As I sat resting my beer belly I noticed the kid squeezing the fish to get all the water out of it. No doubt this is an Essex pastime but it is not one I grew up with. The sun was hot, very hot, it was just above 80% indoors today, and reached higher outside (32 degrees to you foreign types in Aussieland). However while the blue sky was good to see it was blotted out by the sun so I thought I'd try a 'sepia' colour to see what happened. I had hoped to catch the water splashing but that failed miserably. At least the yobs have not put washing up liquid in the water again, the suds take ages to remove!
Shanty housing used to stand here, slum dwellings for the poorer of the land. In the 30's these were torn down as they were unacceptable even then an the fountain erected to leave a clear view of the church, and therefore a better image of the town. It worked I suppose but I am not keen on the design chosen. There were a lot of poor housing around this area removed about that time. The town was on the up between the wars and image was important. Opposite alms houses were built, now empty after years of other use and probably not acceptable as housing today. Also a nurses home, now used for 'homeless' youths. All paid for by the Courtauld family as they continued their 'social policy' of helping improve the town in every way, their way that is. Such were common in the nineteenth century and early twentieth but less so today. The religious motive that lay behind this has died in many (Courtaulds were Unitarians) and civic pride also. Millionaires abound in the UK today yet while some benefit the world around them it appears the majority merely pile it up and let the rest go by. Certainly hospitals and schools, doctors and such like are available in a way unimaginable a hundred years ago but housing is still in a mess and the richest one hundred could indeed do something about that! Maybe it will change as the economy collapses around us and what really is important replaces the Mercedes and power boats of the wealthy, perhaps not.
6 comments:
It is an interesting phenomenon how the richest on the planet don't seem to see the poorest and continue to focus on attaining even more wealth.
Mo, Worse, in Victorian days many rich attempted to aid the poorest, rare today.
I was boiling with rage watching the Channel 4 documentary about council housing, rage at everyone but mostly at politicians for the way they are just making life impossible for the poor. I suppose I hadn't noticed before. I wish Milliband wasn't so useless, getting mad about that too. Oh dear, must be something in the air..
A nice sculpture but I can't work out if he's squeezing out that fish or what.
Be assured that it will be as it should be in the end, but the end sure does not seem to be getting any closer at times. Well, at least in regards to my own end, it does.
Hey!!! Watch it, mate!!!
I can see the splashes from the water! But then, we Aussies have good eye-sight! ;)
Jenny, Housing has always been a problem, but short term MPs care only to get elected.
Jerry, Your end is still way off. I give you another fifty years!
Lee, That's because you have so little rain dear.....
Post a Comment