These horse chestnut trees, on the other side of the river, are turning brown before the surrounding trees.

and dropping their conkers like there is no tomorrow.

Temperatures are beginning to drop. It seems even sadder now seeing the empty houses.

This group of bungalows have been fenced off for flood renovation work. The people continue to live in hotels and probably will do until early next year.

Here at Meadowside work is progresing in some houses. The industrial dehumidifiers continue to whirr away in empty downstairs rooms. Plaster has been stripped from the lowers walls. Furniture is still piled outside.

And on the Ladygrove Estate people are in a similar state: people living away from their houses. Their local resident newsletter says in the October edition “Whatever happened, there are sluice gates to ‘manage’ rivers, so it cannot be beyond the wit of the Environent Agency to prevent such residential flooding on such a scale from such a little river as the Ock.”

A lot of balloons attracted my attention to the Sandman fashion event earlier this evening.

Over the road from Sandman, work has started on the opposite pavement of Stert Street. A report on the BBC local news this evening asked ‘Could Abingdon be a model for other towns to follow?’ If it all works out in the end and helps cut town centre air pollution..

Anyway back to the Abingdon Fashion events. The second fashion event…

The distant echo
Of faraway voices from faraway times
No way home from their painted kingdom
to the place they knew

I was down the subway at midnight. da da da da…

Swimming round
Reflections of people from faraway times
One of the drains not working well.
I could go further but don’t want to get wet.

Down the subway at midnight. da da da da…

(Lyrics loosely based on Down the Tube Station at Midnight)