Humour at the Salvation Army – and an observation

Although I haven’t featured it as a blog entry, I’ve noticed that there is someone ‘clever’ at the Salvation Army in Tollcross Road.

While I haven’t been looking at this in particular (my interest is the building) I’ve spotted some simple, but thought-provoking displays in the windows.

This, however, is not the window, but a sign I spotted recently.

I liked the cartoon (and that someone would dare, even in a humorous context, show a handgun – I’m surprised the place hasn’t been raided and the sign confiscated).

The observation?

Most of the references to the Salvation Army I come across these days are online, originate in the US, and are often very negative.

Given the appeal in this sign is unconditional, it’s sad to note that many US commenters are hostile to the Salvation Army there, as it will not provide any sort of aid or support to anyone who is not a Christian, or willing to join.

End of story.

Obviously I can only pass on what I’ve read, or if this is universal over there, but if it is the case, then it’s sad.

So, smile at this instead.

Salvation Army Cartoon Terms

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Shawfield Stadium

I’m not familiar with Shawfield Stadium, and once even used to think it was dead.

But it’s not, although I have never been near the place whenever there was an event taking place – it’s always deserted whenever I’m anywhere near it.

Since I don’t know anything about it, when I was nearby recently I decided to have a closer look and see if there was any interesting architecture.

Sadly not, and from the outside at least it looks mostly like a load of scrap cobbled together.

Visible roofing looks more like a derelict, and when I walked around the perimeter I noticed the wall was liberally decorated with retro-reflectors for use with laser surveying equipment, as it seems to be breaking up and shifting, or subsiding.

One part of the façade still appeared to be ‘interesting’ and is pictured below.

I’ve no info, but I’m guessing this is the offices/admin section.

At least they’ve managed to keep some original windows!

Shawfield Stadium

I saw inside the place for the first time recently.

I didn’t realise there was a vehicle/works entrance, roughly on the opposite side of the track compared to this view.

There’s an anonymous set of plan steel gates there, usually shut tight, but lying open when I passed a few days ago.

Afraid I was far away (closer to the river) when I spotted this (headed elsewhere), and completely forgot to look back later, and maybe have got a pic – assuming the gates were still open by then.

Update

I did get back when the gates were open.

Maybe they’re always open when the place is not holding an event. I don’t know, I’m just not here often enough.

Shawfield Stadium Back Door

Another little fixer-upper

I was surprised to pass this little ‘project’ yesterday.

First spotted a few weeks ago, it was lying in the same place when I was able to take advantage of a shortcut through some woods as I was out in daylight for a change. Although this path can save me a little time, I’m seldom able to use it from October to March as it’s almost in the middle of nowhere and pitch dark, and the signs of drinkers etc are there to be seen. It’s bad enough using it in daylight, when you meet dog-walkers and their mad, barking, drooling pets that seem to think you are their next meal, but I draw the line at a pack of boozers and gas-sniffers in the dark.

Sad, but it looks typical of today’s poverty-stricken kids (you have seen the media, currently on a high telling us that most of Scotland’s children live in poverty). Unfortunately this is not ‘real’ poverty, where you have no money for food, clothes, or a home, but politically defined poverty, where your income is below an arbitrary line drawn below the average wage.

The poor little mite had a puncture, and could not fix it, so had to go home and ask for a new bike – so driving the family still deeper into ‘poverty’.

Nor could they be asked to show the world how poor they are, and go collect and – horror of horrors – have the puncture REPAIRED!

Much better to leave it for some really poor kid – they can ride it on the rim and pretend they’re rich for a while.

Little Project Bike

Food fit for a king

I forgot I’d forgotten all about this gem

Promising ‘Food fit for a king’, we have to assume the king succumbed to starvation long ago, as The Indian Place has been closed for years, which is how long I tried to get a decent pic.

I’d come to forget about it for many of those years as the building was covered with scaffolding, and although I’d tried, I couldn’t get a decent pic of either the sign above the door, or even the façade.

But, a recent wander down that way (in daylight!) revealed the place was in the open, and almost in clear view.

My favourite part is still the sign above the door, with its ‘Food fit for a king’ statement.

The Indian Place Door Sign

There’s now a decent view of the façade too.

The place was up for sale or let for a while, hence the two vertical straps over the right part of the sign, but it looks as if they’ve given up (or somebody pinched that sign).

Looks as if the larder was upstairs, and some of the fresh food was left behind!

The Indian Place

Busy Baillieston

Thanks to the less than spring-like wintry weather of recent weeks, and some other problems, Baillieston has been out-of-bounds recently, so I’ve not been able to watch the changes there in detail.

But they’ve been going on, even without me watching.

The old Airdrie Savings Bank building on the main road polished up quite well, and the overflowing coffers filled from the sale of overpriced coffee in paper cups, it seems to have been the first past the finishing line.

I wonder what the small shops think of this ‘chain shop’ being parachuted in think?

I’m still needing to be convinced that (what I think are) the economics of this operation can be viable in this location. Soaves had to give up the bigger shop it took just across the road (I see that now has a sign showing it has been taken by someone, so we’ll have to see what appears there) and move back to sharing space in a smaller shop along the road – one which this place could maybe kill.

Airdrie Savings Bank Building Redevelopment

I’ll never be inside (this incarnation at least) so here’s the “Nose pressed against the glass” view of the interior.

Interior

Along the road, the Baillieston Credit Unit takeover of the old Chamber’s shop is still ambling along.

The scaffolding is gone, the former little barber’s shop has been reconstructed, and the ground behind is now being worked on.

Chambers Redevelopment

Still further along the road, and with just under a month to go, Lidl’s refurbishment is presumably all going according to plan, and it will reopen on the 17 May.

It will be interesting to see what takes so long to change inside what is effectively a big shed with open floor space for self-service shelves and rack for the customers, and a few checkouts, plus stores area out of sight.

It doesn’t (or should I say didn’t) really look all the different from the most recent stores built nearby – or, frankly, from Aldi, which also brought a new store in, nearby-ish.

Maybe the real change lies under the skin, and the redevelopment is more to do with the fabric of the building, and the equipment etc instilled, replacing old, tired equipment with more efficient and newer hardware.

Lidl Refurbishment

Oh look – a TXY

Quite a few taxis float around Glasgow city centre with interesting registration numbers on show (there goes the ‘poor taxi driver’ myth up in flames 😉 ), but I’m seldom able to add many of them to my collection as they’re usually in too much of a hurry, and I can’t get a camera out and warmed up in time.

I’ve got one or two lost somewhere in my archives, generally caught when the traffic lights have managed to change to red far enough in advance of their arrival. I’ve missed quite a few that should have been easy picking in traffic jams – but far from making them easy to catch, the number is usually hidden by the nose-to-tail traffic, and it can be hard to pick the right place to stand to catch it as the flow opens up. Usually they just shuffle forward a few at a time on green (thanks to the morons that block the box junction, apparently an offence that no-one is ever going to be fined for again), and I give up as it just takes to long.

It’s a lot easier when they’re parked up somewhere, and you can sneak up on them from behind!

Taxi [S2 TXY]

Today is Lost Dog Awareness Day

23 April is Lost Dog Awareness Day.

As I say, we may be cat-centric here, but that doesn’t mean we don’t like our cousins.

Sometimes furry family members go out into the world on a grand adventure, intending to return home, but for whatever reason unable own to find their way.

Help them by getting them microchipped. And make sure you have plenty of recent photos too.

Find out about local and national lost pest help services in your area too.

I came across this cartoon, and was amused to see it reflected my attitude to getting ‘lost’ when we on holiday at the seaside.

The police picked me up as they thought I was too small to be wandering around on my own, but were left lost for words when I didn’t break down into tears because they thought I was ‘lost’, and didn’t really have an answer when I told them I wasn’t lost, my mum was.

Lost

Good job they didn’t try the ‘Bogeyman Routine’ to keep me in my place.

My mother had to tell other mothers NOT to say things like “Don’t got there, the bogeyman will get you!” when I was nearby, because I’d be off to go find him.

Those pics of resurfacing around parked cars?

They’re real! (Or at least some of them are).

I know cos I got one 🙂

I’d forgotten all about this, which I was lucky enough to catch one night, albeit with a tiny pocket compact camera.

I’m better at pulling these images out of the gloom now, so this moved from ‘Not Really Useable’ to ‘Useable’.

I generally doubt pics like this, as they tend to go viral on social media, or somehow become suspiciously popular when reported by the media. I’m not necessarily saying they’re not genuine pics, but I suspect their popularity is due less to any interest there may be in them, than in someone, or some company, frantically ‘pushing’ them.

Anyway, this one is quite genuine, I know, I was there!

Road Works and cones and resurfacing (not)

Hairdresser?

Assuming this is a hairdresser’s car, is it for a successful hairdresser that fixes this, or far a failed hairdresser that causes it?

BMW [FR11 ZZY]

(It’s been shuffled onto an Audi since being caught here).

The giant tartan octopus of Millerston Street

At least I think it’s based on an octopus. It’s a little hard to tell for sure, but since squid also have two arms, and I can’t make this detail out, I’m going with octopus.

There is always another option…

Mutant bagpipes!

Tartan Octopus

Today is Tea Day

21 April is Tea Day.

See National Tea Day

”You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”
~ C.S. Lewis

Seem fair.

There’s not much I can say about this one, having been an addict from the cradle onward.

I have only complaint, the revolting muck some people brew up and apply the term ‘tea’ to nowadays – stinking infusions of disgusting substance that have as much relation to tea as vegans have to sanity.

So-called ‘herbal tea’ – hot water knocked stupid by being infused with herbs, or spices, or other plants… is NOT TEA.

Don’t ever offer that to me if you don’t want to wake up later with the words “What hospital is this?” on your lips.

(Sorry, but I am Glaswegian).

InfiniTea