Knapsack

We liked to go a wandering back in the day, damn that tune is stuck there now!

When I was younger I’m not ashamed to admit to having periods of unemployment, hell the town where I lived lost over 4000 jobs overnight, I thought I was the lucky one as I had a placement in her majesty’s armed forces, well we all know how that worked out and with no plan B in my back pocket, I took what was offered. Some jobs lasted, some didn’t, it was the way it went, some might have been declared one or two were not, 99.9% were legal, I may have skirted some naughtiness in my youth, nothing I regret nothing that would get me locked up (hopefully).

My usual day was to go to the job centre when it opened again at lunch time and then about thirty minutes before they closed, in between that it was the usual hawking around industrial estates knocking on doors and being told sorry no vacancies, you get set into a routine and it helped me that I did  this, because believe me not everybody did some sponged off the Bank of Mum & Dad, mind you some did amazing things with very little money, we could have a wild weekend for a tenner, yes you got that right! I had mates who didn’t do any of this and they still survived, you do what you need to survive!

Most afternoons I would go for a stroll with my mates who were unemployed Basil and GP, always me and Basil, if GP was available he would tag along, I always wanted my mate A too tag along, but he didn’t do healthy things he preferred to stay in his garage and work on cars and stuff (which was fine) but we really were a happy little bunch of men, the beauty of where we lived helped, two minutes from my house and I was in the country side and I mean beautiful country side, in those days there was very little traffic and what there was, well you could hear it coming, we would dawdle through idyllic country lanes like a generation x version of last of the summer wine, walking talking and generally doing nothing else.

What did we talk about? well music, music and probably just a little bit more music, ok with a dash of female sensibility (who was hot and who was not) thrown in for good measure, what we were going to do with our nights out, who what and when, it may have been a small town but there were tons of places to go to, some we could go to in small groups some in larger groups, usually because at the time we all had long hair (well except GP who was a mod ….well I like to think he wasn’t a sheep so bucked the trend when he could) different places to go with girls, different places to see girls , ah you get the picture, we were all young once allegedly!

Sometimes we wouldn’t talk about anything sensible, we had our own sense of humour, we looked at things slightly different but we were on the same page as people, we knew right from wrong, not everybody could say that, there was no malice within our little group I may have been a misery at times, but I can say with all honesty my friends were simply  that, friends and they had nothing but good intentions, some people outside the group couldn’t understand that, it didn’t matter we stuck together through thick and thin, yes I was thin once and I was definitely thick!

Basil had a bad reputation, not with us, not because he was a bad person, but he had no social filter he told you like it is or was, he always told you what was on his mind (he was a drummer so you could kind of guess, bless him) although he didn’t know it at the time he helped me through many dark days possibly the worst time of my life and we very rarely had a cross word between us, we were usually on the same page about most things, I would say he was ahead of his time, progressive, me I was old fashioned I was then and I am still now.

These days stand out for what they were, a much simpler time before life dragged us apart and we all went our separate ways, I still see Basil occasionally and he does make me happy to see him, , however 13 years back in Gimpsville and he has never knocked on my door, At least A has knocked at my door and gone for a drink (usually when he needs something) once in a blue moon, those days are long gone, I wonder what we would talk about if we were to go wandering these days, I know we are different people, that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t like to resume what we had all those years ago, GP moved away, but is on Farcebook and we have reconnected (slightly) through that medium, its good to see how he has progressed, I feel that this has turned slightly melancholy, but for once in a happy way, not in a down in the dumps kind of way, that was not my intention, I have struggled to verbalise my feelings for those halcyon days, I do have fond memories, is it wrong for me to reminisce, I don’t see friends as much as I would like.

Now before anybody jumps in and says well you could always reach out, I have done and although my hand wasn’t slapped away, neither was it grasped, like I said we have all grown up and moved on it would appear that it’s only me that can’t let go of the past, in a good way that is. We all have lives family and the such like I wish all of my old friends from my circle in Gimpsville good thoughts and kind deeds, What do I have in my life I still have good friends , although we don’t see them as much as we would like for a multitude of reasons with us mainly financial, we live too far from of friends but that’s the pill for us to swallow, at least I have my memories and my music thankfully a constant, some good some bad and some truly horrific (hey I love the Spice Girls first album the metal mix that is)  now where do I go from here, well as always I simply take one step at a time and hopefully I have more good days than bad ones, maybe when we retire me, Basil and GP could go a wandering again, with a knapsack or two between us, until that time comes around ………………..Toodles!