sight - and probably quite cheesy by today's standards, but then I consider macaroni and cheese to be a comfort food and these were my comfort books for years.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Oh, I remember that conversation now - something pricked at me even as I typed last night, but it wasn't quite there in my head... thanks for all that! And I totally remember looking at that cover and thinking I'd keep my eyes open for it, which I still will!