Buzzed: Photo feature: a walk from #Stockwell to #Camberwell and back to #Brixton

Ash made me smile first thing. Novara have been on a rich run of form of late. Yeah, they’re a bunch of cocky street rats punching above their weight. But I like their style.

Tell It Like It Is.

I set off for an early morning plod around lovely Larkhall. I thought I was doing a half decent job, being the early bird and all that. But this was nothing compared to the tennis couple knocking up before 7am.

Strava tells me I was one second faster than the lunchtime run around the same route yesterday. I confess that I cheated slightly by pressing the stop button on my Garmin 10m ahead of the flat.

Album of the Day: The Temptations – Cloud Nine

It’s quite a leap from My Girl to psychedelic soul. Obviously there was a middle act to help with the transition. But still. Grapevine’s got a great groove going off, something that even Marvin couldn’t achieve.

The soul is still there; the soul is always there. Plus it’s cool to hear the familiar Motown house sound bass pumping along, holding it all together.

If you wants the Temps to do anything, then psychedelic soul it probably is. Country soul may have worked. But Cloud Nine is a product of its time. It still stands up well.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

A brief clean up, and then I cycled off for a school day in SE21. The Flute Man of SW8 was AWOL once again. I’ve not seem him for the past week, either mornings or afternoons. I kinda miss his constant, yet slightly annoying, presence.

There was some fella waiting for a bus along Stockwell Road looking cool as fuck. He carried off the Captain Sensible look to perfection: Dennis the Menace jumper, red beret and a pair of shades.

I caught up with a CHPT3 Brompton as I waited for the lights to change along Brixton Road. It’s a beautiful bicycle, combing style with form. If I had a spare couple of grand then I might be tempted.

It was a pleasure to ride the Railton LTN, as ever. Each time I ride this route I’m convinced there are more cyclists using it compared to last time. Build and they bloody well will come.

Sam the Wheels was outside his Front Line house, keeping a watch on all the bicycle movements. I wonder if he has benefitted from the LTN?

It then got a little shitty as I approached Herne Hill. The crappy Great Wall of Brockwell is back ahead of another month of the park being pimped out by Lambeth. We’re currently in the build phase. This means FUCK OFF lorries at peak rush hour outside the park.

Cheers, Lambeth.

The school day was really, really great. I had a run of not so great SE21 days at the start of the year. These have somehow turned around. I made a real effort to have a positive attitude and to try and enjoy myself once again.

Highlights included a fun cycling session with some of the primary kids, pizza art and soft javelin throwing with the sixth formers.

Aim high, fellas.

I also got to play my latest Jase the Bass composition on one of the school ukes. I decided to keep the lyrics out of it. Every other word is a chuffing profanity, innit.

The school day ended with a community walk with the sixth formers around a very leafy Herne Hill. Everywhere we turned there was green.

I cycled back down to The Oval at school chucking out time. I managed to make it to the old ground just ahead of the tea interval.

I indulged by buying a cup of tea in the Pavilion. A BARGAIN for a milky lukewarm effort at £2.60.

My disappointment was overcome in watching two ex-England openers at the crease for the ‘rrey. Rory and the Vicar of Sibley are quite an opening attack.

The Skipper was out the next ball.

Oh Rory.

No worries. Here comes the new England Vice Captain out of the hutch for the ‘rrey.

OH HAI Ollie.

I stayed around at The Oval as the shadows deepened. I left with five overs remaining in the day. I’ve got a whole weekend of being on the piss in the Peter May planned.

I cycled back down Clapham Road on a Lidl run. The Bright Young Things of SW4 overtook me continually on their roadies, the BYT commuter bicycle of choice.

My Lidl mission was to blag as much pasta as I could carry using the Lidl coupon in the app that dropped earlier in the day. I snaffled up six packs of fresh pasta.

Some online catching up followed back in the flat. The Serpentine Swimming Club mailed. Some members continue to be right twats, bringing their own food into the Lido Cafe. We’re on a final, final warning. The discount may be stopped.

A pinged from back in the bloody Estuary Wilds. A new front door was fitted today, replacing the old new front door. It was hanging for less than three months.

The geezers that fitted the original weren’t happy with the build. We could see no wrong.

A asked the new team what was wrong with the first door. They drew a blank.

I caught up with the Garibaldi Red podcast ahead of The Last Dance at the World Famous City Ground on Saturday. I was a little shaky when the Arsenal match was billed as Survival Saturday.

Attention turned to the West Ham semi. I got bought. I switched to Sheff Wed Vs Peterborough instead when the scoreline got interesting.

Football. Bloody hell.