As we left our flat today, we found a bouquet of flowers beside the door. There was a card inside but as we preferred not to delay, I dumped the flowers in the sink, pending our return.

Lost hat

As we turned into Claremont Square, we spied this woollen hat hanging on the railings. How does someone lose a hat? Quite easily, apparently. Better to lose a hat than to lose a head, I suppose.

Reject bath

The discarded door that I mentioned previously (see Letterboxes), has disappeared, I hope to a better place. It’s mantel (so to speak) has been inherited by a bath. You can perhaps see that there is a white cross on the base of the bath: for one brief moment, I had thought that the object was a coffin!

The Curvaceous Tree

I took the opportunity to check on the Curvaceous Tree that I discovered and come to love during the first lockdown. Winter reveals the curious shaping of the branches, hidden in other seasons.

Tiny letterbox

In the above mentioned post, I drew attention to the tiny letterboxes originally installed after the invention of postal services. Most have been replaced but a few still exist. Here is an example spotted today. Note also that this door has, not one, but three locks. They are all modern, a fact that says something about our contemporary world.

(Incidentally, are burglars and housebreakers still at work during the pandemic? Do they remember to wear a mask while inside the property?)

Man on the roof

In Myddelton Square, a movement attracted my attention to the roof of one of the houses. Someone is repairing the roof, presumably. That would not be a job for me: that protective barrier seems awfully flimsy!

Wreath and candy stick

We started to photograph wreaths on front doors but as we approach Christmas, they are proliferating too fast to keep track of them. In this house, there is not only a wreath but also an inflatable candy stick. Since when have candy sticks become a symbol of Christmas? They never were. I think this is another of those wretched foreign imports like Trick or Treat.

Empty gymnasium</em

We passed by the local gymnasium which has big windows allowing a good view of the interior. The place was eerily quiet. In fact, it was empty, presumably closed. (You get a glimpse of me, reflected in the glass. Yes, I forgot to bring the polarising filter with me.)

Not a “stink pipe”?

In Wreaths and a stench pipe, I identified this feature as a “stink/stench pipe”. Since then, this identification has been questioned on the grounds that stink pipes are taller than this and don’t usually have the sort of top that is present here (though I have seen photos of pipes with similar decorative tops). For now, then, the jury is out, unless and until I can obtain positive information as to what this object is. One suggestion is that it is a disused Victorian street lamp.

Decorative base

The base has some decorative motifs but no maker’s name, unfortunately.

A view along City Road

We crossed City Road and I stopped to take a photo of the view. It’s hard to imagine that there was a time when this road passed through open country and travellers were at risk from highwaymen and assorted other villains. As I continued on, I inadvertently wandered into a cycle lane and was treated to a furious ringing of a cyclist’s bell! Bad Tiger!

Beautiful trees, from Colebrooke Row

As we entered Colbrooke Row, the sun charmingly illuminated these beautiful trees. (Am I becoming obsessed with trees? What if I am? They are a worthy subject for admiration 🙂 )

Plant pot for a motor enthusiast

We entered Elia Street where this plant pot attracted my attention. Perhaps the owner is a Volkswagen Beetle enthusiast.

A fruity wreath

Though not collecting wreaths, I had to have this one because it is unusually fruity! Almost mouth-watering, in fact!

A public street privatised

In Quick Street is to be found this mews. A mews was originally a street giving access to stables belonging to the nearby houses. More recently, the buildings within have been converted into dwellings but the street normally remains public access. The presence of gates suggests that in this case the mews has been privatised, something I deplore. What is public should remain public and not be taken over by private interests.

St John the Evangelist

We worked our way back to Colebrooke Row from where we had this view of the towers of the Catholic Church of St John the Evangelist which were shining prettily in the late afternoon sunshine.

Another bath

Here we found another discarded bath. Is it open season on baths all of a sudden?

We crossed back over City Road (where I avoided trespassing in the cycle lane!) and made our way to Jusaka. It was again closed. Has it closed permanently or what?

Saint Espresso

Once again we availed ourselves of the services of Saint Espresso. I find I quite like their coffee, fortunately. We hurried home with our coffees and thus our outing cane to an end.

But wait! You will be wondering about the flowers. It turns out that they are from Mr Upstairs and were accompanied by an apologetic mea culpa and a promise to take more care in future. Do we believe him?

Tigger suggested I send him a text to thank him but that means I have to think up a suitable message. What about:

Happy Christmas H₂O! H₂O! H₂O!

Seems to fit the occasion!