#radyr

[shootsandrootswales]

Are you looking for the best Paving in Cardiff? We use the best natural stone to create a wide variety of stunning patios. Contact Shoots & Roots for more details.

[gmariam321]

I really do want to finish this, but keep hitting little road blocks. I know the big picture but struggle to move past single scenes here and there. I'm also still not sure how far to take that big picture endgame. Here's how it starts, though! If it looks familiar, I'm pretty sure I've posted it before. Enjoy and wish me luck finishing the damn thing!

The Wooden Torch - Chapter One

Ianto Jones was glad to be back in Wales and living in Cardiff. He'd left to get away from it all—from his father and his family and all the other problems he'd had growing up on the estates—and was surprised to find he enjoyed being back. He felt a connection he hadn't felt before and suspected there would be no going back to his life in London. The city had been great until it had become a bitter disappointment, but now he wanted a new start, a second chance to find what he was looking for in life.

The problem was, he wasn't sure what he was looking for.

In the meantime, he floated between a few part-time jobs, barely making ends meet, until the night he walked into the Wooden Torch, a pub a few streets down from the flat he was renting in Radyr. Something felt different about the place, something comfortable. It was a well-regarded pub with a good crowd of locals, and they welcomed him almost immediately. He felt like he fit in, and within a fortnight he was their new barman.

He'd had no experience with bar work, but he was a quick learner, and after a few weeks on the job, Ianto felt surprisingly settled with his spontaneous decision. He'd been a personal assistant in London and helping people was in his nature; instead of coffee and files, now he served pints and conversation. He still had to look up a few drinks, but he'd learned most of the regulars' names and could banter with the best of them. He'd cleaned up a drunken mess, broken up a fight, and called a taxi for a hen party trying to hit on him. And in spite of all that, and the long, late hours, he found himself enjoying it. It felt right at that moment in his life, like he was where he was supposed to be.

Alex Hopkins owned the pub and ran it fairly and efficiently, keeping it clean and up to date. The other bar staff were all about Ianto's age, give or take a few years, friendly and hard-working.  He liked his fellow bar worker, Toshiko Sato, immediately. She had also moved from London, and like him, she'd had left the city for personal reasons. They bonded almost instantly over their mutual disappointments, and also shared an interest in technology: Ianto had worked in the field, Tosh had a degree in it.

About two weeks after he started, Ianto was wiping down the bar when he heard a commotion at the door. A tall man in an old-fashioned military coat walked in and several people went to great him, including Tosh and Alex. The new man was grinning as he greeted everyone, waving like a film star on the red carpet. Ianto watched from behind the bar, wondering what the excitement was all about. He held back an eye roll at the man's gregariousness and continued cleaning up.

"Hello, and who are you?" asked a voice from the other side. It was the man in the great coat. Up close, Ianto noticed immediately that the man was exceptionally handsome, with a broad smile and deep blue eyes. He stared for a moment, then shook his head and blinked. Ianto had seen plenty of beautiful men and women come through the door of the Wooden Torch since he'd started; this man wasn't any different and certainly no one to embarrass himself over.

Before he could open his mouth to reply, Alex was introducing him. "Stop it, Jack. This is Ianto Jones, he joined us while you were gone. Ianto, this is—"

"Captain Jack Harkness," the man said, holding out his hand with a blinding smile. His handshake was strong and firm and a bit electrifying, if Ianto were honest. He didn't usually react so strongly to meeting someone new, but there was something about Jack Harkness that sent quick sparks through his body, despite his brain trying to tell him that the man was an arrogant prat.

"Like he said – Jones, Ianto Jones." Ianto winced at how awkward it sounded to introduce himself after already being introduced.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Jones, Ianto Jones," grinned the man. He was several years older than Ianto and held himself with the confidence of his good looks. Ianto wondered if there was anything else to back up that confidence.

"I take it a welcome back is in order?"

"Jack's one of our favorite regulars," Tosh told him. "He's been gone for a month, though. Why didn't you tell us you would be gone so long?"

"I didn't realize you cared so much," Jack laughed, with a wink. To Ianto's surprise, he quickly turned serious, his voice dropping as he pulled her into a one-armed hug and kissed her hair. "I’m sorry, Tosh, but it was an unexpected, last-minute trip. I hardly had time to pack."

"Sounds interesting," said Owen Harper, one of the regulars who practically had his name engraved on a stool at the end of the bar. "Tosh, can you get him a drink so he can tell us about it? Welcome back, Harkness." He stood to shake hands, and Jack sat down on a stool next to him.

Tosh moved behind the bar and started making a scotch and soda as Alex returned to the back office. "So where did you go?" Tosh asked. "Did it go well?"

"Not particularly," Jack said. He rubbed his hands over his face, the confident veneer slipping. "It was a long month of nothing but arguing and testing and failing and more arguing and—let's just say I don’t think they’ll be sending me back anytime soon."

Ianto noticed that Jack had not answered her question about where he'd gone, but either she didn't notice or choose to ignore it. She handed him his drink with a smile and a pat on his arm. "I’m sorry, Jack. I hope things get better. We're glad you're back, you know."

"Yeah, it was damn quiet around here without you," Owen said. He held up his glass and Jack held up his. "Cheers."

"Well, I'm certainly glad I came back when I did," Jack said, throwing an overly bright smile at Ianto and changing moods just like that. "So when did you start, Mr. Jones, Ianto Jones?"

"About two weeks ago," Ianto said, keeping a straight face even though he wanted to roll his eyes. Jack Harkness not only changed moods on a dime, but he seemed to be an incorrigible flirt, and Ianto hoped the man didn't call him Jones, Ianto Jones forever. "Moved from London to try my luck back in the wilds of Wales."

Jack laughed and took a sip of his drink. "Now why leave an amazing place like London? What drove you out?"

"Who says anything drove me out?" Ianto countered. "Maybe I wanted to come home."

"I understand," Jack agreed unexpectedly and sincerely. He was unpredictable, that much was certain. "I love Wales, couldn't wait to get back. What did you do in London?"

"Personal assistant," Ianto said. "At Hartman Technologies."

Jack set down his drink, nodding slowly, his face unreadable.  "And did you leave on your own or did Yvonne Hartman sack you?"

"I left on my own," Ianto said, surprised by the question. Jack clearly knew about Hartman Technologies and the quirks of its infamous leader. "I didn't agree with where the company was heading." At all. It had been a great job for years, until Yvonne Hartman had started messing with things that shouldn't be messed with, like life and death and immortality. Working at Canary Wharf had become something from a science-fiction nightmare by the time he left.

"And she let you go?" Harkness sounded surprised. "With your memory intact?"

Ianto leaned back against the counter behind him with his hands crossed over his chest. Tosh was helping someone down at the other end of the bar, and Owen was pretending not to listen. "How the hell do you know about that?" Ianto asked in a quiet voice. Jack grinned again; Ianto found it annoying then, fake and full of lies and manipulation.

"Because I work for John Smith," he said. "Head of Development. It's my job to know the competition."

"Of course," Ianto murmured, not bothering to hide the sarcasm. Yvonne Hartman ran the biggest tech firm in the UK, but John Smith was close behind and gaining, with both an ethical integrity and innovative quality more and more people had started to appreciate, including Ianto. He had even thought about applying there when he moved back to Cardiff, to really stick it to Yvonne, but in the end, he'd decided to take a break from the tech industry and the corporate world, and he found his stress levels were the lowest they'd been for years. He did not want to get pulled back into that life by a charming customer.

Jack frowned and leaned forward, serious once more. "Look, I know what goes on over there. I'm sure it wasn't always like that and was a great place to work a lot the time. But I'm also glad you left. You won't regret it."

"I might when their stock options quadruple," Ianto joked. He did not want to think about everything he had left behind. Yes, he had made the right decision, but he still missed the good things about London: his flat, the café on the corner, his coworkers and his girlfriend and the much bigger paycheck.

"You could always put your money into something more local," Jack said, interrupting his thoughts. He sounded sincere, then wagged his eyebrows and ruined it. "I'd be happy to suggest something over dinner and a drink."

Ianto gave in to another eye roll. "Are you sure you're Head of Development and not the Head of the Innuendo Squad?"

"No, but I do believe in what we do," Jack replied, the flirt gone once more. It seemed Jack Harkness had a singular ability to turn it on and off, switching between moods in the space of a heartbeat. Ianto wondered if the man was serious about dinner and a drink—and how he responded when someone took him up on it.

"I used to believe in my job too," Ianto pointed out.

"We're not trying to bring about the end of the world," Jack told him.

"Neither were we," Ianto said, feeling defensive even after his break with the company. "We—"

"Hey, can I get another pint over here?" Owen asked. "Stop making eyes at each other and get a man his drink, teaboy."

"Sometimes I can't keep up, Owen," Ianto said, turning away from the unexpected conversation with Jack Harkness to pull Owen another pint of Brains. "Besides, he's new and interesting, you're not." Jack flashed that damn grin again.

"He's not new, he's old," Owen scoffed. Jack made a sad face, and Ianto tried not to laugh at the ridiculousness of them both. "And he's no more interesting than me."

"Of course I am," Jack replied. Ianto had just met him, but had to agree. Owen was a decent bloke, but he could be somewhat abrasive, particularly after several pints. Jack Harkness, on the other hand, was someone that worked in his former field, someone Ianto wanted to know more about. Even if he was an overconfident flirt who worked for John Smith, Ianto sensed there was more to Jack than met the eye.

"Why are you a teaboy?" asked Jack, glancing between them curiously.

"Because he threatened to make me a nice cup of tea instead of a gin and tonic last week," Owen groused. This time it was Ianto's turn to grin. He crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow.

"And that's because I'd already made you about six. You do remember hitting on Mickey, don't you?" Mickey Smith worked part-time, covering when Tosh or Ianto had a night off.

"Nope. Never happened." He took a long sip of his pint.

"I was there. So was Alex. It definitely happened."

"Still don't believe you," Owen replied, while Jack laughed at the exchange. "So Harkness, did you pull while you were away?" Owen asked. "Because that’s more interesting than talking about stock options."

"What do you think, Owen?" Jack asked, gazing at him over the top of his glass with a look on his face that indicated the answer was obvious. Apparently, Jack followed through on some of his flirting.

Owen took his pint and stood up. "Knowing you, probably every day. Good to have you back, Jack. Have fun with the new guy." He left the bar and walked over to one of the large round tables in the center of the pub, where a group of regulars was talking and laughing. Ianto turned back to Jack to find the other man watching him.

"What?" he asked warily, wondering if he'd somehow embarrassed himself.

"Nothing," said Jack, shaking his head. "Although you've already worked out how to hold your own with Owen, so I'm impressed."

"Thanks," Ianto replied dryly. "It wasn't hard since he's in here almost every day."

"It's a good place to relax," Jack said. "I'm glad I'm back. Especially since I got to meet the cute new guy."

Ianto gave him another eye roll, ignoring the adjective. "And it's good to meet another shameless regular. Let me know when you need another."

He moved away, busying himself with cleaning a table that had just left for the night. He felt Jack watching him, but eventually Jack left the bar and went to a table by the windows. Owen joined him, and then a few others, and they talked and laughed for at least an hour. Ianto found himself watching Jack more and more as the night went on. He was somehow impossible to ignore, and Ianto was fascinated by the quick changes in the man's mood: gregarious, flirtatious, serious, intelligent. He couldn't help but hope he'd see more of Jack Harkness in the Wooden Torch.

[meta-squash]

Some other general all-over-the-place Torchwood thoughts that are coming up as I'm writing a post-Cyberwoman fic:

I'd love to know why they decided Ianto canonically lives in Radyr. It would make sense if, like Owen between seasons 1 and 2, Ianto maybe moved to Radyr. But I feel like it would make much more sense for Ianto to live in Splott or Roath or someplace like that in season 1, or at least while Lisa was still in the hub.

Radyr is a fairly nice, well-off area and a shortish commute (30mins) but still longer than Ianto probably would want. If he was planning on restoring Lisa to health and then leaving and taking her with him to live somewhere else, I would think he'd want to live in the cheapest place he could find. I also think he'd want to live somewhere very close to the hub, so he could get there as quickly as possible if something went wrong with Lisa in the night. If he were in Splott/Roath/Adamsdown/somewhere like that, it would be both cheap(er) and a less than 15 minute drive to the hub in the day, probably even shorter at night. (Plus it would totally explain his "I believe estate agents pronounce it 'Splo' quip in Day One.)

I've also always hated the weird timeline of Ianto's early Torchwood 3 employment. By Fragments, he's been there less than 2 years. Which would mean that by the time of Suzie's death, he'd probably only been there a month or two. I feel like all of the stakes and all of the interactions during Cyberwoman would make so much more sense if he'd already been there at least 4 months or longer. His "When was the last time you asked me anything about my life" is a much heavier truth if he's been there long enough that they're comfortable with him and consider him a fully established part of the team and not just someone still a little new. It would probably take him months to use Torchwood's resources to find Tanizaki, plan out all the details of getting Lisa well and getting all three of them safely out of and away from the hub, and get contingency plans in place. The stakes would be much higher if he'd been keeping her alive for like 4 or 5 months rather than just 2 or 3, meaning the shock of her not actually being fully Lisa and the manipulation of cyberman-mind would be a lot more intense and Ianto's denial a lot stronger.

On the opposite end of the observation spectrum, I'm so glad they kept in the "You think you're a hero, but you're the biggest monster of all" line, which was originally supposed to be cut. A lot of Jack's behaviors are really fucked up and horrible. Sometimes it's because he doesn't have a choice (Small Worlds), sometimes it's because he's too emotionally involved (Cyberwoman) and sometimes it's just plan fucked up (Combat). I think it's a great quote for Ianto to say because it really does highlight the things Jack does or the decisions he makes or the commands he gives that go just a little too far. And it reveals the lack of that "how far is too far" questioning, the examination of what is ethical or humane or whatever. And because Jack is immortal he constantly has to live with his actions, and there's always that question of will he become numb to it all. And of course that sentiment that he's the biggest monster of all is constantly turned on him again and again by other people and he has to continue to live with it and decide whether it hardens him or whether he allows it to change him in a more progressive or positive way.

[bastillemxfans]

“Year 6 received a massive surprise this week with a message from Dan from Bastille congratulating them for the work performing Happier! 🥁🎙”

📹 Radyr Primary School

[pad-wubbo]

"Weir Grill"

Infinite Painter.

Adapted from photo of metal grate on waterworks near Radyr, Cardiff. Lots of safety signs around there. They should give out Darwin Awards instead. Very retro-sci-fi-ish palette.

CC-BY-SA 4.0.

[vocativocom]

Amazonas Energia descarta racionamento, mas consumo dispara

Segundo a Amazonas Energia, às 21h47 desta segunda-feira (09/10/2023), foi batido recorde de consumo de energia elétrica na Região Metropolitana de Manaus já registrado: 1.742 MegaWatts

Mesmo com a forte onda de calor e estiagem recorde, a concessionária Amazonas Energia descartou racionamento de energia elétrica no estado. A declaração foi feita pelo Diretor Técnico do Interior e Diretor de Relações Institucionais, Radyr Gomes de Oliveira, em coletiva de imprensa nesta terça-feira (10/10/2023). “Quero tranquilizar os amazonense que não vai ter problema de distribuição de…

[thetipsywytch]

🌞🌼

[furiousmoose]

Take me to the Bridge. Very early morning walk Monday 15th June. Footbridge over the river Taff very quiet at 5.45am. Made for some dramatic 360 images. . . #ricohtheta360 #artphotography #tinyplanet #llandaff #llandaffnorth #radyr #taff #360photography #smallplanet #snapseed #littleworld #360 #cardiff #wales #photography #photosphere #lifein360 #tinyplanetbuff #360camera #tinyearth #360view #camera360 (at Hailey Park Cardiff) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBdRYMdgRaW/?igshid=d9xwii3kbnbb

[dai-lygad]

Night time on the Coryton branch by Jeremy Segrott Via Flickr: Class 143 Pacer DMU 143624 stands at Coryton on 19th October 2017 ready to work the 2V55 2115 Coryton to Radyr 'City Line' service. We had gone to Coryton to see the Railhead Treatment Train but due to late running it went directly up the Rhymney Valley Line. Often criticised for their design and age, the Pacer units nevertheless continue to provide the backbone of many train services across the UK, including the south Wales Valley Lines network.

[shootsandrootswales]

Are you looking for the best Paving in Radyr? We use the best natural stone to create a wide variety of stunning patios. Contact Shoots & Roots for more details.

[badgesandblazes]

Go away Corona, let me get back home 😭

[kentixen]

People keep saying my car looks like a boy racer and like I know it looks like a boy racer, but I don't care!! I love my car!! But every time someone says it looks like a boy racer, it makes me dislike it a little bit!!! And I don't want to start disliking my car!!

I showed it to one of the older men (60-odd-year-old) at work just now and he loves it!! My mother's friends at work love it, my cousins love it, and my parents love it! So why do all my friends not like it 🤔🤔

[cwpanaid]

Another headcanon based around Broken. ( transcript can be found here. )

IANTO: [sigh] Julia Collins, 36. Teacher. Up to her eyes in debt, disappeared a week ago after last being spotted by the weir. Here, in Radyr. Thomas Phillips. 22. Unemployed heroin addict, disappeared just over a fortnight ago. Lived on the street behind me. Here, in Radyr. Bobby Dallington. 47. Grieving widower, disappeared a month ago, his car found outside the co-op. Here, in Radyr. Sally--

This is where his eidetic memory plays in.  He remembers names,  remembers the amount of research he’s done.  Ianto does it the old-fashioned way;  he uses his eyes,  he uses his brain,  he uses whatever resources he has.  He goes out and seek out any more answers that could connect the dots.  He’s willingly  ( & stubbornly ) determined to find the solution to the problem.  Especially if it means that it’ll help people. 

IANTO: I didn't need Tosh's computer, sir. Oh and by the way? She might not want her mind taken off Mary. But yeah, I did it the old-fashioned way. Every night for the last few weeks before coming here, I've been going through the files and I found 15 people who've gone missing from this area who could have very easily have chosen to go missing.

[torchwoodpropaganda]

Species File

Species name: The Easter Bunny

Appearance: Large, about eight or nine feet tall, white, and with two long ears, much like rabbit ears.

Other information: We first got word of this creature on Easter from an anonymous ask, stating that there was “a giant Easter Bunny terrorizing the neighborhoods around Radyr.” When we went out to look, this was certainly the case, although calling it a “bunny” is generous. It could pick up people, and was ripping up their vegetable gardens. This creature had enormous strength. Thankfully, we were able to quick put an end to this, and are looking to further research on it.

Case Number: T3L4CS289

[grinchwrapsupreme]

I listened to Broken again recently and decided to google the neighbourhood Ianto lived in, Radyr, out of curiosity and not only is it a really nice neighbourhood, but you can tell the writers at Big Finish didn’t do quite enough research because according to google Radyr got their first pub in 15 years back in 2018. Which means during the events of Broken, which takes place primarily in a pub in Radyr, Radyr didn’t have any pubs, and like it’s cool to take artistic license and make up a pub, that’s always fun, but it’s just so funny to me they would choose an area in which, not only did not have pubs, but was in fact the only Cardiff suburb without a pub in it at that point, when they had their pick of the entire city

[fluorescentpipedream]

Name: Alekzander Damea

Age: 32

The Damea family is an umbrella term used to describe children born of demons, most specifically those of the 4 Horsemen, Radyr, Morpheus, Aramyis and Samael. Alekz is one of Radyr’a children and tore his way out of his mother when he was born, bathed in blood and killing her. Because of his infant form he was abandoned at the hospital who eventually gave him to a parish to raise in California. As he grew up, the demonic look faded away, leaving only a few runic symbols on his shoulders and a massive “birth mark” that resembles a pair of skeletal wings. Alekz was never allowed to be adopted and often spent most of his time alone. Radyr came to claim his son when he was 15 but was disgusted by the pure heart the boy had, cursing him to remain alone in his life. When he was 18, he left the parish and took the little money he has earned to get a passport and began traveling to learn more about where he came from and what exactly he was. The best he found was in Ireland where he ran across another like him and was told that the demons like procreating with humans because they’re more likely to die, allowing the child to taste its first blood early on. When Alekz had been told about his mother his heart had broken for the mother he’d never know and rather than accept what he was he actively turned his back to the darkness.

In 1999 he turned up rather suddenly at Skyline Commune in Northern California, seeking to disappear from the world. He’s telling me he was technically hiding from the Hunters who wanted to capitalize on his demon blood and being out his true form and Skyline was the safest place he thought he could hide in plain sight. In 2007, he awoke in a cold sweat after a shared dream between nearly everyone in the demonic/vampire/immortal world which heralded the awakening of the Vampire Queen. Though he doesn’t really acknowledge who and what he really is, he still finds himself connected to the dark veil between worlds. When he meets Kristy at Skyline, he sees her as a kindred spirit, tasked with a monumental task she doesn’t want. Though she’s married, he falls in love with her and later with her husband.

Alekz has striking ice blue eyes and shaggy hair, he has few actual demonic powers but seems to have slowed down in aging somewhere after 25.

@musesnotebook