Charity Shops Galore

Sunday is the one day of the week when I give token allegiance to the care of the environment, leave the car behind and travel by bus. The fact that I have a free senior travel card could also be a factor! The trip to the Quaker Meeting House that I attend is only about one mile. It is situated at the end of Mutley Plain in Plymouth.

Mutley Plain

The Plain must be the charity shop capital of the country with no less than seven outlets within one hundred yards of each other.

In this shot there are actually three next to each other

Only the YMCA (Young Men's Christian Association) is open on a Sunday morning and I often drop off a load of tat there. Usually it is no longer required DVD's, video films and books. Whilst there I always pick up a light book to read at the bus stop where I have a half hour wait. Last week it was a volume of incredibly silly signs, which amused me. As I spend a considerable time in South Florida one that appealed to me was from the Everglades:

THOSE WHO THROW OBJECTS AT THE GATORS WILL BE REQUIRED TO RETRIEVE THEM

Today it was "The Biggest Book of Bloke Jokes Ever". My partner thought it was hilarious and I just had to accept that we men can laugh at being the butt of female humour! One that did amuse me was:

How do you kill a bloke?

Ask him to jump off his ego and land on his IQ.

On a more serious note, there is a lot of animosity from the regular business community against the proliferation of charity shops. The charity outlets do not pay business rates and many of them now sell new stuff as well as goods handed in by the general public. When they first opened they were fully staffed by volunteers but now most have salaried managers who are urged to meet sales volume targets. I have some sympathy with the business commuunity on this point.

Mutley Plain is just four hundred yards from the main university campus and the area is well patronised by the large student population. The rest of the street is made up of fast food outlets, bars and night clubs and agencies marketing student accommodation. At weekends the place is a hive of activity with a good presence of the law. The charity shops provide a good service to students on a tight budget but, on quite a lot of occasions, I have seen goods priced well in excess of what they cost new in Poundland (same as Dollar stores in the USA).

"Caveat emptor".