Daffodils grow in the snow

Some daffodil shoots shivering in sub-zero temperatures this week. Will they be able to recover and bloom in about six weeks time as usual? Thankfully it seems that most daffodils are fairly hardy and will tolerate a certain amount of frost and freezing, and snow can act as an insulator.

Books for the discerning: Tintin, Wainwright, Jamie Oliver

"Books for the discerning" is the wonderful byline here at Bookline on Shaws Road in Altrincham. Sadly it's about to close down, but this is due to retirement rather than recession. They have long stocked a good selection of new and, even better, second hand books.

Jamie Oliver takes centre stage and his new Italian restaurant opens in Manchester on 20th February. The Wainwright Letters are a collection of 35 years of replies to letters sent to Alfred Wainwright, the famous Lake District walker and writer. Herge's Tintin has had a new lease of life since the release of a film last year (and the Wii game too!). The window display is completed with books on three popular subjects: horse racing, bird watching and gardening.

Wind and Wuthering, Fog and February

This foggy scene taken on Sunday reminds me of the album cover for Wind and Wuthering by Genesis (see below). The band played Manchester Free Trade Hall on the Wind and Wuthering tour for two dates in January 1977.

The album's title derives from two pieces: The "Wind" comes from a Manhattan Chinese restaurant, the title given to a piece that became part of Eleventh Earl of Mar; the "Wuthering" alludes to Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte. Two other titles on the album are from the last sentence in that novel, namely Unquiet slumbers for the sleepers and In that quiet earth.

Charles Dickens' 1812 overture

Today is the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens' birth. He was a frequent visitor to Manchester as Cotton Times- Understanding the Industrial Revolution reports:

"...[Charles Dickens regularly took] the platform at Athenaeum meetings alongside reformers and notables such as Disraeli. He reputedly based the character of the crippled Tiny Tim in A Christmas Carol on the son of a friend who owned an Ardwick cotton mill, while the Grant Brothers, William and Daniel, the Ramsbottom industrialists, were the prototypes for the Cheeryble brothers in Nicholas Nickleby.

However, for all his reforming zeal and social conscience, Dickens produced only one work which reflected directly on the Industrial Revolution. His Hard Times (1854) was set in a mythical Coketown, identified variously with Manchester and Preston, and although not one of his better-known works, is worth reading for its descriptions of working-class life." http://www.cottontimes.co.uk/

See also the Weekly Top Shot meme.

Castle pretender

A new block of student accommodation is making a welcome addition to the Manchester skyline, although I doubt it can be as ornate as the brown Refuge Assurance building. And despite its name of Student Castle, I think the Refuge (now the Palace Hotel) and the white Excalibur Buildings will always be more castle-like.

Frosty morn at Ramsdell Hall

Ramsdell Hall at Odd Rode in Cheshire was completed in 1760. It was built for the Lowndes family and it's thought that William Baker designed and oversaw the building. Baker was the architect who designed Baker Street in London, home to Sherlock Holmes at 221B Baker Street.

Simple pleasures

Simple on Tib Street is somewhere that doesn't live up to its name, but in a good way. Hearty food, modern decor and a touch of glamour due to a couple of chandeliers. 

I think it's a good place to meet for lunch or dinner. Or, indeed, for a coffee or hot chocolate which is what I did on Thursday with Miriam, who writes the eclectic and fabulous Little Bones blog. A lovely woman, Miriam is a well travelled teacher and writer, who also scribes an annual column about the Edinburgh International Book Festival. I was honoured to be the latest subject in her entertaining handbag feature.
About the handbag series.

Captain America faces the music

Once upon a time it looks like music lessons were given in this building on Dale Street.  "Classical, Church, Jazz, Swing" suggest late 1940s to me. Any ideas?   A typically imposing Mancunian warehouse  (for cotton and textile, late 19th/ early 20th centuries)) is reflected in the window.

Bearing in mind that Dale Street doubled as 1940's Brooklyn for the filming of Captain America in late 2010, I wonder if this sign is actually a leftover from the shoot. I took the photo below of some dog eared posters on China Lane, which definitely are. Either way, a great blog documenting how this part of Manchester was transformed into Brooklyn is at: http://captainamericafilmingmanchester.co.uk/

See more reflections at the Weekend Reflections blog: http://weekendreflection.blogspot.com/ and signs at the Signs, Signs blog:  http://signs2.blogspot.com/

Silhouettes' pirouette

The retail and leisure units here at 40 Spring Gardens lay empty, and the developer is trying to find businesses to move in. The posters suggests that spring and love are in the air, but we all know the landlords and letting agents are only after your money, not your love...

Theme Day: Animals

Daisy the Labrador is 9 years old today, born 01/02/03, so it seems only right she should feature in the City Daily Photo February theme day of Animals.  Her ancestral home of Labrador in Canada has snowy conditions at present, even if Manchester doesn't.

After two extreme winters in 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 this winter's snow has mainly stayed in the hills, not down in the Manchester basin and Cheshire plain. We may get a taste of real winter yet. It was —4°C overnight, and is not expected to get much above freezing during the day. It’s forecast to be  —6°C tonight and snow for the weekend but I have my doubts as to how accurate this is...

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants in the theme day posts.

Photo of Tim and Daisy taken by Holly in 2010.