Crying

Today I cried for the first time in ages. Why?

My best friend left London today. Not just London, he left the UK. Now let's just get things in perspective, it's not the first time he's been out of the country for an extended period. But this time it's different cause this time I think it's forever.

He and his wife have gone on a once in a lifetime trip around the world which is due to last 6 months. 6 months is nothing really. There are people I don't see for 6 months and I couldn't care less. However this, is different. I think they'll find that they belong somewhere else, that they can have a better life somewhere else. I don't blame them if that is the case, but selfishly I'll be sad. It's not something that happens often, that 2 guys meet and become friends and 15 years later they are still in the same place, still knocking about together, talking shit and getting drunk. But there are the friendships that only happen once in a lifetime.

So, my best mate is gone for a while. I hope that whatever happens to him on his travels only enriches his life. But I'll miss him. We only met maybe every 2 or 3 weeks. In a pub in Wimbledon with a grumpy Scottish barmaid who sounded like she smoked 300 fags a day. But it was always good fun and we always put the world to rights. I hope we can again. Maybe, since he'll have seen more of the world, we'll be able to put more of it to rights!

So I wrote this after much cider and whiskey. That perhaps has amplified my normal emotional response. But so what? I don't care.

I don't mind admitting I had a good cry tonight (not very manly or macho I know).

Everyone cries. About different stuff. Life affects us in different ways, some cry at the birth of their first child, some because Celtic lost the old firm game at the weekend. Today, I don't mind admitting, I cried because my best friend, Colin, left.

Tommorrow I'll be back to my hard-hearted self no doubt.