Saturday, December 7, 2019

Stuffed Rats, a Creepy Bunny and a Disco Ball


Autumn is breathing its last gasp as we prepare to head into winter. The trees have shed almost all their leaves and the days seem ridiculously short. I walk the dog in the dark in the morning and I come home in the dark after work.

Still, I'm managing some iPhone photos here and there -- like this doodle on a wall on Cricklewood Broadway.


Nearby is a house that seems to be named Manhattan.


This bizarre drawing is on a light pole in a housing estate off Maygrove Road. It reminds me of the creepy bunny from "Donnie Darko."


A pest control van was parked near school the other day, and its dashboard was packed with stuffed toy rats. Someone loves their job!


As I mentioned, the trees on our street have dropped most of their leaves -- this one mostly on a car parked beneath it.


I'm not sure I would call this a disco ball -- to my mind, a disco ball needs to be made of mirrors -- but the box is still a fun piece of sidewalk rubbish.


Another autumnal tree. I took this just a few days ago and already about half these leaves are gone!


More than a year ago I posted a photo of a closed pub in St. John's Wood where many of us from work used to go. (Someone had scrawled "oh no" on the plywood surrounding it.) Well, the pub has been renovated and it's reopening as this place. Some people in the neighborhood are freaked out about it, calling it a shisha bar -- but even if it does serve shisha (and the new owners say it won't), I don't see why that would be a less appealing neighbor than a pub. I don't smoke shisha, though, so admittedly, I probably wouldn't visit much.


Finally, this sign recently went up on a street in South Hampstead. Sad news about the fox cub that was killed, but I'm glad people are trying to look out for the survivors. From what I understand, death by car is a common fate for foxes in London.

13 comments:

  1. Death by car is also a common fate for librarians walking to work wearing earphones in order to listen to podcasts. I'm just sayin'.

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  2. That's a funny time of year for fox cubs. They usually mate in the new year. Maybe the notice is old or the foxes are also 'foxed' by global warming, lol
    Another nice lot of photo's though, keep em coming.
    Briony
    x

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  3. I feel for those foxes...Too many cars about when I go outside these days...I love the golden leaves on that one tree...

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  4. Lovely pictures! Your iPhone photo posts are some of my favorites.
    That pub does look quite fancy. Or, I guess it won't be a pub anymore?
    The rats in the back of the pest control guy's car made me laugh. Good eye, Steve!

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  5. Always love seeing your iPhoto journeys. I had to google "shisha" to find out what that is all about. Nice that someone posted the sign about the fox cubs. I hope the rest survive and thrive.

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  6. Lovely tour of your world. I see the London fog has rolled in a bit.

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  7. I had to look up shisha. I had no idea what it was. The place certainly looks very nice. I would imagine that many urban foxes meet the same fate as that young fox. I love the reflection of that golden tree in the roof of the car. Nice shot. Those rats in the car window made me smile. What a strange thing to do.

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  8. good thing the owners of the new place are saying 'no' to shisha -- the smoke would certainly keep me away, asthmatic that I am.

    Lovely photos -- the golden tree especially.

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  9. I like the wall doodle..there is some skill there

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  10. Beautiful tree with its golden leaves. And shisha was new to me too.

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  11. YP: I'm not THAT oblivious, honestly!

    Briony: I thought so, too! Maybe it IS an old sign, but I didn't see it before this week.

    E: There ARE a lot of cars where you live!

    Ms Moon: It's technically a bar/restaurant now, I suppose, although the difference between that and a pub is sometimes not particularly clear.

    Robin: Yeah, I haven't seen many shisha bars in the states, but they're pretty popular here.

    37P: Yes! We had several foggy mornings last week.

    Sharon: Aren't those rats a hoot? Where does a person buy a stuffed toy rat, anyway?

    Tara: Yeah, I'm sure some customers would prefer a shisha-free environment!

    John: Isn't it?!

    GZ: I thought it was pretty funny, too!

    Catalyst: It's also known as "hookah" -- at least the pipe is.

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  12. I just love the photo of the tree with the golden leaves and reflection on the parked car. I'm so glad that someone is taking the time to speak out for the foxes. We really do need our wildlife. You have a super day, hugs, Edna B.

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