Ah sure, it’s only harmless fun

Posted on November 27, 2006
Filed Under Outside Dublin, bureaucracy, funny ha ha, gambling, holiday, nature, stupidity, winter | Comments Off

Filling out official forms fills me with dread. Whether it’s because I’m too literal or too creative, I don’t know but these forms are the stuff of my nightmares. I hate bureaucracy but I recognise it has to exist so country people can get civil service jobs in Dublin. Thankfully, I’m clever enough that, when I get stumped by bureaucrats, I can get my own revenge by reading the rules etc. Then I can tie them in knots because paragraph 4 contradicts paragraph 7 or whatever. I always ask for their name at the start of the conversation because, strangely enough, they never tell me that tidbit at the end of the conversation.

Take the road signage in this photo, for example. I know it’s not form-filling but bear with me. I encountered these roadworks at the weekend and had a bit of a gigle at it. In Ireland, you’re supposed to physically stop your car at a stop sign and only then, proceed forward. It’s the law. So, I guess all drivers who passed these signs would have to stop and only then proceed through the green light. It would look like a giant congo line from a distance. It would look even better at night-time with all the brake lights going on/off/on/off etc. These road signs seem like a bit of overkill to me. Maybe that’s why Irish people are so lawless – they can see through all the blarney?

Oddly enough, I passed this spot a couple of months ago when the road works were just beginning. A local charity saw a fund-raising opportunity. So they wandered up and down the queued cars and asked the occupants to buy scratch cards. Since scratch cards are a form of gambling, I’m sure they had a licence from the local police station. The charity was a local one who helped those poor unfortunates who suffered from addiciton. Presumably addictions like gambling as well!

Oh well, only in Ireland.

It was a nice weekend. Even though it rained, the rain happened mostly at night so I got some nice photo’s during the day.