Saturday 12th December 2009 - Signs of the Times

          It being a lovely day, I went out for a morning stroll.  I spotted an unusual-looking tree

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I expect you can see what's unusual about it too.

          Having decided it was too dangerous last night to cross the highway, I thought I might take a look and see if there were any safe crossing points within easy reach.  This really is a busy eight-lane road.  As if reading my mind, the highway authorities had left a little note for me.

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They don't pull their punches, do they?  I've remarked before about the American penchant for using the subjunctive in road signs, but they've certainly resisted the temptation here.

 

          Today's big sporting event is the Army-Navy football match.  I think it's actually a college game, West Point v Annapolis, rather than teams from the whole army and navy.  There has been a growing tendency over recent years for fans to turn up wearing their team colours, but for this game, they turn up in uniform.  I wonder if they marched there.  Since the army wear grey, it looked a bit like they were settting up for a re-enactment of the Civil War.

 

          Later that night I met an Eagles fan (that's Philadelphia football).  As can happen to men of a certain age, he is deeply in love with the barmaid, and loses track of the conversation every time she passes.  The Eagles play in south Philadelphia, and it turns out he frequents my favourite south Philly bar.  I asked him to remind them of me next time he was there, but I'm not sure he heard me.