BETHLEHEM MAN BUILDS SIX-FOOT SCARECROW TO STOP U-TURNS, THEN POSTS APOLOGY VIDEO FOR IT
The scarecrow is called Nigel. Nigel is not going anywhere. The man behind Nigel is, apparently, on a journey.
Guys. Guys. I never thought I'd have to make this video.
deep breath
A Bethlehem man who built a six-foot scarecrow on his verge to stop drivers doing U-turns has now posted a fourteen-minute apology video to his 340 Instagram followers. In it, he apologises for the scarecrow, the verge, and at one point the concept of driveways.
The man, Rhys Kettering, 41, told The Daily Yarn the scarecrow went up last Tuesday after the twenty-third U-turn of the month scuffed his kerb. "To my community, I am so sorry," Kettering said, reading from his phone. "I've been doing the work. I did not consider how Nigel might make people feel." Asked if Nigel was coming down, Kettering said no. "Nigel stays. But I'm growing alongside Nigel."
Neighbour Delwyn Frost, who lives opposite, said she nearly drove into a hedge on Thursday after mistaking Nigel for a bloke in the dusk. "Thought it was Rhys standing there. Waved at him. He didn't wave back. Then I remembered Rhys waves at everything." Delwyn said the U-turns had, in fairness, stopped. "No-one wants Nigel watching them three-point."
Tauranga City Council confirmed it had received "a number of enquiries" about Nigel but could not determine whether he was signage, sculpture, or a person. A spokesperson said the matter had been referred to the bylaws team, who were "still deciding if he counts".
Kettering closed the video by thanking his community for holding him accountable and directing viewers to the links below for his new course on accountability. Nigel, at time of filing, has a raincoat on.
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Reader Letters
Trev_Hornby
Mate, he's rooted.
tired_in_riccarton
This isn't even the strangest thing that's happened in Bethlehem. Remember the time someone painted those sheep blue? Still, you can't be letting scarecrows govern traffic now, can you?
MumOf3_Tauranga
Honestly, I think Nigel's the hero we didn't know we needed. If people were doing U-turns at my gate, I'd get a scarecrow too.
Sandra McKenzie
Doesn't Nigel fall under the 'advertisement' category? Tauranga bylaws are clear on unauthorized signage.
local_barry
@Sandra McKenzie Sorry Sandra, but you're wrong. Nigel's clearly a work of art, not an ad. No one's selling anything but community spirit!
angry_bob
People need to get a grip. It's a bloody scarecrow, not a nuclear power plant.
kerbed_karen
@angry_bob Mate, it might not be a nuclear plant but it scared poor Delwyn into a hedge!
couchgremlin
Lol, Nigel for mayor?
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