Half-time oranges at the cricket. 🏏

A group of people are playing cricket in a grassy park surrounded by leafless trees.

This tree, as big kid says, is sus.

A tree with markings (including "69") on its trunk stands in a grassy area.

Today’s trees.

Auto-generated description: A path lined with large, leafless trees runs alongside a grassy field and a fence. Auto-generated description: A large, textured tree trunk with multiple thick branches extends upward, surrounded by leafless twigs against a cloudy sky backdrop. Auto-generated description: Bare tree branches stretch across a cloudy sky at dusk over a distant row of trees and buildings. Auto-generated description: A close-up view of a tree trunk showcases its rough, textured bark.

Developers: if you really want to help the community

This was survey feedback given to developers proposing to build a massive data centre on the site of the industrial estate down the road from me, but it applies more broadly to all big developers, especially those with annual profits of half a billion pounds.

I’m concerned about noise from the site causing a nuisance and health problems in an area that is already susceptible to multiple environmental health stressors, and exacerbated by deep-rooted poverty, deprivation, low pay and systemic racism and power imbalances embedded in the local authority planning system.

I’m also concerned about the local power grid. Only a couple of years ago it was reported that Ealing doesn’t have enough capacity to power more new homes that are so badly needed, particularly in Southall which suffers from chronic overcrowding. A data centre requires a lot of power. How will this work?

If you really want to do something for the local community how about you plant thousands of trees to compensate for the fact that Southall has the lowest tree canopy cover in the whole of Ealing?

How about building homes for the street homeless and providing ongoing support they will need to live in them sustainably?

How about building a drug and alcohol rehab unit to treat the ever growing numbers of addicts roaming our streets and parks?

How about using all that information processing power to work out how to provide more frequent, more reliable, free public transport in Southall and to reduce the congestion caused by all the traffic?

How about building a secular community centre, a library, a youth club, a health centre, a school? Southall is so overdeveloped now, and Ealing Labour Council sold off all our community assets to developers.

Nice tree, but it makes walking on the pavement almost impossible if you’re over five feet tall.

A tall, lush evergreen tree stands beside a street, surrounded by a wooden fence and urban environment.

This morning’s trees.

Auto-generated description: A park scene with leafless trees and a large fallen branch on the ground. Auto-generated description: A weathered, leafless tree stands prominently in a grassy field, with one of its large branches detached on the ground. Auto-generated description: A barren tree stump stands in an open field with a pathway, surrounded by leafless trees under a cloudy sky. Auto-generated description: A pathway lined with large, leafless trees runs through a grassy park with a bench alongside it. Auto-generated description: A large, leafless tree stands by a pathway with houses and a fence nearby under a cloudy sky.

Cricket match well underway in my local park at 9:30 this morning.

A vast open field with scattered trees under a clear blue sky.A group of people are playing cricket in a grassy park surrounded by leafless trees under a blue sky.

Luxury flats newly built by the canal.

The absence of windows on the sides of the blocks is presumably so that the residents don’t have to see the people in the poor houses next door.

A canal lined with leafless trees and buildings is reflected in the water, alongside a grassy path under a cloudy sky.A canal lined with bare trees runs alongside a path and unique, blocky buildings on a cloudy day.Modern, multi-story apartment buildings are reflected in a calm body of water on a cloudy day.

Our little tree now has lights.

Kids were excited but chilling out now to carols.

A decorated Christmas tree is illuminated with colorful lights and topped with a glowing star, set against a background that includes an alphabet chart and a few framed photos.

Kids decorated our little xmas tree, but I left the batteries in the lights all year, so they’re ruined.

I think I might have binned the star lights I usually hang in the window - a relief as they cause a disproportionate amount of stress untangling and hanging them.