With every blessing comes a cross … let’s talk about the Woodbridge Pathway.
Sited to the east of the main road this pathway is thus elevated, giving a splendid view across the d’Entrecasteaux Channel to Bruny Island.
Of late, in the local print media, there has been a rumble of discontent because someone, unknown, let the anonymous writer’s tyre down while allegedly their car was parked over the Woodbridge Pathway on market day. This pic. above, is not the occasion, nor are the people depicted the writers of a Letter to the Editor in the local print media. It appears the problem of inappropriate parking occurs only on the market day.
By going to the bottom of Page 5, Letters to the Editor under, “Tyre_Link_Not_So_Funny” you can read what the anonymous writer has to say. I shall come back to this letter shortly.
Then we had the next cab off the rank in my long time friend; Ted of Flowerpot with a well constructed letter to the same editor used by the aggrieved motorist. This letter gets to the point where the advice becomes a bit shaky; such as placing polite notes under the windscreen wiper blade. This suggests the errant motorist mends their ways when next he or she comes the Woodbridge way.
(When was the last time anyone saw a parking meter attendant place a polite note under your wiper blade suggesting you do not park overtime in future.)
The Woodbridge market became a reality not that long after the pathway went in which would be about seven or eight years ago. While never considering letting air out of tyres I too wrote polite notes
and popped them elegantly under the wiper blade. All to no avail. Together with the ill-behaved locals they use this area to make illegal U turns across double white lines that in the execution sprays heaps of gravel over the pathway. This still happens though nowhere near as bad or as crass.
It can’t be said these miscreants were not told as I wrote a fortnightly Crikey Dot Ken Newsletter that pointed out, many times, the error of these motorists’ ways. Having given up my vigil and polite notes I began to see other notes, slightly less polite, appearing. It’s only of late the tyre letting-down has blossomed.
I suppose it’s just like torture; one can only stand so much. I don’t know who is doing this tyre letting-down. After-all the tyres tampered with are only flat at the bottom!
The pathway is only there by the dedication of a few Woodbridge folk plus the then Kingborough Council Manager. Is it any wonder some of the local folk get a bit stroppy.
In this period I had another good Woodbridge friend from about 40 years back which drew both of us, independently, to live in Woodbridge. About the time the pathway went in my good friend, who was
even a better friend than Ted of Flowerpot, suffered a stroke. In his rehabilitative phase this man took shuffling walks sometimes without the need of his dedicated minder. It must have been empowering just having to shuffle out his front gate, as he was on the northern edge of the pathway.
Once he navigated the gravel thrown up by the delinquent U-turn lawbreakers he was away. What a great outcome for the next few years. He never complained about market days if vehicles kept him home.
Ted_From_Flowerpot under “Tyre Prank Not So Funny,” page 7 is so kind I nearly shed a tear. Especially as Ted, my old friend, is going in to bat for a group of individuals who are often portrayed as
self-centred, rude, greedy and frequently known to be belligerent. So much, that they should be hauled in under the ‘Acting To Incite Violence’ Bill – not all motorists but far too many. We to are all guilty by association. It was with great relief when I gave in my licence to drive a vehicle.
Now returning to the anonymous letter writer. This writer (myself) was likely to be the only one that spoke to this sinned-upon motorist that market day. As I walked north along the pathway towards the
market I noticed all the vehicles were parked intelligently bar one. That vehicle was just disgorging two occupants.
The front over-hang of their vehicle took up about one third of the path width. Not a big deal though the wheels were in such a position that if the wheeled tyre was a tennis ball at Wimbledon, and the pathway was the court then it would be declared ‘in’.
In my normal cheery manner I said something like this. “I want to thank you both for visiting Woodbridge today.” Then a short pause and, “It’s good of you to help us with our economy.”
No smiles.
So I added, “Someone, I don’t know who, sometimes lets tyres down if motorists park over the pathway.”
Was that the same person that went into print? Can’t be sure. The dates line up. Their car was the only one that had a portion of the vehicle on the pathway. Most likely it was those mirth-less
two that wrote the letter. The writer conveniently forgot to mention he had been warned which would have implicate him a little; nor did he say he was parked over a footpath.
This couple never said they were advised not to park thus and still the call goes out to give them a polite note in exchange for a flat tyre. Oh to be imbued with that sort of faith in human nature?
You win some and you lose some.
PS: Since last week Jennifer, as the owner of the Market lease, has discovered a batch of witches hats, bollards and bunting that do an admirable job of marshalling the ever welcome drive-in drive-out daytrippers.
