The Iron Tree

From Facebook Archives

27 February 2024 at 18:36

This morning at Ouseburn Farm we went on a goat walk.  

At one point the Farmlad said "I wonder if the iron tree is still there?"

"The what?" says I thinking it was some exotic species that had somehow found its way to Byker.

But no...

There it was ...

A tree with an iron hanging off it.

Quite high up as well.

It's not unusual to see things hanging off the trees under and around the Byker bridges: umbrellas, towels, cycle helmets, the occasional human, but the iron was a first.

A bit like the students’ shoe trees in Heaton, but with more lethal potential if it falls out.

I stopped to take a photo for my sister and Ferretfingers carried on walking with the group.

Two lady dog walkers of a certain age stopped when I pointed the iron tree out to them too

"It begs the question how it got up there" I said.

"It probably started out with a conversation ending in 'iron your own furking shirts then!'" replied one.

"Mind you" said the other "I do like a nicely ironed shirt on a man."

"Especially when he's ironed it himself" I agreed.

"Well, I have to admit" says the first with a faraway look in her eye "I do find there's something erotic about a man in a nicely ironed shirt."

Which was not something I expected to hear when I set out this morning.

I trotted down the hill to catch up with the goat walkers.

 

Wot can't speak can't lie - as mother used to say