Cleanliness is next to deadliness?

It is strange and somewhat sad to see some of the weird and macabre things that can happen in one's own neighbourhood. This article from The Metro covers the unusual story of a fellow known as 'The Dettol Man' struck down by his own odd habits. Peculiar indeed, particularly considering the fellow could live within yards of me and still I'd be none the wiser.

St. Georges Day Parade

Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester

Pictured: Mayor Mohammed Afzal Khan leading the St. Georges Day Parade.

Sunday afternoon saw the St George's Day celebrations reach the streets as a float-lined parade made its way slowly from Miles Platting to the crowds at Piccadilly Gardens. I was there with my camera - you can find more pictures here.

CIS Tower, Manchester Going Solar!

Aging facade on skyscraper to be given a green facelift

Now this is cool! The long-time tallest CIS tower in Manchester city centre is to have a replacement façade - and no ordinary one at that. 7,000 solar panels - providing 10% power requirements - are to be affixed to the service tower.

Whilst 10% isn't that much and they'll likely never see a return on the £5m investment, it is nice to see positive environmental action being taken in the UK. Since the construction of Beetham Tower, the CIS building may no longer be the tallest, but it's arguably the greenest.

Recommended Takeaway: Globe, Lapwing Lane, West Didsbury

Globe has been around for a while now, and it's established itself as a good place to go for when I fancy something a little different from my takeaways. With a range encompassing Mexican, Italian, Indian and far Eastern cuisine, there really is something for every taste.

Delivery is quick, too - it may be something to do with the fact that we're at most 300 yards away, but the wait between phonecall and doorbell is often less than 20 minutes - remarkable considering the scope and quality of the food.

Such quality arguably comes at a higher price than other takeaways, but it's not extortionate - indeed, probably par for the course in terms of Didsbury prices. Included in their menu is a range of beers and soft drinks, so in essence you could cater for an entire evening in with just one phonecall.

The mexican food on offer is a personal favourite - there is a good selection of fajitas, burritos and 'chimi changas' in a number of vegetarian or meat options, and these are complemented perfectly by the spicy starters and mexican frijoles charros on the side. The curries come recommended as well - certainly comparable to the fare on offer down the curry mile, if sadly lacking the choice and surroundings of such a restaurant.

The East Asian dishes are another favourite of mine - the crispy chilli beef dish isn't cheap, at over £7 without rice, but it's an absolute must try - unparalleled in many visits to chinese restaurants (some more expensive still) and a multitude of takeaways. The other dishes are of a similar calibre.

The Italian offering extends principally to a range of pizzas, and is consistent in quality with other takeaways - but arguably they're the weaker offering when there's a whole world of other choices to consider.

Globe are open Tuesday - Sunday till 10.30pm during the week and 11pm on Friday / Saturday. Give them a call on 0161 448 0222 for collection or delivery.

• http://www.globedelivery.co.uk/
• 0161 448 0222

The Proximity of Gun Crime in Manchester

Gun crime has been a hot issue in Manchester news this week, with a seemingly increasing rate of reports of fatal shootings and a rise in the 'gun culture' of Britain's inner cities. For all this hype though, as a resident of Manchester I'm yet to come face-to-face with a firearm - a position I'm thankfully sure most Mancunians are in. But should I be worried?

I suppose it depends where you hang out - traipse round the streets of Longsight or Moss Side when it's dark and you're no doubt asking for trouble. But Manchester is a crowded place - and you can compartmentalise all you like, but a dodgy area is seldom more than a couple of streets away.

Take my workplace, for instance - I work on the Manchester Science Park, just behind the University on Oxford Road - but Moss Side is just behind the science park, and the recent fatal shooting of Jesse James was yards away from where I travel every day.

It's not always apparent when you travel the more-highly trafficked thoroughfares in Manchester, but the potential for crime lurks a stone's throw away from the safer areas. When your city gets a reputation for gun crime - 'Gunchester' or 'Shottingham', for instance, it can be hard to shake away this so-called 'gun culture'.

In Sickness and In Health

Yesterday I woke up with a slight sore throat and yet I shrugged it off in the name of getting to work. Today I've been lumbered with an even worse sore throat, a cough and a runny nose. I suspect I have a throat infection - they're all the rage this time of year.

Still, I'm thankful to my employers for being quite generous in the working-from-home policy, so in between lemsips, blowing my nose and naps I'll be working remotely. It's not something I'd normally like to do, as there are a million distractions at home - the TV, Xbox, YouTube, sleep, and even the washing up - but it's better than venturing out on the cold air on my bike.

There's the newly-redesigned Manchester Evening News site, too - with slick Web 2.0 styles and shiny RSS buttons too. Plenty to keep me occupied there, and it's nice to see a smaller newspaper get to grips better than many other larger ones.

Just a shame Web 2.0 is so 2006.

M20: A Blog About Life In South Manchester

m20.org.uk

Hello! Welcome to M20.org.uk - this is the first (and therefore introductory) post. My name is Stuart Brown, and I also write for the moderately popular Modern Life weblog, covering stuff about web design, new technologies and media.

I decided to spin off the Modern Life template & blog system to another blog, with a more polarised approach towards my life in Manchester - covering events, happenings and newsy items rather than the tech-oriented side of Modern Life. I just so happened to have the M20.org.uk domain handy, and - as it's the first part of my Manchester post code, I thought it would be ideal.

After attending the BBC Manchester Blog workshop, I realised that with the readership of ML I simply couldn't engage with people on a more local level without alienating a few thousand people - and regardless, two blogs are better than one.

So, bear with me, I need to get busy researching stuff for the local Manchester scene - and hopefully with the forthcoming pleasant weather I'll be able to get some nice photographs in and around the Manchester area. In the meantime, subscribe to the M20 feed and hopefully - give it a couple of weeks - it'll be full steam ahead!