Well overdue our once annual trip along the North Wales coast was completed in slightly chilly breezy weather but cloudless with a blue sky. Lots of things have changed and the lack of buses is relentless and getting worse but always good to see new vehicles albeit through government subsidies.

Time is shooting past this week but it was good to go down to Shrewsbury and meet up with the OTA Sec Peter Waller and update on our new OTA premises and other matters after I'd got to the bus station about 8am this morning and saw quite an array of operators. I think Shrewsbury has a high operator count, anyone know a place with more scheduled bus companies or subsidiaries.

Lots more films ready to be edited and our subscription stills collection now tops 50k. Watch out for announcements. Tomorrow I'm at Shrewsbury home of the Online transport Archive. We now have dedicated premises and are expanding our storage to take in enormous image collections which have arrived in recent weeks. Meanwhile back on planet earth here are some pictures I took at NBrooklands last month. Today I was at the Hardy family graves at Southern Cemetery in Manchester where the removal of a deceased tree has helped tidy up around the Hardy memorial bench.

So that was a day of electrics. Painting family bench at Southern Cemetery tomorrow and filming Shrewsbury on Wednesday plus meeting with Peter Waller  of OTA. Then Thursday Many and I are heading to North Wales so I can finally catch up with the bus scene there.

It was a hard slog getting caught up with the DVD covers but they are all now listed. I've also crossed the 50k mark of photos on our Flckr site which will be launched on subscription in the near future.  Along the way I see pictures I'd half forgotten and today as a sample here are some scenes from our Uruguay trip.

A bit of a race against time with a pit stop for shepherds pie. I'll get them all listed on the PMP shop early tomorrow. I've made good progress with the new PMP 'Friends' subscription service for photos. 50k added already. At 100k I'll go live and you can join on the PMP shop when we are ready. I'll do an announcement in Buses magazine as well. Anyway here they are my biggest tranche of films in one session of editing and making covers. Next week back to mundane bus coverage around UK. Earlier we had to chase round three doctors surgeries to find out about our prescriptions as we have bid farewell to bottom of the league Holmes Chapel Health Centre and gone to Knutsford.

A welcome rest from editing as we join other members of our BPF branch for a visit to Chester Zoo. I have just the final film from Truckfest to edit and then tomorrow I can start on the DVD covers. Then they can go on the PMP shop. The order for cine reels is being collected by UPS today from the factory in Georgia USA. Amazing that China doesn't make them. This will enable more OTA films on original 50' reels to be assembled on 400' and I've had a quote for a film scanner for OTA at Shrewsbury. I've still got a couple of other partly finished digitising jobs to complete and need to add all the PMP film contributors to the OTA list of material, contents and donors. Not too onerous as I can pick it all off my archive master list.

Having a list has always been a priority, I'm not sure that anyone actually looks at the archive list but just like the DVD list it has everything we've got on it. All masters ie original cine film is now at Shrewsbury with the OTA. As I'm now a trustee/director of OTA everything we have at PMP will go to OTA when Mandy and myself are gone. Of course we are still adding to the archive every week.

The loading of films on to the PMP Flckr site has progressed and I think we were up to around 25k images. When it gets to 100k we'll launch the subscription service. Subscribers will get their own 'key' to access the collection with 12 and 24 monthly options.

I'm also mindful of helping with the NWVRT open day at Kirkby and will attend to the area of bus stops with an industrial strimmer which also tackles brambles etc giving more room on the pavements.

This coming weekend we are at Quorn event Saturday and Morecambe Sunday

I'm just downloading the film from Truckfest at Lincoln and when that is all edited I'll start on the DVD covers and get them on the shops. Tomorrow we are on a polio fellowship trip to Chester Zoo. Some work in the garden required plus some fair weather jobs inside and out to get started. Then on Saturday we pay a first visit to Quorn and on Sunday the superb Morecambe event. Meanwhile a few more shots from Truckfest

I'm slowly working my way through the new PMP Flckr subscription site. It will become available to join when there are a substantial number of views to warrant it. So far I'm up to 'b' in my photos bus lists so really just starting to scratch the surface. I find Flckr poorly conceived and hopeless as a showcase but the photos look good.

I did finally manage to have a good nights sleep and after a few initial splutterings seem to be recovering from the bad cold I had. Meanwhile here are some more shots from Truckfest at Lincoln.

I am working my way through several projects, more than 24 hours need in each day to get on top of stuff.

A very busy weekend to head into with a cold and tired from the Bangladesh trip. Everything is fine but I'd love a good long sleep and wake up free of coughing. Plenty to see as usual but the wagons as usual were heading out before the gates opened. Given the present admittance charges I don't think folk could be blamed to just turn up and stay at the roundabout for nothing, with the new service station there is even coffee on tap! Anyway a first look at the day.