It was about Exodus 39 that I began to spot the similarities. I'd started back in December , reading the gospel of Luke. Then I'd moved on to Isaiah - enjoying the much-loved poetic prophecies, and realising I'd forgotten how much of it was railing against Moab, Tyre, Tarshish and Edom - and after that I turned to page one, In the beginning... and reckoned, with solemn determination, that I could make it all the way through the Pentateuch in one go. That's the first five books of the Bible. The Law. The Torah. Genesis was great. Of course, I couldn't read the narrative of Joseph without hearing the music from Technicolour Dreamcoat in my head ( seven fat cows came up out of the Nile, uh-huh-huh) . It's an excellent story. And so into Exodus, and the equally flamboyant story of Moses. But halfway through the book of Exodus comes the Ten Commandments, and it all changes. The Israelites are in the wilderness and the reader is too, with nothing but rules, regulat...
Once again, Monday was grey and overcast. So you've got a set of photos of Bennerley Viaduct looking moody and menacing rather than bright and shiny. Last time I went there, it rained. I really will have to see it in the sunshine one day. The viaduct car park is a short distance down the Nottingham Canal. This section was set up for intensive angling; there were wooden fishing platforms every few steps. I don't know what the green bags were for. Bennerley Viaduct came into view over the hedge. This immense wrought iron structure once carried the Friargate line over the River Erewash, two canals, and another railway. Now it stands forlornly in a ravaged landscape which used to be an opencast coal mine. That it still stands at all is amazing, though; it's one of only two wrought iron viaducts left in the country. Since 2022, Bennerley has been open to walkers and cyclists, and a new access ramp has just been built at the eastern end. The visitor centre is still under constru...