Chris Jefferies

Image of the day – 74

Beyond the lock is a canal basin, currently just an area of grass at a lower level than its surroundings. And beyond the basin is the bridge that featured in an earlier image.

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What’s in an image? Sometimes quite a lot, more than meets the eye.

I’m posting an image every two days (or as often as I can). A photo, an image from the internet, a diagram or a map. Whatever takes my fancy.

We return to the village of Siddington for today’s image, just a couple of miles south of Cirencester. You can see the brick-built remains of a canal lock, part of a ladder of four locks at this point. Beyond the lock is a canal basin, currently just an area of grass at a lower level than its surroundings. And beyond the basin is the bridge that featured in Image of the day 61.

Although derelict right now, work to improve things has already begun here. Trees growing in the canal bed are being cut down, the towpath is getting some basic care such as filling holes and repairing serious erosion. Down in the western part of the canal in Stroud the section connecting to the Stroudwater Canal is in water and navigable; and within the next two or three years the Stroudwater itself will be connected to the rest of Britain’s canal network at Saul Junction near the River Severn. Focus is moving now to Lechlade in the east where the canal joins the River Thames, and also to the area in the Cotswold Water Park, near South Cerney and Latton. As the Lechlade section develops further, boats will be able to access the canal from both ends, but it will be decades before it becomes possible to travel the entire length by boat.

Check out my articles on walking the canal towpath, and why not walk a section yourself?

Cirencester

For convenience, here’s a list of all the Cirencester area images:

A417 roadworks, Advent Market, Bishops Walk, Baunton, Canal 1, 2, Castle Street, Christmas lights 1, 2, Church 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Churn flood, Countryside, Fallen tree, Fleece, Gasworks, Gloucester Street, Hare 1, 2, Hospital, Market Place 1, Phoenix Fest, Riverside Walk, Stone plaque, Stratton Meadow, Tank traps, View, Wonky 1, 2, Yellow Iris

Themed image collections

The links below will take you to the first post in each collection

Cirencester, Favourites, Irish holiday 2024, Roman villa

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Useful? Interesting?

If you enjoyed this or found it useful, please like, comment, and share below. (If you don’t see those links, click the article’s title above the main photo and they will appear.) Send a link to friends who might enjoy the article or benefit from it – Thanks! My material is free to reuse (see conditions), but a coffee is always welcome and encourages me to write more often!

Cicero, feared or liked?

Cicero pointed all this out most eloquently. As a philosopher he thought things through carefully and deeply and then expressed his ideas clearly, giving plenty of reasons and examples.

The great Roman orator, lawyer, politician, philosopher and author, Cicero has left us a great legacy. He wrote on many topics that are as relevant today as they were when he dictated them to his trusted slave, Tiro.

Tiro was a gifted and hard working person in his own right – he invented a form of shorthand and left a good deal of written material that has survived. He was given his freedom by Cicero but chose to continue working for him. One piece of work dictated by Cicero concerns the good and bad motives people may have. He considered how becoming feared and becoming liked can both bring benefits, but the first is dangerous while the second is not.

When a person is feared, they may find a wide circle of supporters to do their bidding. Think in terms of Vladimir Putin, generally the people around him do his bidding because they do not wish to fall from a high window or drink poisonous tea. There are plenty of people who have died or nearly died because they have crossed Putin in some way – from Sergei Skripal to Yevgeny Prigozhin. Many political opponents have died while imprisoned. Examples like these cause others in Putin’s circle to be carefully obedient. Yet Putin himself is always in danger and must live under a permanent cloud, fearful that at any moment he will be toppled from power and most likely be murdered in the process.

On the other hand, live a life in which you are surrounded by friends who love you because of your kindness and thoughtfulness, and you will also have a wide circle to work with you and for you, but you will have far fewer anxieties, fears, and sleepless nights.

Cicero pointed all this out most eloquently. As a philosopher he thought things through carefully and deeply and then expressed his ideas clearly, giving plenty of reasons and examples. What Cicero must have realised (but did not express) is that most of us, most of the time, are feared by some yet liked by others. Cicero himself was no exception. He had political enemies and was murdered by the roadside as he attempted to flee from Italy.

There are three ways to learn more about Cicero, and it’s well worth doing so. Many of his arguments are as interesting and useful today as they were two thousand years ago (we would write 2000, Tiro would have written MM).

One way is to read Cicero’s writings for yourself. Much has been lost no doubt, but much has been preserved too – often thanks, in part, to Tiro. A second way is to read what historians and commentators have written about him. The third way, and perhaps the one that is most fun, is to read Robert Harris’s famous and fascinating Cicero trilogy. Yes, it’s fiction; but it’s skillfully woven around what we know of the characters portrayed.

Image of the day – 73

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What’s in an image? Sometimes quite a lot, more than meets the eye.

I’m posting an image every two days (or as often as I can). A photo, an image from the internet, a diagram or a map. Whatever takes my fancy.

This shop was Stradlings when I was a child. It was a watch, clock and jewellery business and had been a clock maker at one time. If you enlarge the image you will see a clock between two first floor windows on the left. That clock is marked ‘Stradling maker Cirencester’, a relic and reminder of times past.

Businesses come and businesses go, that is normal, it has always happened. But something has changed dramatically in Cirencester as in towns across the county (and indeed much of the world). And it’s this – many of the incoming businesses are branches of large companies, often with little local knowledge or experience.

Of course, non-local companies are far, far better than empty shops. Cirencester has fewer empty shops than most towns; and we do have a good proportion of small, local businesses springing up all the time, especially restaurants, coffee shops and so forth. But the trend is clear, especially when you take the long view. I’m 76-years-old, but as a child almost every business seemed to be local. Perhaps the biggest exceptions were banks and building societies. Sometimes, it’s even in the names, ‘Nationwide’ is indeed a nation-wide building society!

But despite all this, many of the old names, like Stradlings, have left visible mark that can still be seen if you look closely enough. The old clock is still on the wall – a clock made in Cirencester! Not far from Cotswold Contemporary, the current owners of the clock, you’ll find an old sign above a shop front on the same side of the street. There are no words, just a black teapot and a cup and saucer. If you are ever in Cirencester Market Place, see if you can spot it, another emblem of the past. I won’t mention the current name of the shop, that would make it far too easy; but I will say that back in the day it was Anne’s Pantry. They sold little cakes, dainties and pastries to take away, or you could take a table inside for a cup of tea.

If you find the teapot or have memories of Cirencester to share, leave a comment.