~{nilheadimage~=142768~}
Last week I had a ~{purplepost~=1339~;text~="saving things"~;target~=savingthings~} theme, which has coincidentally continued into this week.

Given the way ~{link~= https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/27/storm-arwen-winds-reach-almost-100mph-as-wild-weather-batters-uk ~;text~=Storm Arwen~;target~=arwen~} has been ripping through the country today, I'm glad all my leaf photos have saved that colour for posterity, because I'm not sure there's going to be much of it left tomorrow...

But hey, it's winter, right? Today we get just 8 hours and 5 minutes of daylight (quite a bit less than last week, you will recall). The sun will be going down at 1553 (these things hold a kind of fascination for people who normally live in the tropics...)

The seasons are changing:

~{nilimage~=142727~;dir~=H~;alt~=pumpkin~;caption~=Hallowe'en is behind us...~}
~{nilimage~=142767~;dir~=V~;alt~=poppies~;caption~=Remembrance Day likewise...~}
~{nilimage~=142763~;dir~=H~;alt~=xmas~;caption~=And more and more signs of Christmas are appearing, including this adorable postbox hat~}
But it could be SO much worse:

~{nilimage~=142761~;dir~=V~;alt~=floodmarker1~;caption~=It floods here...~}
~{nilimage~=142762~;dir~=V~;alt~=floodmarker2~;caption~=The water level in 2000...~}
And there's still plenty of blue, so I'm really not complaining:

~{nilimage~=142747~;dir~=H~;alt~=bike~}
~{nilimage~=142750~;dir~=H~;alt~=house~}
~{nilimage~=142765~;dir~=H~;alt~=baldertonlake1~}
~{nilimage~=142766~;dir~=H~;alt~=baldertonlake2~}
Anyway, saving things...

SAVING CHILDREN

This week the accolade goes to ~{link~= https://www.inspirepicturearchive.org.uk/image/4672/Childrens_Drinking_Fountain_erected_as_a_memorial_to_Newark_girl_Ethel_Harrison ~;text~=Ethel Harrison~;target~=ethelharrison~}, a local woman who worked as a nursemaid, and sacrificed her life to save one of her charges when he fell into the Shropshire Union Canal.

~{nilimage~=142749~;dir~=V~;alt~=memorial~}
SAVING TREES

The ~{purplepost~=1339~;text~=sycamores~;target~=savingthings~} have definitively been ~{link~= https://westbridgfordwire.com/sycamore-trees-saved-from-the-chop-as-councillors-vote-for-last-minute-u-turn/ ~;text~=reprieved~;target~=yestotrees~}. Yay! More trees; fewer carparks. Definitely the way to go.

SAVING OLD ROUTES

Here's a bit more of the street art on the ~{purplepost~=1335~;text~=Newark-to-Cotham rail trail~;target~=newark-cotham~}:

~{nilimage~=142751~;dir~=H~;alt~=streetart1~}
~{nilimage~=142752~;dir~=H~;alt~=streetart2~}
SAVING CANALS

It's a nice walk up to Nether Lock, which they're currently fixing:

~{nilimage~=142760~;dir~=H~;alt~=bridge~}
~{nilimage~=142722~;dir~=H~;alt~=netherlock~}
~{nilimage~=142723~;dir~=H~;alt~=workboat~}
~{nilimage~=142726~;dir~=H~;alt~=steam~;caption~=The steam from the beet works is always photogenic (and I love the caramelized sugar smell)~}
SAVING THE PLANET

We also discovered there is a ~{link~= https://www.newarkadvertiser.co.uk/news/visit-to-hydro-electric-power-plant-for-newark-mp-9213710/ ~;text~=hydro-electric power plant at Nether Weir~;target~=archimedes~}: "A single 70KW Archimedes screw turbine is used at the plant, turned by the force of the water running over the weir, which generates enough electricity to supply the average requirement of up to 175 homes. The plant is connected to King’s Marina and supplies it with the electricity needed to run the business, such as lighting and the electric hook-ups for boaters."

~{nilimage~=142724~;dir~=V~;alt~=turbine1~}
~{nilimage~=142725~;dir~=H~;alt~=turbine2~}
Every little helps...