I was alarmed several years ago to be confronted with “Live Free or Die” the official motto of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. Adopted by the state in 1945 it is emblazoned on every car and motorcycle license plate. The only Tyneside equivalent I could think of was ‘Shop at Binns’, which at one time was on the back of every Bus. Great advertising, not that it did Binns any good.

‘Spa Access’. People familiar with the area will know that there is no Spa, nor has there been in living memory, so why the sign? Perhaps when the Council were considering what to do with the old Tynemouth open air pool, they toyed briefly with the idea of a Spa, then discovered they had not enough money. No one told the sign makers though.

Somewhere sometime when the powers that be were drafting legislation, there must have been a line which read. “Where traffic bumps are present, exact indication must be given as to their length, so that motorists have sufficient warning”

You could produce a whole catalogue of Ships as seen from neighbouring Tyneside Streets. Perhaps it’s already been done.

Foxes have been living at Fish Quay for a long time now. This morning, about 6:45, a fox ran in front of me, could only have been ten feet away. There was the normal fitness boot camp going on at the time, but they were too busy with their exercises to notice anything.

Looks quiet now, but on Tuesdays and Thursday mornings between six and seven it’s a different story

The Newcastle Speakers Club existed to help people improve their public speaking. A voluntary self help organisation, it used to meet at the Swallow Imperial Hotel, Jesmond, now the Holiday Inn. Some great speeches, some great times.