More Dereliction
I have added some more photos to the Derelict Set.
Demountable dwellings are often provided to citizens when their own houses become too derelict to live in. The lucky citizen can have the demountable erected on their own land to save them the trouble of moving. The picture above shows a derelict demountable so we’re really pushing the boundaries of dereliction now.
A story goes that one time my grandfather was out walking when he was caught short. Spying a derelict house nearby he took advantage of its cover to relieve himself. It was only after he had completed his business and was turning to leave that he noticed a little old woman sitting in the corner. Derelict as it was, the house had not yet been abandoned. What happened next I don’t know. As I say, so the story goes.
A similar thing happened to me on one of my outings. I was happily snapping a house that appeared to all intents and purposes to be abandoned (and was in a worse state than many of those in the set) when suddenly a little peaked cap appeared out from behind the front door. The first thought that went through my head was that I was very far from civilization should a shotgun be attached to the owner of the peaked cap and a cry for help be emitted from the slum tourist. But as I beat a hasty retreat, my thoughts turned from fear for my own safety to a little guilt that I had probably frightened this man so much that he wouldn’t sleep easy for several nights. I felt helpless to rectify the situation. I didn’t even feel I could approach the man.
There are parts of this country that will be forever impenetrable.
Mark Waters marked time at 10:21 pm on February 20th, 2007 .
