Worn out ....

Through in Edinburgh today to get J's nose pierced. Enough said about that really. I'm all for him exploring his individuality though so I wasn't going to refuse him. I remember how I felt as a teenager when my Mum banned me from going out of the house in my home-bleached jeans with torn knees and frayed hems. However, it just doesn't feel right to look at my boy and see a ring of metal through one of his nostrils because to me he's still my baby. I'll get used to it though I'm sure.

We were walking down the Royal Mile to the Body Art shop when we passed a statue that I have seen often. But today I noticed something I hadn't seen before. A wee lad was hanging onto the statue's toe and when he took his hand away I saw that the metal had been worn away exposing the bronze (I think) underneath. Of course it wasn't the wee lad who had caused this - this was done over years much like Greyfriar's Bobby's nose. I wondered if this was another Old Town tradition I hadn't known about. The stroking of Bobby's nose seems to be one, and spitting on the Heart of Midlothian another. Is rubbing David Hume's toe also something that must be done every time you pass him?