Walking with a pram
Yesterday we had negotiated a reduced price for a pram / buggy with the man in the Red Cross charity shop. He eventually agreed to sell us one for £10.00. Our idea was to use as our art form an activity which is common in the streets: eg pushing a pram.
Today upon returning to the shop we asked if we could hire out the pram instead but were refused. Eamonn explained that he only had the baby a short time. We had to buy, and eventually did with good grace. Then the fun began as two of the staff showed us how to adjust the seat, put on the plastic hood and lengthen the extending handles. It was quite a performance.
Shortly after leaving the shop we stopped outside the hairdressers to readjust the plastic hood. This is a hairdressers with a long window onto the street, in front of which we always do a short crazy walk as we pass. In the middle of our struggles the proprietor of the hairdressers came out and kindly offered her assistance. Presumably she thought there was a hapless child on board when she spotted us from inside.
We eventually went on our way, proudly wheeling our new acquisition. On the escalator of the Richmond Centre I remarked that pushing a pram and negotiating such features as these moving stairs took a bit of practice. Eamonn suggested L plates. After purchasing these from the Motor supplies shop we moved off down Ferryquay Street with more specific roles. Eamonn was instructing me in the art of pram pushing. He explained that there was no designated right of way. You could walk on the left or right of the pavement - unlike cars on the road. It was a matter of negotiation between you and oncoming prams. Pedestrians usually made way. We went up some steps, Eamonn demonstrating a tip and level off method he had recently observed.
This was a fun experience, very relaxing. We tended to walk slower, and noticed how many other prams there actually were - and how varied the makes. Eamonn chatted to other pram pushers, asking about the lessons they had had and training in pram pushing.
Afterwards we debated the merit of adding the L plates. It gave roles and indicated a purpose for our behavior. Without the L plates we were requiring observers to do more work in deciding what two middle-aged men were doing with a pram. Unlikely looking baby sitters. And then for those who realized the pram was empty below the hood!
Strolling along behind a pram relaxes soul and body,
The flowing movement, slow and calm, comfortababobby.
The innocence, propriety, belonging in a culture
Of care and friendly nurturance, home, family and luvultra.
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