The Summer of '93

Care giving time

"You're a bad influence over me Mr McGregor!" I chastised him jokingly.

"I do my very best to corrupt you!" He jousted back.

The camera came out again in Chester but parking was a problem. In Manchester we shared lunch together. Whilst there we decided it was a good time to visit a travel agent,  look at the places presented to us for the dates we had, stick a pin in the map and seal our fate of destination. Ali needed a flight home too. It was £170 so I suggested we had to Campus travel instead and got the same flight for £133! The same flight with BA direct that very morning was £302 with forces discount, on their dedicated line. After collecting the ticket, Ali had to have his photo taken and I arrived home for teatime. I made tea and ordered pizza. We snuggled together in front of the television and settled into comedy. However Mum was really being a carbuncle on my happiness. I tucked Ali into my bed and joined him when Mum had retired herself. I didn't want to sleep without him and I had to stop him trying to make me laugh and giving the game away with his tickling. He had to be off at 0445 and I drove him to the airport where we said our goodbyes again. I had to acknowledge that I loved him with all my heart. I sat, left only with his photo alone again. He left his coat and jeans with me to sleep with. The wrath and pessimism were as expected, surely to follow from Mum, and sadly I was left very disappointed.

A week had flown by and all too soon, Ali returned to Berlin and he called from the Bar's pay phone. The Army's favourite haunt in Berlin was Oscar Wilde's. He was calling me from there so it was a cacophony of background noise. I had noticed a trend that he continued to call a lot from pubs!

"There were only four people on the flight out! It's been a tiring day".

"Travelling takes it out of you." I empathised.

"So I'm going to fly back next weekend. I've booked a flight. Are you coming up?"

"Yes I'll be there!"

"Cool, I'll head to the Scotsman so meet me there after work".

It was a lot of travelling but it certainly gave me something to look forward to at the weekend.

I reflected on our relationship and I wished I'd never met Richard. My dating history had had a common theme of disappointments and the thing common to them all was me. Dionisis had been the shortest relationship I'd ever had.

The following day one of my trainees asked me how I managed to fit a social life in? "What social life?" I asked. I wondered myself. I told her that Ali was over in Germany. "But I'm having a great social life in Oxford though!"

I was! I had the playhouse after all, the theatre percolating via Oxford to London once a week. There was an accessible cinema. I had all the pizza places I could wish for in the buildings that were just up my street, architecture wise. There were lots of boutique shops, cafes and eateries to explore. The pizza place just over the road did luscious pizza. The people I was working with made me feel like part of the team. I had never felt so 'in' as I did in my present company. Two men I worked with made a pass on a night out but that was pre Ali. I found trading standards and environmental health fascinating and I enjoyed learning about it. The magazine articles were scientific and interesting case studies. I adored Oxford, with its architecture, clean streets and did I mention the architecture? It had it all.

I knew Abid well. He had a bit of a thing for me but I didn't really find him attractive. He was ok to pass the time with but that was all. Abid was my new Quig. He invited me around to his house (that meant no one was home as I would not be allowed in otherwise). We were not allowed to be seen in public together in certain places, in case his Family members saw us together. When I refused to go around he said he had to be going, but not before he had told me that I had put weight on. Charming! I consoled myself in one of my favourite pizza places. I bought a cookery book from Pizza Express.