Pigeons, street sweepers and the Jesus Army

Northampton is plagued by pigeons. And they're not shy, either. You can practically step on them, and this morning while I was out, one of them just grazed my head. but I guess that's what happens when everyone and their mother is out shopping- there's no place for the pigeons- or people- to move. And on that line, why would any city council tell its street sweepers to hop on their little machines and clean the same streets that are clogged with people out shopping? It's nuts. I was stuck walking behind this one sweeper for a while, and he must've been drunk or something, because he couldn't drive in a straight line. People here are pretty well trained to get out of the way of an oncoming sweeper, so it's not like this guy was dodging someone. He'd drive towards the right for a while, then veer over to the left for a bit... and he'd miss rubbish too! Weird. And to complete the weirdness, the Jesus Army was out in full force. As I was walking one way down the high street, a bunch of them were handing out the usual "Jesus Loves You" pamphlets. When I came back when I was done with my shopping, 8 or 10 of them were singing "This is the Day that the Lord has Made" and rattling tambourines and pounding on cheap little plastic bongo drums. It was like something out of North Carolina. Here I am, on this beautiful cobblestone street with trees lining the sides, giving shade to the shops, and a bunch of Jesus Freaks are banging on toy drums singing their lungs out.... England really isn't that different!