A bitter-sweet GM...

And one that has a kinda sad ending, for me, at least. I kinda apologise for that, would of changed it so the story reads better, but then life can't be expected to turn out way we'd always like, I guess...

Yesterday, I decided to take a day off from work. Which doesn't happen often, trust me.

So, I asked my niece, who is still off school, what she'd like to do.

She said she's like to go see some museums. Ok, that was cool, but she wanted to bring a friend with her, too.

Well, that was cool, too. I'll pay for one young lady, and am happy to pay for another, no probs.

Also, anything to make my niece happy;)

So anyhow, I took the drive out to meet u-p with my niece and her friend, and then the drive to the city.

But when I got to my niece's house and met her friend - wow! It was like an atom bomb just got itself crushed in my head, and then quite unkindly, and in my view rather unfairly, went BANG!

This friend was pretty cute (and I must explain, my definition of 'cute' is a bit freaky, maybe. I like goth girls, punk girls, girls who wear glasses. Library girls, geeky girls, shy girls, bookish girls, kick-ass girls - any girls who are prepared to be different).

I like people who are different and can carry that off - it gives me a lot of hope, you know? Anyhow, I wonder sometimes about how much of a shit anyone should give about what anyone else feels about them, I really do...

But anyhow, I was faced with this mini Avril Lavigne standing in front of me. Long dark curly hair, all pretty wild. Corset top. Short Scottish kilt skirt. Big boots. Biggest goddamn smile I ever saw.

Perfect.

So, we all piled into the old automobile, and headed for the train station. Once there, I unfolded myself out of my uncommonly small vehicle, and we got the choo-choo into the city.

All along the way, my niece's friend, who shall from now on be known as M, was talking with me at 100 miles an hour. Poor niece couldn't get a word in edgewise.

We got to the museum. Dear niece did what she normally does - went off determined to do the musuem in record time (her PB is 12 odd minutes - I kid you not). It's not that she's not interested - sometimes she'll ask to go back to the same museum again and again - she just has a kinda restless mind. Very energetic and feisty - I like that).

No probs for me, that. I'm used to it, and if it's her way, well, that's just the way it is.

But M was totally different. She is just the same as me - she wanted to take her time, soak it all up, see everything in all its detail.

So, this caused some scuffles with said niece, 'cos as far as she was concerned, we were interfering with her attempt at the world record for shortest time round a large building. Niece got very stroppy, stamped feet a bit, and dug heels in about as far down as China...

The only thing that could placate was a donut at the restaurant. M didn't want a donut, though - she wanted a salad, instead. Again, just the same as me - healthy is best, to me anyhow.

M and I then trawled my poor niece at a painfully slow speed around the rest of the museum. Felt a bit sorry for my niece, but to be fair, she was pretty patient about it.

All through, M kept coming out with these amazing bits of general knowledge. Most of it quite complex, all of it cool.

She is so damn bright, knocks me straight into the shade. Seriously this lg is ultra intelligent. It's not just book learning, either - I got into a very deep conversation with her over the coffee we had at the end of the museum tour, much to the frustration of my niece, and the conversation was awesome. M just came out with this stuff that I've no idea where she got it from...

So, anyhow, museum trip came to an end, but it was way too early to go home. So, we went for a walk around the city for a while.

And as we went around, M pointed out different architectural features to me (her father's an architect), and spoke with me about music (she's into punk, rock, and anything that 'kicks ass', in her words), movies, the Egyptians at some length, and also about her science project (a rocket, propelled courtesy of Pepsi and very judiciously timed Mintos. It apparently involves a lot of running away, as well). Niece got progressively disgruntled about me not seeming to talk to her. My bad, I know...

So, I turned the conversation back to my niece, and talked a bit with her. Result, a distinctly disgruntled M.

Women, you just can't win...

Well, we went to park after that. Bought a frisby, played with that with them for around an hour, and everyone was happy... After that, we got the train back to my niece's town, squeezed quite painfully back into my shockingly small automotive experience, and drove back to my sister's house.

Once back, M then entirely monopolized my time, talking about the current debt crisis, why Avril Lavigne isn't punk, rock or really anything much at all, despite my remark on her appearance, and why she likes 80s movies, why school might suck, but that doesn't mean learning does. Introduced her to some educational theory that she was of the firm opinion 'rocked hard', and she asked me, with absolute seriousness in her eyes, why I'm not a teacher. 'You know,' she said ' We would be totally with you. You know how things work. You're like one of us. You should think about it.'

My niece, who's pretty damn bright, tried to keep up, but eventually gave up.

Seeing her distress, we spent the rest of the evening playing Monopoly until M's mother showed up.

And that's the happy bit.

The sad bit is, that I'll maybe not see M again. In my soppy, sentimental way, a big part of me kinda fell in love with her. We are so much alike - we like the same things, seem to feel the same way about stuff. We were even doing the goddamn cliche of finished each other's sentences, for goodness sake. How much more gruesome can you get that that... We just clicked...

Don't think it's a good idea to invite M out with my niece again, perhaps. My niece tends to like me to focus my attention on her - she doesn't like it when another flame distracts me.

But, I'll maybe never be able to ask to take M out again. I'd love to take her out to another museum, just the two of us - I'm sure that we will quite happily spend a day there, no probs.

I'm not so much attracted to M physically (though, I think she's pretty), but that doesn't matter to me. It's her mind that I like.

I just feel kinda sad that I most likely won't be able experience that mind again...

Ah well, is that our lot, perhaps?

Anyhow, thought I'd share. Hope no-one minds.

TTFN,

Tril.