Just good friends

Thank you for visiting. Writing this is helpful, I find - it makes me focus on the good times. If you're reading this, I hope you find it interesting.

Sci-fi conventions have changed a lot over the past 20-something years. Nowadays the conventions are mostly run by professional event organisers for profit. There used to be two "official" British Star Trek conventions a year, with one being held over the early May Bank Holiday weekend and another over the August Bank Holiday. They ran from Friday afternoon to Monday and were organised and run by fans for the benefit of charity. I'd longed to go to a full convention for a very long time, but they were usually held too far away for me to attend. However, the 1996 spring convention was to be in Cardiff, which meant that we didn't have to stay overnight in an hotel. It turned out that David was going as well so we arranged to meet up at the convention at the Cardiff International Arena (as it was then known).

I have a very clear memory of turning away from the registration desk to find David standing behind me, dressed in his Next Generation uniform, right hand raised in a Vulcan salute.

It was a great weekend. There were talks from celebrity guests, showings of episodes that hadn't yet been broadcast in the UK, Dealers' rooms (where you could get Star Trek merchandise - no internet shopping in those days!), the longest queue for autographs you've ever seen, and a party on Saturday and Sunday nights. During the day we went our own ways, but met up for the parties. David was a good dancer and I was thrilled to have a dancing partner - my ex flat-out refused to dance at all and I loved to dance. I was eternally grateful when he rescued me from a Klingon who had taken a fancy to me, much to my ex's amusement. I didn't think it was so funny.

I repaid the favour when he spotted a young man who'd made a pass at him in the auditorium by linking my arm in his and pretending to be his girlfriend. David always managed to pull at conventions - unfortunately, he only attracted other men!

At this time we really were just good friends, but looking back, perhaps this was the beginning of something. But I'll save that for next time.

Comments

Up and away...

25th April should have been our 25th wedding anniversary. You can bet that David would have been making a very big deal out of it somehow - a party, perhaps, or a very special treat for the two of us. Somehow, I've always managed to miss out on celebrating "milestone" events. And I've always promised myself that I'd make up for it at the next one. The one event that he did manage to make very special for me was my 60th birthday. I knew he had something up his sleeve when he didn't ask me if there was anything I'd like for my birthday. I just kept quiet, trusting he had something in mind - a surprise party, maybe? His father nearly gave the game away by asking when I was going flying. I brushed it off, deciding to not mention the incident - then his dad repeated the question to David, in my presence. David and his dad doing karaoke "their way" David was furious with his father. After we'd gone home, he got back in the car and w...

One year on

It’s been a year since my whole world fell apart. The first raw wounds have healed over, although it still seems preposterous that he’s not around. A big part of my life has been torn away, and I am learning to live without it - but it will always be missing. My world is being rebuilt, in a somewhat different shape. Some things are still painful - I can't watch some TV programmes because they were so much a part of our daily routine. I'm talking about the quiz programmes that are on ITV at teatime, things like t he Chase or Tipping Point . It hurts that we won't be doing some of the things we were looking forward to doing together, like going to see the next Dr Strange film, or taking our Silver ballroom dance tests. Twelve months ago, I held David’s hand and looked into his eyes as, around us, doctors and nurses were moving swiftly and purposefully and the numbers on the monitor went in the wrong direction. I whispered in hi...

Today is the first day...

...of the rest of my life. Strictly speaking, I've still got the best part of two weeks to go before I officially leave the world of work behind, but on Friday I handed in my laptop and staff pass and walked out of the building for the last time. The mug in the picture retired with me. I bought it in 2004, to fit in with the colour-coded section of the Contact Centre where I was then working. The sections were decorated in blue or purple, along with a vivid pink section nicknamed "Barbie's Castle". All I can say is that this is what happens when you allow a committee of staff representatives to choose the decor. I bought the mug in Whittard's in Swansea and it's come with me at every move since. I reckon it deserves its honourable retirement. It's traditional to have a whip-round when someone leaves and I asked anyone who wished to contribute to a gift for me to donate the money to Cancer Research instead. They raised over £150, plus Gift Aid on top ...

Getting through the days

Search This Blog