The White Heather Wifie

When the topic of Aberdeen Tramps and Ither Weel Kent Fowk comes up, the White Heather Wifie is mentioned with alarming regularity. Indeed it seems that most people who go down town regularly are familiar with her ways.

However, for those uninitiated amongst you, I will henceforth attempt to portray the typical scene she would be involved in:

Scene: Ootside Markies. It is a fine balmy June afternoon. Shoppers cross
the stage from left to right and from right to left. Occasionally one stops to
buy a paper from the paper mannie. Offstage, a pan pipe band can be heard doing
battle with one of the local preachers. A scaffie stops his sweeping to chat to
a traffic warden and as an old man shuffles slowly towards the traffic lights,
seagulls flee out of his way, only to return to their prize find of a discarded
donut fae the greasy mannie in the market...

Enter stage left: A Tourist and His Girlfriend. Both
hold cameras. They point at the skyline and pause to photograph Union
Street.

Tourist: My what a fine afternoon in this splendid city!

Tourist's Girlfriend: Indeed! Such a joy to admire the granite architectural
marvels the likes of which we have never seen before. See here is a quaint
shopping square. Perhaps we should sit here on these quaint benches and partake
in a spot of refreshment?

Tourist: A perfect idea.

They sit and unwrap their sandwiches. The Tourist takes a photo of the
seagulls who have gathered expectantly at their feet.

Enter stage right: The Heather Wifie. She is aged possibly
between 50 and 60, however the ravages of time and alcohol have not been kind.
Her hair is grey and her face is a worrying shade of purple. She looks haggard
and wind beaten. She wears dark grey "slacks" and the same leather jacket she
wore in the 1980's. In her left hand she clutches some White Heather. Staggering slightly, she approaches the Tourist and the Tourist's
girlfriend.

White Heather Wifie (to tourist's girlfriend): Here you go dearie... Have
some Lucky White Heather! It's lucky you know!

Tourist's Girlfriend (hesitantly): Um... Thanks.

She accepts the heather.

White Heather Wifie: Now that'll be 50 pee!

The White Heather Wifie puts her hand out to demand the money.

Tourist's Girlfriend: Um. we don't have any change. Here you can have it
back.

White Heather Wifie: No! Give me 50 pee!!! Or I'll curse ye!

The Tourist grabs his girlfriend's hand and both make for the safety of
the St Nicholas Centre which we can see in the distance. Exit Tourist and
Tourist's Girlfriend.

The White Heather Wifie scrabbles on the ground for the white heather
which has dropped to the ground.

Fin.

Sadly, it has been some time since the White Heather Wifie has been seen! It was rumoured that she was caught "in flagrante" in public with another tramp but aside from that nobody seems to have seen her lately.

So it looks like I'll never be able to get a photo of her for you.

TRAMP WATCH

Have you seen White Heather Wifie lately or do you know of her whereabouts? If so, email me and let me know!

The Countesswells Hermit

Now for my second Aberdeen Tramp or Weel Kent Person, I could have gone for someone easy to describe... but today we were talking about how much we'd all love to just quit the rat race and go off and be at one with nature.

I think that in most cases this meant opening an organic brewery, or perhaps moving out to Strathdon or wherever and raising chickens in a cottage, cackling and having 15 cats. I just wanted to be a Hermit.

You know. I'd need a shack in the woods... An outfit made out of dead rabbits and some dog shit to throw at anyone who attempted to integrate me back into society.

Then I remembered The Countesswells Hermit!

The Countesswells Hermit is gaunt and leathery skinned but I feel he is a very learned man.

Most days he walks down the Countesswells Road, past the Seafield shops and towards Mannofield Church. There, behind the dyke near the new houses, he will find himself a spot on the grass, sit down, lean back against his enormous backpack (which may contain all his belongings but I would prefer to think contains the secrets of the universe) and here he reads the Press and Journal (or the Peenge as it's known in my social circle) or a large book, the cover of which is as leathery as his skin.

He walks everywhere. He is very fit, sometimes he is gaunt. He often walks all the way in to town. I've seen him in the central library,. Looking at newspapers and books.

He has stubble, he has cloudy spectacles. He holds himself humbly.


Where does he live?
What's in the backpack?
Why does he do it? Why does he live the way he does?

The world needs Hermits.
Some day I may go and join him!

The Gilcomston Tramp Part II

Now this particular tramp is a proper tramp. This is what I'm aiming for with this site. Not just your average begging-bloke-and-a-blanket. I think I should make a distinction. I'm not really interested in character-free beggars. Just Characters.

I like him. He's always there. Most of the time you pass he looks blearily at you and may even give a wee nod.

Mainly, he is always there... I think he's always been there! I bet in these books of old photos of Aberdeen that you buy for your dad roundabout Christmas time from the Press and Journal shop, there's a photo from 1941. The same guy. Sitting on the steps with a wee drink, doffing his flat cap.

If he's not on the church steps, he'll be a bit further up (sometimes up to the traffic lights or down to the banks. More often or not, you'll see him though.

Sometimes if I walk past and he's not there... I get worried and hope he's ok and just off buying some more drink and hasn't gone to the great cardboard box in the sky...

Now Gilcomston Church opened again on Sunday after its refurbishments. Hopefully they'll let him stay when he's not in the way. As you can see, he's made himself really comfy!

The Gilcomston Tramp (aka My Favourite Tramp)

Well on Saturday I went off into town with my digital camera. Off I went down Union Street, hoping to find someone of note.

Of course I got distracted by Christmas Shopping and I didn't make it down to "Ootside Markies" (which is practically a goldmine when it comes to hunting for Weel Kent Fowk) until it was dark. And I didn't fancy using my flash just in case I was rumbled as not just taking photos of lovely granite buildings!

Instead, while it was still dark, I headed straight for where I knew I would find what I was looking for. I headed for Gilcomston Church.

Now it's very seldom that you can describe a building, or perhaps a street, just using the tramps that sit around it. I was once taken to Tramp Park in Manchester by a lovely young man and would recommend it to anyone taking a tour of that fine city! In fact, it was twice this weekend when directions needed to be given and My Favourite Tramp came in handy as a point of location.

"Where is "The Filling Station"?" Go down Union Street from Holburn and it's just after the church with the tramp outside it.
"Ah yes! I know the one you mean!
"Which one is Summer Street?" You know the street that goes up the side of the church with the tramp outside it?
"Aaah yes! The one with the tramp!"

And here he is in his natural habitat:


My Favourite Tramp

Welcome!

Welcome Potential Readers!

To this, my first post on Aberdeen Tramps and Other Weel Kent Fowk.

The existance of this site is all due to a conversation we were having at work the other day about people you see about our fair city, Aberdeen, day in day out. Usually Tramps but also your buskers, street performers and religious ranters...

Sadly the discussion turned to people you don't see anymore, and how terrible it'd be if nobody was chronicling (how the hell do you spell that word) the lives of these people.

The White Heather Wifie...
The Aye Aye Wifie of King Street
The Squeaky White Statue Wifie Outside Markies.
That bloody brilliant Reggae Busker outside Markies
The marvellous Amazonas and their pan pipes.

You get the general picture.

So today I intend to go out into town today with my camera and see if I can find any of them. Just so that if anyone is having this conversation in 20 years time, "Fit ever happened to that auld tramp mannie that sat ootside thon church on Union Street?" Then they'll be able to use this site to reminisce.

I'm off out into town :)