Pig Sty Avenue

Dad, The San Adolpho, Apapa, Nigeria, 1954 , originally uploaded by PigStyAve . Click on this if you want to know the story.

Another South Tyneside blogger! With my mate Oli , that's three of us now. We could start holding conventions - in a phone box in Tyne Dock, perhaps. Or not, given that Oli and I aren't exactly lissom.

There's a good article about this at 2point8 . It's always felt like an alien term to my North West European ears: reminiscent of similar American idioms like "streetwise" and "to be on the street". We know what the phrases mean, just as we know what baseball is. But it's not part of our culture. Even within a UK context, "street" implies an urban environment, the streets of London or Glasgow or Newcastle. There's no discernible street-life in Jarrow. Life outside of the domestic setting is lived in pubs and clubs, or bingo halls, or in shops. So we need to get away from this whole "street". In fact get away from any kind of pre-conceived ideas. But when you've gotten away from something, you need to find a place to go to. That's to be blogged on another day.

Andrea has been a really good blog-chum for a long time now - always dropping by. I've been away from blogging for a few weeks and come back to find that she had her baby a month ago, BUT now her husband Luc is in a coma after some kind of accident. Do drop by her blog or say a prayer or light a candle or something, eh?

Sharon, Aunty Margaret and Garry , originally uploaded by PigStyAve . That's my sister Sharon, my Aunty Margaret and me. What I love about this photo is the Christmas lights you can see outside. My mam worked as a book-keeper in a local electrical firm, who got the contract to do the town's Christmas lights. So we'd get advance notice from her that the lights were about to go up, and we'd know that Christmas wasn't far away. I've scanned in a load of old photos this afternoon. (Click on the photo to have a shufty, if you're curious). That's because I'm about to embark on a study of sociolinguistics as it relates to teaching English, which will keep me out of mischief until February or therebouts. That's for the Masters degree. I'm also doing something called Module 2 at work, which is vocational training. So I'm going to be a busy boy.

the lcl motif continues , originally uploaded by PigStyAve . Blogging should go slow this time of year... More of an activity for the long winter nights. Whatever. Pig Sty Avenue's having a fallow spell just now.

Dad , originally uploaded by PigStyAve . Handsome old bugger, eh? More nonsense soon.

Molly in her play pen , originally uploaded by PigStyAve . This is an experiment with light. Click on the photo if you're bothered with the technicalities.