Lights in....but beard's still here!

 No more dark winters, no more early closures, no more wandering the streets in hope of finding a lit car park to session at 6 o'clock in the afternoon. Projekts Skatepark has floodlights! 

On 18th August the final five lamps were set in place beside their five counterparts, creating a long awaited symmetry above the fence line of the skatepark. Or, more importantly, the ability to light our way through wintertime.

To celebrate this grand achievement, we have decided to hold a launch party on 26 October at the park, called Let There Be Light, aptly enough. Some details are below:

• Team skate comp - 3 people per team (sign in on the day)
  
• 12pm - 11pm
• Fancy dress - come as a famous bearded character
  
• Best trick
  
• Girls' comp
  
• Big screen skate archive (wait and see)
  
• Live music and burger van. 
  
• FREE ENTRY! 
  

And I almost forgot to mention, my beard will be getting shaved off in the skatepark - cut throat style! 

151 Days Later

The worst is over. Although my beard continues to grow at the same rate as it always has, its proportional growth has reached a point as to make any change almost imperceptible over short periods. This means I don't have to deal with the daily stress of watching my face disappear under a dark brown jungle of wiry whiskers. Perhaps I reached that point some time ago but I've only just started to feel comfortable with it. I must admit, though, that I do feel a little uncomfortable when I go swimming. It's okay when I'm in the water but when I'm walking along poolside in nothing but my trunks, the beard gives me a strange feeling of top-heaviness, a little bit like one might feel if they left their house having neglected to but on any trousers. Needless to say, it's an uncomfortable situation.

So when will the lights arrive? Well, I was told that "realistically we are looking at the end of May". With no signs whatsoever of any work taking place, I'd have to say that, realistically, we might be waiting a few more weeks.

How to grow a beard

106 days! That's how old my beard is. And it's no mean feet, I can assure you. It takes some real determination to allow facial hair to get this long. But there are some simple instructions that anyone can follow to generate a similar growth on their own face:

1) Don't pick up a razor - this might sound obvious and it is;

2) Don't shave the hair on you face - if you fail to keep instruction number one you may use instruction number two to help avoid any permanent loss of achievement;

3) Don't let anyone else shave you - it's okay to let them shave themselves. That won't be a problem for you. Just don't let them bring the razor anywhere near you.

Now you should be fully equipped to grow your very own beard.

Beard Blog - Day 62

Day 60

You might be wondering why I've not posted anything for a while. Well I haven't given up (as you can see), I've just been waiting for things to happen. There seems little point in dribbling on and on each day if there's no news to talk about and although I do have plenty of other interests besides the skatepark, it would hardly deserve a platform on my Beard Blog.

So does this post mean something has happened? Yes it does. This morning I had a call from United Utilities' contractors saying they expect the installation of mains electricity to be completed by next week! They're at the park as I'm writing this, searching for our junction box, the place that connects the mains electricity to our skatepark. This does not affect the beard, however. The beard will remain, in full, until the lights are operational.

That's not the only good news, although it's the most exciting - I wasn't expecting anything so definite so soon. Perhaps I'm overexposed to disappointment. The other news is that the floodlights have been ordered from Amey. We haven't been given an installation date and I'm not in a position to speculate, unfortunately. As soon as I hear anything, I'll let you know.

If you'd like to see the full beard growth process, please click here

Girls Only Skate Comp

Projekts is hosting Manchester's first ever Girls Only skateboarding event on 8th March. To find out more, have a look at the poster!

And check out these links, too:

http://www.projektsmcr.com/park.php
http://kingpinskateboarding.com/news/girls-only-skate-competition.html

Beard Blog - Day 33

Day 33

I haven't given up, despite the overwhelming desire to. My beard is a proper beard now. If I had to categorise it I'd say it was Lord of the Rings but it will probably be Biblical by the time the lights are installed. I was hoping it might get softer as it grew longer but it hasn't. Each hair is thick and wiry and when the beard is pressed or touched the hairs turn and spike my face. It's like a living coat of armour covering the lower part of my face. The plus side is that it keeps my face warm when I ride my bike!

After writing a letter to the Deputy Chief Executive of the Council, Steve Mycio, I have received a more realistic assessment of our situation from the various Council departments involved. I have now learned that we definitely do not have planning permission to put the floodlights in. The plus side is that because Steve Mycio is pressing them, the Planning Department are moving faster than normal. I've been told to expect planning to be completed in 5 weeks rather than the usual 8 weeks.

During that time the traffic notice that United Utilities have issued will be over and the process of cable laying should be in full swing. I'm hoping for a seamless transfer from UU to Amey, so when UU finish their task Amey take the end of UU's cable and connect it to their floodlights. And then we can all breath a sigh of relief and have a big party!

For the full beard experience click here

Beard Blog - Days 18, 19, 20, 21

Today's beard

There's no real news about lights or electricity. My beard has got longer, though. Perhaps tomorrow will hold something a little more interesting.

http://picasaweb.google.com/johnnyhaines/MyBeardProtest