Suits you, sir.

A post made on Reddit asked how old was the oldest piece of clothing that people own. My record is 31 years: a t-shirt that I bought at a gig back in, I think, 1995. It's on its last legs, but there's a bit of sentimental value to it. It was a gig I was at with D and FBS and had a great time (this was long after my dalliance with FBS).

But I also have another t-shirt that's over 18 years old. This one doesn't really have sentimental value - I don't recall where or when I bought it - but I do remember that I wore it on my "proper" date with Recruitment Bird. Does getting handsy and making out with RB mean that I can attach sentimental value to a t-shirt? Maybe it does.

We're a few weeks away from it being the 18th anniversary of the start of the RB thing, but I think it's time that the t-shirt gets retired*

*binned. 

Let's not go :(

D's just messaged to say that he can't make it for Saturday night's planned event. He has a family thing out of town which means he won't be in town for the thing he was originally planning on attending which then means he won't be out for drinks afterwards.

I'm pretty sure that also means that Friction Guy won't be out.

The plus side is that if Friday night gets messy (work thing with Quiet Girl and others) then I have all day to recover without worrying about meeting D in the pub at 5 PM.

Oooft.

We had a team-building event yesterday that involved an escape room then a trip to the pub. I was drunk, dear Reader. The first time in a long time. I can't remember the last time I was properly drunk. Maybe the last time I was out with FBS and that crowd?

Anyway, it was a good night. I spent a while chatting to the tall woman that I've posted about a few times before. The one who might have made a drunken approach at a previous work event. I don't think she really remembers that.

I met a few other work people from other teams and offices and they were all really nice.

I could do with going back to bed, though. Drunk sleep + waking early means a very tired Ruuude.

Working the core.

D prompted FBS for some dates where we could go out, but it transpires that she's not available until the start of July, with travel plans and family commitments.

I messaged D separately and suggested if he wanted to meet for drinks, seeing as he's in town, I'd be more than happy to meet up. He said that Friction Guy was going to the same day time thing that D was, so there's a real possibility that he could also tag along.

Out of all of us who worked in the same place all those years ago: me, D, FBS, Friction Guy, QC2 and Opinionated Guy, I'd say that me, D and Friction Guy would be the core group (from my perspective). It'd be nice to head out, just the three of us. It must be 20 years since that happened.

Quick Digest

I did call KfW2 at lunch and we spent 20 mins or so, chatting. I think that's the the first time we've spoken since I was at her house about 2 months ago. Our calls and texts are getting more infrequent, and she doesn't really interact on social media any more (not that I am massively active on Facebook). I should follow up over the weekend see about getting her out properly for food and drinks.

I also did get the gardening done. Well, about 80% of it. I have some tidying up to do, but the equipment I need to do it is at my Dad's house. I'm meant to be heading over there tomorrow, so I could get the work done by the end of the weekend.

FBS has already replied to D's text message saying she's unavailable on the day that D's suggested for drinks, but she's not offered up any alternatives.

And finally, thanks to some guy in work who's been a massive PITA over the past few weeks, I have a work call to attend tomorrow morning at 4AM. FFS. These use to be fairly regular when I was in the same team as Stalky Guy, but in my current team, these are almost unheard of. 

Let's go!

D's just sent a message. Do we want to meet for drinks at the end of next month? I've checked my diary and I've got nothing on, so I've replied that I'd be interested.

Not quite right...

I can't remember if I've posted about this before, but I had a random memory earlier today about a Saturday afternoon spent with FBS and a few others in the pub. The night before, I had been at D's house, having beers and playing video games.

I seem to recall D making a point about FBS being out with BW and a few others and why I wasn't with them. D was one of the few people who knew that FBS and I had been fucking. I knew he knew. He knew that I knew he knew, but still, I never really admitted it to anyone.

So, the next day, I arrived at FBS's house, which we'd preplanned. We were meeting D and others in town. Why I was at FBS's and not D's, who only lived two streets over, and closer to my house is lost in the mists of time.

I knocked on the door and BW answered. I can't say I was surprised. I would say that 90% of the time BW went to a bar, he went with a plan to meet a girl. He didn't know about FBS and I, so to the best of his knowledge, FBS was available. I'm willing to bet that he'd tried it on. 

He had kipped on the sofa. FBS was nowhere to be seen. It was silent. I couldn't even tell if she was still asleep. But it was rapidly approaching lunchtime and I wanted to get into town, grab a bite somewhere and hit the pub.

While BW made himself presentable and tidied the sofa, I went upstairs and knocked on FBS's bedroom door.

"Are you awake?"

"Yes. C'mon in."

FBS was lying in bed.

"Get your arse out of bed. It's time to meet the rest."

It wasn't really. We had about an hour or so, but that allowed time for FBS to get ready, perhaps shower and get a bus into town.

"Yes, well, not with you watching. Turn around."

I'd forgotten that FBS had made two surprising claims about her sleeping habits. The first was that she didn't have a "side" of the bed. She just went to bed on whatever side was closest when she was ready. The other was that she slept naked. 

I'd already seen her naked at this point, but this was months after we'd last spent the night together. She wrapped herself in a dressing gown and opened her wardrobe.

"Is BW still downstairs?"

"Yeah."

"OK, I'll get ready. Go downstairs, I'll be 20 minutes."

The thing is, while I am 100% that this happened, some of the details of my memory feel off... not quite right. Like the night with D, playing video games, feels like it was the middle of winter, while the next day arriving at FBS's house feels like today: not quite spring, but dry, bright and just a little cold. Given our recent history and how it ended - I wouldn't say I ghosted FBS, but we didn't spend a lot of time alone once she admitted she wanted more than just casual sex - so me turning up at her house months after we last fucked and being cheeky enough to walk into her bedroom and demand she got out of bed also feels off.

Ah well, it's a pleasant memory nonetheless. 

Wince.

The back's in a bit of a state today. I think it was the gig with D. I was standing mostly still for nearly three hours. Despite the common advice for back stuff being to be active and move, I don't think that standing still counts. It was the same when I played pool with Nerdy Girl on Monday.

Plans.

I've just been speaking to D about Friday night. He's going home after the gig rather than staying over, so my plans are to meet up with Quiet Girl for an hour or so, have a few drinks and then meet D at the gig venue.

Potentially, I could meet up with the work people after the gig, which isn't going to go on too late, but I suspect QG will have gone home by that stage. She's not a big drinker. Neither am I these days. Three Pina Coladas and half a dozen beers were my limit on Saturday night at KfW2's (though there may have been some additional factors, if you know what I mean).

Like a bus.

I started thinking earlier about our work night out for this month. If my guess is correct, that'll be two weeks from tomorrow. So I was contemplating whether or not Quiet Girl would be out. I quite fancy being social this month.

Then I remembered that I am out with D that night at a gig. The night before that, I'm meeting a few ex-colleagues for dinner and drinks and the weekend before that I'm meant to be at KfW2's (unless she's forgotten).

So not bad at all. Definitely the most social I've been this year. 

Oh la la!

Despite not going to D's Superbowl party,  I did stay up to watch some of it. In fact, I watched all of the first half and the half time show with Bad Bunny.

I thought it was awful, from a musical standpoint, but was at least rewarded with the sight of Jessica Alba dancing. 

Oh dear.

For the first time in ages, probably since before Covid, D was in contact about a Superbowl party at his house. Party is probably too strong a word for it - a gathering of a few people with lots of snacks and some beers.

Ordinarily, I'd be all over that, even if Opinionated Guy is going to be there. But I'm doing KfW2 a favour which means I need to be in the house at the weekend. 

Rack 'em up.

When I was last out with D, FBS etc. we were talking about a gig that D and I went to earlier in the year. It wasn't a genre of music that I usually like, but D had a spare ticket and I wanted to get out of the house more.

It also helped that the artist in question was an attractive woman with a great rack.

"Didn't think that was your thing," queried FBS.

"Attractive women with great racks? I'm all for it." 

D pulled out his phone, did a search and showed FBS. 

"I don't think that's a great rack," she mused.

 I've stated plenty of times before that FBS has a great rack. Or she did when she was 21.

"Oh, it's great all right," confirmed D. 

 "Well, I disagree," sniffed FBS.

 So, yeah. We're going to see her again in a few month's time when she tours Europe.

Circling.

It seems to be that a memory or a blog post prompts other memories, these days. This time, it's FA2 and QC3. I think I've mentioned before that QC3 and I were attracted to each other. We both knew it, but we never acted upon it. I don't know that I ever regarded her as girlfriend material, but I did want to have sex with her. However, the timing was bad.

Around the time that our mutual attraction became apparent, QC3 was ready to move away, to Glasgow. One night, after a night out where I bumped into QC3 and her friend, I slept at QC1's, in her bed. Nothing happened between us that night, but shortly afterwards I think QC1 admitted to D that she wanted something to happen.

In the remaining time, maybe three or four weeks, while we saw plenty of each other, it was always in group company. We never thought of going on a date or going out without anyone else, I think we were each expecting the other to make the first move. On the eve of QC3 actually moving, we managed the grand total of one kiss, while we were out with D and he was at the bar or in the toilet.

I did visit her a few months later, we did share a bed, we were both naked and cuddling when I woke but I don't think we slept together. I returned home and we never spoke of it again.

About a month later, the thing with FA2 started and that was it.

QC3 lasted about a year in Glasgow, possibly slightly less, before she returned home by which time I was dating FA2. I'll be honest, I never really stopped wanting to fuck QC3 even when I was dating FA2, but I was dating FA2, so I never made any moves. 

FA2 and QC3 saw each other a bit - I was still going for drinks with D etc. and QC3 was our friend. I think FA2 suspected something, she seemed more keen to get to know QC3 than anyone else. But I don't think she heard about our orbiting from anyone else. I had been upfront about fucking FBS, the night FA2 and FBS met each other.

But that's a long-winded story about QC3 who kick started my thing with pierced belly buttons. I'd seen it loads of times. She also had a ring of tattoos around her navel and a super flat stomach. She wore plenty of crop tops to show off her midriff long before any attraction between us. It wasn't just about that one time seeing her naked.

But I'd never admitted to FA2 that it was QC3 who started that appreciation, but I do wonder if FA2 got her belly button pierced because she thought (correctly) I wanted to fuck QC3, and QC3 had piercings and tattoos.

(I think I also was influential in FA2 getting a tattoo a few years later - I had always said that I wanted to get one done, but could never find a design that I liked. We had split up by that stage, though.)

Not bad.

Yesterday was a long, but fun, day. It started at lunchtime, with a meal and a few drinks with co-workers. Sadly, and unlike other teams I've worked with, people drifted off quite quickly once the meal was done. However, with lots of budget remaining, we spent it on expensive (and delicious) cocktails.

Then, at 7 PM, D and his wife arrived. I said goodbye to the two work colleagues and went to the gig, which was excellent. However, my back was really sore, just from the standing. I really need to get someone to look at it. I think I need to see my GP first and then use that as a basis to get any further treatment through my private health insurance.

I've spent the day chilling and watching the two Knives Out films. They were quite fun. 

Woohoo!

The chair is on its way! I'm hoping for a Friday delivery. I'm out all day tomorrow, firstly for a work thing, then for a gig where I'm likely to meet D and Opinionated Guy. So Friday would be prefect.

Yay!

I'm not gonna lie, I was slightly apprehensive about meeting FBS, D etc. last night. It was the pub thing, more accurately, the alcohol intake. My tolerance is pretty much zero these days, so the thought of six hours of necking pints had me a little worried.

It was all for nothing, though. Seven pints across nearly six hours meant I was drunk but not as bad a I thought I was going to be.

It was great catching up with the guys. The highlights, for want of a better word, was a running gag that lasted all evening about a euphemism for blowjobs, much to our amusement and FBS's puzzlement. And a debate (I hesitate to call it an argument) with Opinionated Guy who insisted he share our taxi, despite him living in the opposite direction to myself and FBS. He's shared before, because FBS is too nice to tell him to fuck off, but it was my taxi last night and I had no hesitation in telling him where to go.

I hope he'll learn this in future. It feels like we do all the work for him - arrange nights out, get him home etc. and he does nothing.

Cheers!

Friction Guy replied, so it looks like we've got a core group and a rough time for meeting and a place to meet.

I'm not interested in the drinking. I hate being drunk and my ability to drink alcohol is now non-existent probably due to the fact that I've lost a fair bit of weight this year and I've done little to no socialising, so I am out of practice.

And the nights out with D, FBS etc. always seem to involved a lot of alcohol. We tend to meet around 6 PM these days and call it a night around midnight. That's six hours of drinking. The night out a few weeks ago with The Crowd was just over three hours and I was extremely tipsy.

Let's see how this turns out. 

Let's go.

I hadn't heard from D, FBs etc. about this coming weekend so I sent a WhatsApp message to make sure we were all still coming out. FBS and D were quick to reply, in the positive. I've heard nothing from Friction Guy or Opinionated Guy as yet, but they're secondary. If it just turns out to be me, FBS and D, that'll still be a good night.

Party Time.

Tonight was the night that I suggested to KfW2 that we went out for dinner and drinks, which she says she couldn't do for family reasons. so she pondered other dates which we've yet to talk about.

But that reminded me that we're getting into social season. As stated a few days ago, G's home, so there's an outside chance of seeing him tomorrow. I still have to message M, which will probably be a midweek coffee or pint.

I have at least four things to do this month - meeting FBS, D etc. next weekend, a gig to go to on the 27th, a possible work thing on the 28th and another gig on the 29th with my brother-in-law.

There's also the possibility of something with KfW2, but I doubt that'll happen until December, if at all. 

And December will be busy too - another work thing, out with S/The Crowd, the potential KfW2 thing if it doesn't happen in November and another gig. And I'm sure I've forgotten something else. 

I feel tired already.