Oxford (3): The Headington Shark
You find the funniest things in the strangest places, sometimes.
We had a long discussion at a pub on graduation night about the Headington Shark. In Headington (only a few miles from Oxford), a man decided--for unknown reasons--to put a fake gigantic shark through his roof.
None of that was a typo.
The city council fought him on it for 5+ years and finally gave up. Which is how the shark now has a permanent residence in Headington.
The discussion (with three of Eli's friends) was long and complex. The neighbors must all hate it, we agreed, but what could they do about it? I suggested they put animals through their own roofs (a giraffe, for example) in hopes of driving down the shark's novelty. We went into such detail that it almost approached Shaq v Gorilla complexity.
The next morning, Eli 24.4 was running 30k as part of his Zimbabwe training program. I felt quite ill, but couldn't stand the thought of being in the room for hours while he was running, so I decided to go see the shark. About six miles, round trip.
Less than a quarter mile from Nuffield, I passed a prison nearly a thousand years old, which had tours prominently advertised. In fact, I could go in and see one in ten minutes.
Let's see. Thousand year old prison, full of history and unforgettable lore? Or a shark through a roof?
It was an easy choice. Off to Headington.
What they don't tell you about Headington, though, is there's not much else to see in Headington. Not the part I was in, at least. And once you've walked nearly three miles to see a shark, and you look at it for thirty seconds, there isn't much to do except turn around and go back.
That thirty seconds, though, was glorious:
That's not a small shark, as you can clearly see. I both felt awe at the sheer zany stupidity of it all and tremendous empathy for the neighbors who have to put up with it.
Greatness, as always, has its costs.
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