Monday 7 November 2011

Unexpected gems


I snapped this delightful building whilst out on Stoke Newington Church Street on Saturday night.  The Cat and I had stopped to admire the fireworks bursting all around us when I spotted this lovely Georgian building with its old painted signs.  There's just something wonderfully quirky about the fact that they've shortened it to "fount" pens - I wonder if that was a common way of referring to fountain pens back whenever Walker Bros. were active.

Sadly, I didn't capture any fireworks on camera as we were too busy enjoying them.  We had no idea where they were being set off from but they seemed to be coming from all angles and at all distances - in front of us, behind us, way down at the end of the street - filling the air with smoke, colours and excitement.

I much rather that local, spontaneous experience of fireworks over going to scheduled fireworks displays.  Seeing them at a set time for a set period takes away some of the thrill of it.  I love the element of surprise in random firework displays, and the fact that you keep hearing them go off, near and far, all night long.  I used to think I'd gone off fireworks but I realise it's just the jostling crowds and "organised fun" element of them that I don't like.  Rugged up on an autumn evening, on the way to the pub to meet friends, with a loved one beside you and the air full of whizzing and popping and sparkling rain - that's special!

7 comments:

  1. Old signs - and even just signs that telegraph the notion that they could be well aged - are something that I commonly find myself drawn to as well. The abbreviation on this one is quite charming indeed, and reminds me a bit of how sometimes on older signs one sees first and/or last names shorted (e.g., Wm. instead of William).

    Many thanks for your lovely comment today, it's always delightful to hear from you, sweet gal.


    Joyful Monday wishes!!!
    Jessica

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  2. It looks lovely in that light!

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  3. Love all the "decorations". Yes, Kate, the light is perfect. The "fount" made me stop to think about the meaning of "fountain". Interesting. Spontaneous fireworks - remember Errin setting off a couple on Moore Park hill? A whole new thing. Well, old thing really. And in "Subway" the girl & Christopher Lambert(yum!)watch a welder sending sparks flying in the dark ... like fireworks. An unexpectedly moving scene.

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  4. Jessica - I like the abbreviation of names as well. They do that in old documents that I've come across in archives too. It can trick you when you're already looking at old handwriting and then the name's not in full either!

    Kate and Susan Janet - Yes, I loved the way the light picked up as well.

    Susan Janet - I wonder if fountain pens are something to do with the fact that the ink is spouting from the source, like a fountain? The other option back then would have been pens dipped into ink so that seems possible?

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  5. Yes, Miss Marie, I like your idea about the different options for pens "back then"!

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  6. thank you! sounds like a lot of fun! that building is so pretty- I love old brick work:)

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  7. Wow! What a gorgeous building. I absolutely love it.

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