Jenny, Steve and a Unicycle.

I first met Jenny at the airport arrivals suite.

I was arriving and she was waiting.

I didn’t know she was waiting, but she knew I was arriving.

Her job was to meet and greet, mine was to be greeted and met.

What she DID NOT know was that Steve Martin, the comedian and actor, had arrived on the flight just before me.

And that I was delayed at customs as I was travelling with a six-foot unicycle and Steve, was not.

I bet he can’t even ride one!

Now….. Jenny is secretly in love with Steve Martin, so when he walked through those sliding perspex door things, she almost fainted.

I was VERY lucky she chose to stick around and greet me –  because I had no idea where I was going, how to get there or what the time of day was.

I had been flying into the sunrise.

I think.

So that was the first time I interrupted her destiny.

Anyhow, to cut a long story short, she greeted me, I felt well met, and she took me downtown to a hotel that was just about still standing and probably has long since disappeared.

It had lovely old fashioned radiators that shook and rattled even though it was summer time.

The walls were made of rock that had been hewn by the dinosaurs and had seen better days.

But I loved it.

I’m from the same era.

Jenny said goodbye and drove back to her air conditioned condo – whatever that is.

She lived there with her cat.

After that, she did what she does, and I did what I do - or maybe better she did what she did and I did what I did, because this was a very long time ago.

Another person who did what I did somehow met Jenny and got to know her in a way that I hadn’t, and probably knew her cat’s name. And time flowed past.

Time does that.

Whilst you are busy making other plans.

Until it was time to go home.

And be un-greeted and un-met I suppose.

Except, my friend – as he was/is my friend – wasn’t sure that he wanted to.

So he asked me what I thought he should do.

Why did he ask me?

I don’t know.

I could hazard several guesses, and it probably comes down to having seen me and my best and worst and putting me right along the way.

But I was young.

What did I know about things like this?

If he asked me the same thing today i hope I would be consistent.

But would i?

Please don’t test me!

Today I  would certainly sigh, which I don’t think I did back then.

I would also probably rubbed my hair back from my brow.

I do that when I’m thinking something important.

Like interrupting someone’s destiny.

Even though I was unaware.

It was the second time.

Can I say sorry?

Do I need to?

 

Editors note - all resemblance reality is strictly fictional. All names have been changed to protect Steve Martin.