Who said that parabolic dish antennas are ugly? All it takes is a little carpentry and a perfectly serviceable dish antenna can be built from wood and common materials. I found this example at a local thrift shop:
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the clever tilt and swivel mounting arrangement, also made from wood. The design is light weight, cheap, easy to assemble, aesthetically tolerable, and can potentially produce a substantial signal gain. Since there was no obvious antenna feed, I'm guessing it was used as a reflector, with a radio or access point at the focus.