Flat
Currently Listening To: Runaway Train from the album "Grave Dancers Union" by Soul Asylum
A family just came to see the flat, in amongst a flurry of last minute bidding. It was the wife and child of the dude who had come a few days earlier who was a mac user . We chatted about panther and whatnot and I felt that I wanted the flat to be sold to a mac user :)
Anyhow instead of simply getting out of the way entirely I spoke to the family and spent some time on my own walking through the flat, glancing at the ceilings and corners that I normally wouldn't look twice at. Their child was a son, aged 2. Close to the same age I had been when I first lived in this flat and seeing him happily pad about reminded me of how much fun I had in this flat and how much it is a part of me. I talked to the couple about how close St. James's Park was for walks (I had been wheeled there in my push-chair often as a child) and other things related to the area.
The mother asked me why we were selling it and what part I disliked the most. I thought for a while and there isn't anything I dislike about the flat. The reason for its sale is easy but not why I would want it sold because I wouldn't.
When they left and I went around the flat turning off all the lights that I had to switch for each viewing I felt a deep sadness. Their child who was running happily from father to mother uttering the quietest of gurgling laughs was about as close an approximation of myself at that age as could be mustered. I felt the biting pain of sorrow as I remembered how happy I was and how lovely life had been at that age.
This flat, in the few minutes I spent strolling it's halls extinguishing lights, was representative of what I'd lost and breaking the NATP, it hurt.
I called my mother, still can't talk to her properly but she's coming down on thursday and we're going to have chinese and see the British Museum (thank god for Ken Livingstone, Free London museums :D).
Chiara's bf/whatever/scrub came round today and they caught a train back to colchester, he's short and scruffy and was too hung over to catch the trains he was allocated for the journey here so in the end they left rather later than expected in an effort to avoid the rush hour.
However on her visit she furnished me with a great many CD's which I duly ripped. Athlete's brilliant album Animans and Vehicles, The Coral's self-titled album and Bluetones' The Singles album. All are mighty and decent listening.
Got another email from Helen which was nice. I love talking to her, even if its just by text. She's swamped by her PPE course and the fact that she has to walk for 40 minutes to get to university to even have a chance of accessing the internet but she still finds time to email me.
Chiara's new phone is really snazzy. Its all thin and stuff and colourful and light. Mine in comparison is a sledgehammer but I like my C35 :) If there's a free phone on some nice contract I might be persuaded to switch but that's speculative and probably not the wisest thing to do (the last thing I need is further obligations).
Panther still hasn't arrived much to my (and Kev's) chagrin. I sincerely hope that it arrives soon or I'll have to get all pissed off and call apple to find out what the hell TNT is doing. Can't people just use the flipping Parcel Force (normal royal mail package delivery) its fast, efficient and never screws you around! Amazon.co.uk does.
Right. I'm going to listen to some more music and probably play some WWIIOL
Later
John
Posted by John Swaine at October 28, 2003 08:10 PM