Several things have happened this weekend that have led me to be practically stopped in my tracks for one reason or another, and generally comment about it to Frances.
- Autumn is here. Driving along Mosspark Boulevard in Glasgow, close to where we live, I noticed that there were a lot of leaves on the road. Sure enough, the trees that line the road are noticeably turning yellow and leaves are falling. It seems like only yesterday that the road was covered in daffodils as spring got underway….
- “Mummy, I’m going on a diet”. No, not me! But these words somehow echoed over to me as we walked to our car earlier today. I glanced around, struck by the pitch of the voice. It was a girl who can’t have been any older than six years old who had spoken these words. It got me thinking - why on earth would she want to? It wasn’t as if she was obviously over-weight. I figured it must be the strange dichotomy of our society urging us to eat sweets, chips, and beefburgers, without a thought to the health implications, and then overwhelm us with idealised images of waif-like people to whom supposed to aspire to be. And it’s getting through to six year old children such that they want to diet… Go figure.
- No parking signs. Ah, my ongoing beef with Glasgow City Council. We were woken up early on a Sunday morning by the sound of drilling some weeks back. The next day, we saw that grey poles had been installed on Paisley Road West. But no signs on them. Must be new direction signs, I assumed - given the lack of them at the junction just outside. Oh no. What was attached to them last week were tiny “No loading or unloading” signs, no bigger than 6″x3″. Well worth it, I’m sure. But that’s not the end of it. After crossing the road, the next pole along had a “No parking 8am-9.30am, 4.30pm-6pm” warning. Well, they’re being adhered to I thought as I squeezed past the cars to get back onto the pavement. The thing is, these signs need to be enforced, as Paisley Road West is a major road into Glasgow, and a dual-carriageway most of the way. At least, it would be but for all the cars. So buses crawl along.
- Chrismas is coming! - Hurrah! Well, maybe not. Whilst walking about Debenhams in Glasgow, we’d just about had our fill of kitchens and sofas, and were on our way out, when I walked past boxes of crackers. Party crackers, I thought. They must be. Surely they’re party crackers. As I walked on, the scene turned to one of horror. For they were Christmas crackers. And a small plastic christmas tree. Plus a few snowmen and santa claus. Hidden up on the fourth floor near the escalators if you want to go see. But be warned, it’s not a pleasant sight, it being three and half months early.
