#bradpeterson

[omanxl1]

Johnny M - Deep House Sunset Mix | Driving In The City

Digital Crate Digging Continues as we proceed and continue with this O-Dog Day Party on this Labor Day Weekend! the Saturday Night Fever is a factor, it’s like Guess Who’s Back per Scarface, Jay Z and Beanie Sigel!! but in some of these danger zones? it’s hard to see through the smoke and mirrors… The saga / struggle continues but we’ll proceed and continue but guess who’s back in the hood? a…

[bsp1960]

20 x 20 canvas Cloud Pour. Available for purchase. #acryliconcanvas #acrylicpouring #paintpouring #localartist #bradpeterson #modernart #art4sale #artistsoninstagram #artgallery (at Cedar Rapids, Iowa) https://www.instagram.com/p/B7TAdMqgEPu/?igshid=du49578cigqs

[bdnwriters]

The Decline of Grimsby’s Fishing Industry

Once upon a time, Grimsby was one of the biggest, if not THE biggest, port in the country. The docks were once bustling with trawlers bringing in tons of fish and cargo ships bringing in valuable materials such as coal, used for powering the trains of the day. However, times have changed, and as the decades have passed, the ships have gone elsewhere and today, Grimsby Docks is a shadow of its former self.

This comparison of the quite empty docks today on the left with the docks on the right being from sometime around the early 1900’s, packed with steamboats possibly from all over the world. It shows just how much the docks have changed in the last hundred years, the emptiness of the picture on the left summing it up in one image.

So what has caused this absolute downturn in fortunes? Could it be that Grimsby has simply been affected by the country’s faltering economy? Has the growth of the nearby ports of Hull and Immingham have taken away business? Or is it simply that the general public don’t rely on Fish coming from British seas? The answer, really, is a mixture of all 3.

The country has really been hit by hard times over the last few decades, with recessions being on and off for around half a century. This hit the fishing industry very hard,especially during the ‘Cod Wars’ with the Icelandic fisherman. Less fish was being brought into Grimsby docks, meaning not a lot of trade and a loss of money for all involved with the industry. 

As well as this, the ports of Immingham and Hull began to take the materials business away from Grimsby, with oil and other resources now going into these two ports. This has left Grimsby in an even worse position than when the fishing industry began to decline, as now there is literally nothing that comes into the port, only car ferries and the odd few trawlers. This links in with the fact that nowadays, there are so many other places where we now receive our fish from. It comes from overseas, and there are now more factories inland were the biggest brands are made.

I’m not saying that the industry is completely dead in the town. We have a massive array of fish factories still in business, with thousands of jobs being created thanks to them. However, it is easy to see that this is not what the town should be like. The fish market was once an incredibly busy place, fresh fish being sold to people for good prices, bustling with activity. Nowadays, though it is still active, it is not as busy, with people going to supermarkets and mega stores for their fish now.

Everywhere you look, you see out of work people, and if you ask some of the older ones, they will tell you that they were fishermen. The fall of the fishing industry is symbolised in this town by the unemployment rates. Take away a town’s main industry, and you are left with nothing. People were forced to move away to look for work, while the ones who stay struggle to find work too.

Once a thriving town that was the heartbeat of the British food industry, has now been left as quite a deprived town, ridiculed in the media and by people from other places. That is the effect of the decline of the fishing industry.

[bdnwriters]

Gary Williams - A Swinging Christmas

Music lovers of all ages all turned up on Sunday 30th November to enjoy a night of festive fun from locally born talent, Gary Williams. Packed into two hours of pure entertainment were light hearted anecdotes, well loved Christmas classics and even some all time greats.

Gary brought the showmanship from the West end from where he performed in ‘The Rat Pack Live From Las Vegas’ taking on the role of Frank Sinatra. Following on from this, Williams travelled to many destinations across Europe with the show. His successful career has seen him travel all over the world, including places like Iceland, Hawaii and Tokyo.    

Upon arrival, the audience were handed lyric sheets that included songs from Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer to The twelve Days of Christmas, which Williams himself joked would involve his own choreography - standing and waving each and every time we sang about the 5 gold rings… which, incase you didn’t know already, appears in the song multiple times.

It’s easy to tell that Gary is a natural performer, the show was mesmerizing each and every second he was on stage. We each commented during the interval just how well the setlist flowed. Songs were split apart with humorous interludes - even at the end after the show we were left wanting more.  

From the moment Gary Williams stepped foot on stage joined by his three piece band the audience were enthralled right through to the end. Each and every one of the songs sung throughout the night were ones that we all loved to sing along to.

Gary even took the time to meet and greet the people who attended the concert signing the merchandise he had brought along with him, which gave the fitting end to a truly enjoyable night. Speaking to Williams after the show, he expressed his excitement on returning to Cleethorpes this coming May for his tribute to Frank Sinatra, which we for one will definitely not be missing.

[bdnwriters]

Five-A-Side: Football for the ordinary

Every week, we sit down and watch 22 perfectly conditioned athletes battle it out for their sides. A large number of us have always dreamed of playing football professionally but only for us to realise that we possess neither the natural talent nor natural fitness required to do so. Nevertheless, I, along with many people regardless of age, still enjoy the feeling of playing football, especially when there is an edge of competitiveness to it.

There’s always Sunday league football, but you have to go through the process of finding a team, fitting in with them and then proving your worth to them and if you’re not the fittest of people, there’s quite a slim chance of you getting played, contrary to popular belief. That is were 5-a-side comes into play. You don’t need to have the lung capacity of Pete Reed, and you can simply make a team with your mates, not joining a team of strangers who judge your efforts as a newbie. Five-a-side is also shown to harbour health benefits, such as a lower risk of heart disease, lower blood pressure and improve cardiovascular endurance through the games intensity.

Five-a-side has been around since the days of short football shorts and when England challenged in major competitions, and has grown to be the most popular team sport in the British Isles. Over 5 million people play the game every week, with dozens of organisations running leagues for good prices. One such organisation is Champion Soccer, which delivers leagues to over a hundred different cities and towns, in dozens of counties across England and Wales, from Somerset to Tyne and Wear.

I went to my local Champion Soccer league to find out a little bit more about the game, from the point of view of the players and what they think of the game itself. “The thing I enjoy the most about it is the fact I can play with friends,” I was told by Lewis Salters, 18. He and his team had been coming to Champion Soccer for around a year and a half, and seemed to like it. But is there anything to dislike maybe? “Well, some of the other players get quite aggressive during the games, and it’s boring because they treat it so seriously! The referees sometimes get intimidated too, but then again so would anyone. Other than that, it’s not too bad,” his team mate Daniel Charlton, also 18, told me. You’d expect this kind of stuff though, considering that people tend to enjoy a bit of healthy competition, but not many enjoy losing.

So after, witnessing the event (and through first-hand experience...) I find it easy to see why the game is so popular. The mixture of playing competitive football with your mates coupled with the obvious health benefits you can get from the intensity of the 30 minute games offers a perfect recipe for most people to enjoy. No matter what age, fitness level or footballing ability, five-a-side football offers you the chance to continue playing the game that many people love.

[bdnwriters]

Manchester City vs Manchester United

Manchester City beat local rivals Manchester United 4-1 at the Etihad Stadium thus giving David Moyes his second devastating defeat in 2 weeks.

Sergio Aguero scored twice as City before Yaya Toure and Samir Nasri completed the scoring as City cruised to a 4-0 lead in 50 minutes against their arch rivals. Wayne Rooney hit back with a stunning free kick, but it was a mere restoration of pride as City continued their recent good form against United.

The Blues made one change to the squad that hammered Viktoria Plzen 3-0 in the Champions League in midweek, with Alvaro Negredo surprisingly replacing the in-form Edin Dzeko up front.

United also made few changes, with Ashley Young replacing Shinji Kagawa and Danny Welbeck replacing the injured Robin Van Persie.

City began the half and dominated possession right away, winning corners in the first 15 minutes. United never got going, and found themselves 1-0 down after 16 minutes. Samir Nasri received the ball on the left and his skilful flick found its way to Kolarov. The left-backs cross found Aguero, who hooked the ball spectacularly into the far corner. Aguero’s celebration matched the fans delight.

City continued to pass fluidly throughout the opening period with captain Vincent Kompany and Yaya Toure driving the blues forward and stopping Manchester United’s usually counter-attacking play. United looked to have already ran out of options and were left clinging on to a respectable scoreline when Nasri narrowly shot over.

However, right on halftime, City did finally double their advantage. Nasir was again provider as his corner found Negredo, whose header picked out Toure, who had the simple task of nodding home from close range. The goal shook United, who felt they had done enough to go in at half-time only one goal down.

The second half did not bring a change in fortunes for United and the defence were once again proved vulnerable by City’s brilliant passing. A Nasri pass found Negredo, who again assisted as Aguero slid his wonderful cross home, bringing his derby tally to 5 goals

City were in control, and 3 minutes later they added a 4th. Pacey City winger Jesus Navas was allowed to run at the United defence before clipping a delightful cross into the United area. Nasri drove the ball home to the delight of the ecstatic City crowd. The key to the goal was Vincent Kompany. The centre-back carried the ball forward for the blues and forced defenders away from the box as he bolted forward, allowing Nasri to exploit the defence.

United fans must have thought that this could be a repeat of the 6-1 defeat at Old Trafford 2 years ago.

As the game neared the end, United started to improve. Valencia had a penalty appeal turned down and Patrice Evra saw his header bounce against the post and cleared. It didn’t look like it was going to happen for United but Wayne Rooney placed a brilliant free kick in the top corner to give the United fans something to cheer about. The final whistle went, and City fans cheered loudly as they beat their city rivals. City will be hoping gain revenge when they face Wigan Athletic in the Capital One Cup in midweek. United will be looking to bounce back as they face another massive rival, Liverpool, at home In the cup as well.

By Bradley Peterson

[bdnwriters]

The fall of Lincolnshire Football: 2000-2013

For decades, Lincolnshire has been a proud footballing county, boasting a number of professional clubs throughout the top 4 leagues. However, 4 of our most famous teams, Scunthorpe, Lincoln, Grimsby and Boston have fallen to some of their lowest points. Lets look at the fortunes of these teams.

Scunthorpe United: Perhaps the most recently successful of our counties clubs, Scunthorpe were twice promoted to the Championship, one division below the Premier League, in 2007 and 2009. However, they were relegated twice and they suffered consecutive relegations to now languish in League 2, the lowest division in the Football League.

Grimsby Town: Grimsby started the century mid table in the First Division (now the Championship). However, that is what makes their fall a lot more fascinating. Like their bitter rivals, they slumped to League 2. The story could have been different though if the Mariners had won the play-off final in 2006, but after losing they never recovered. After a couple of mediocre seasons, Town were relegated to the Conference in 2010 for the first time in 100 years.

Lincoln City: Lincoln’s problem is that they are far too consistent. Consistent, that is, in losing in the play-offs. After being on the verge of liquidation, Lincoln reached 5 playoffs in a row from 2003 to 2007. And lost every one of them. The Imps league positions fell and they eventually ended up in the Conference with Grimsby in 2011.

Boston United: The only word to describe the last 10 years for Boston is disaster. In the early 21st century, Boston were investigated by the FA for financial irregularities. Financial problems again saw Boston drop out of the Football League and ended up in the Northern Premier Division. They now sit in the Conference North, a league below Grimsby and Lincoln.

So what has caused this? There are two reasons. The first being financial problems. After ITV digital collapsed in 2001/02, lower league clubs found it difficult to survive. The second is poor appointments of managers and players who were just not good enough. However, lets hope that our counties clubs can rise and make their fans proud of them again.

By Bradley Peterson.