Friday 28 March 2008

Shoe scraper


Back in the good old days, there was co tarmac on the roads, no concrete, no cement, just dust, dirt, mud and slush (and plenty of manure). Before they entered their house, people would scrape their feet on this metal blade, still found outside the main gate of many houses in the town centre, always placed diagonally. This street has been repaved - rather than pull it out, the workmen left the scraper as it was, to allow the next generation to wonder what its use might have been. The house this scraper belongs to is in a southern suburb; the house was probably built in the 60s, and is maintained in the most basic manner so that it can be let out to economic migrants. It was probably whitewashed in its youth, but now it has been painted over with green vinyl paint.

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