Action next week

I have been advised by a correspondent of a new-to-me type of crane that does not stand four square upon the ground. Rather, the bottom fifty feet or so of the tower is angled (to the left in the snap above), presumably to take it clear of the road over which the crane looms. Makes the recent crane over our Wetherspoon's look a bit cheesy. As noticed at reference 3.

The sign on the crane says British Land, which does not help, and I cannot see a sign for the hirer. Nor can I see anything like it at reference 2. Is it a special, cooked up by some fancy firm of consulting engineers?

Site visit next week clearly indicated.

In the meantime, I am grappling with Patrick White's 'The eye of the storm', last read around ten years ago if the archive is to be believed - for which see reference 6. Grappling anew because I was in a hotel room a few days ago with just a Kindle for company (as far as reading material went) and that is what I landed on.

Lots of good stuff in this book, particularly (so far) about the relations between private nurses and a difficult, terminal patient, even if it is a bit sweaty at times, sweaty after the way of Franzen, last noticed at reference 7. But then, the early 1970s were liberated times. Much more nudity in television drama than you get now. Can't remember about the usually unmentioned bodily functions, failures and accidents of old age.

That apart, there seem to be various flaws in the Kindle text and I frequently can't make sense of chunks of authorial text. Other chunks have to be read several times before I can parse them correctly, find my way to subject, object and verb. Or perhaps put them aside and come back to them afresh a bit later.

More serious, a lot of his observations about people are outside my range. The story told is usually plausible enough, but I can't judge how likely it is. Do people - even this or that invented person - behave like this in real life? Which seems to me to be a failing: a book should convince in that way. One should believe in the characters in it.

We shall see what the days ahead bring. I expect I shall persevere.

References

Reference 1: https://www.britishland.com/.

Reference 2: https://www.falconcranes.co.uk/.

Reference 3: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2024/08/plums.html.

Reference 4: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Eye_of_the_Storm_(novel).

Reference 5: The eye of the storm - Patrick White - 1973. First editions available on eBay for around £90.

Reference 6: https://psmv2.blogspot.com/search?q=Patrick+white+storm+eye.

Reference 7: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2024/08/crossroads.html.