Category Archives: Friends

Friends Reunited

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The end of my summer holidays is looming closer, and I haven’t written a thing that has happened over the last one and a half months. There is so much to write about I don’t think I’ll be able to work through the backlog with enough time to do the whole period justice, so I’ll just summarize a few of the more interesting happenings over the next few entries.

Meanwhile, Jo and I have recently succumbed to the social networking site that is Facebook. It was only a matter of time before we signed up to one the various social networks out there, and it was an invitation from Ralph that got us hooked. And we are hooked.

Thanks to Facebook I have finally found two people with whom I had lost contact: my best friend at secondary school, Mike, and his brother, Adrian. As well as spending many evenings roaming the local area with Mike, we all lived and worked together in 1987, at their parents’ then recently purchased pub in Shropshire.

It just remains to catch up with them and the other long-lost acquaintances I have found through the site. This, in itself, is quite a feat, considering the gap of between ten and twenty years history we need to exchange.

Freya’s Good Taste

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I’m so pleased that Freya has a special friendship with Jack. Not only is it wonderful for our daughter to be one with another child, but it has also led to our socialising with Jack’s parents, Mark and Sara.

It has been a very long time since I have found others with whom I can truly relax, the conversation never appears forced, and I never feel an awkwardness in the (few) moments of silence.

Within the past few weeks we have got together a number of times, and I feel like our relationship could develop into a strong friendship. And it only took Freya to show me the possibility.

Hooked On Classics

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At the moment it is quite fashionable to put on concerts with a live orchestra and play music from videogames old and new. Actually, I wouldn’t say fashionable, more that there are two different tours currently making their way across America and Europe. One is “Video Games Live” who, according to their website, are scheduled to play Sweden sometime this year, and the other is “Play! A videogame symphony“, who played in Stockholm this afternoon. Jo and I were there.

The public was made up of a large amount of gamers, along with a sprinkling of normal concert goers. I have no idea what they (or for that matter the orchestra) thought of the event. Some of the pieces are taken from modern games that are already orchestrated, so I can imagine it’s not so different; however, the retro pieces/melodies are, because of the audio limits of the time, a different kettle of fish. I wondered a few times throughout the concert if the orchestra members were bored because of the (assumed) simplicity of the songs. Arne Roth, the director, did say that the Mario Theme was one of the trickiest to perform, so perhaps it is not at the case.

I enjoyed the whole concert immensely; not only to be presented with game music in a way my ears are not accustomed to, but the surreality of it all. It felt wonderful to be surrounded by folk who have chosen to be a part of geekdom for a few hours on a Saturday afternoon.

Whilst we were there Freya was spending the afternoon with Jack. When she woke up in the morning she was pretty much ready to go, standing around with her bag full of toys to take with her. When we eventually did go (the wait must have seemed like an eternity) she had absolutely no problem with our leaving her. We hadn’t expected her to, but she almost seemed happy to be rid of us.

We had planned to pick up Freya after the concert and go home to an important football match, Denmark vs Sweden. On our arrival we were asked by Mark and Sara if we were hungry (always a yes, at that moment incredibly so). We accepted the offer of food and ended up staying a further 3 hours or so, enjoying their company fully.

Freya was very sad when we got ready to leave, wanting to stay over. It’s fantastic to know that Freya has such a friendship with Jack, and opens up the possibility of a safe haven for Freya in the future, when we go off to do similar “adult” things.

Teddybears’ Picnic And Back To Jack’s

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Freya had her first ever Teddybears’ Picnic today, which her school had arranged in a local park. She wanted her entire teddybear collection to be there with her on this very special day, which meant a somewhat encumbered Jo cycling to school in the morning with Freya and her friends.

The idea was that all the children were to sing “Teddybears’ Picnic”. Freya and I had practiced the song the few weeks previous to the gathering, but when it came to standing in front of the paparazzi parents, she and her best friend Jack refused to perform. It was a prime photo opportunity missed, but I understand her apprehension.

After the show, we headed off to Jack’s house, having received an invitation to dine there. I’d seen Jack and Freya playing at nursery school before, though this was the first time we got to see them for a prolonged period, and they really do have something going on. They are incredibly alike in so many ways: their looks, disposition, physical forms (except for the genitals), way of speaking.

Jo and I had an excellent time with Jack’s parents, Mark and Sara, and I can certainly see us meeting up for more social evenings like this one. It was easy to talk (maybe because it included a fair bit of chat about videogames), and they have very amiable personalities. Once again, I have been pleasantly surprised with an evening of socialising, which is filling up our diaries (and the blog) quite nicely.

Love Thy Neighbour

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Our neighbours below us (Janne, Lotta and their two year old daughter, Edla) came for a first date at our place tonight. As usual, Jo had been the one to make first contact with them a while back, but it took some time to get a date sorted that suited all.

Freya and Edla hit it off immediately, and played wonderfully until they grudgingly fell asleep at 12 o’clock. Much more of a surprise was Freya’s speditious acceptance of Janne, and she was soon sitting in his lap, playing with him. We don’t see Freya’s cautiousness with men a problem, but it’s always nice to see her involving male company in her world.

We adults got on well together, too. Whilst the girls sat on the balcony, drinking and talking, Janne and I did the stereotypical thing, and played Pro Evo Soccer 5 on the PS2. I hadn’t expected him to be into games, only because nearly everyone else I know of our generation has a completely neutral opinion about videogames, so it was excellent to find someone with a similar interest to my favourite past-time.

As it turns out, all four of us seem quite compatible. I only hope Jo and I are not some sad couple who overestimate other people’s opinions of us, and we end up happily ringing them to invite them to all kinds of things, while they try their best to avoid us and eventually move cities to be rid of us.