Anxiety Depression Crash Part 4. A friend in need.

A friend in need is a friend indeed. A friend with weed is better. 

Monday 20th July, doctor’s surgery 0940.   If you missed part 3 click here.

‘Colin Lambert for Dr Middle’ comes over the speaker. I am greeted by Charlie in a space suite. I close my eyes, biting hard on my face mask as the first of two cortisone injections goes in. Shoulder first, knee second. This is magic stuff, taken many times in my rugby days and now its job is to get me walking and moving again. Two days to start and three weeks to dancing again, I hope.

Only three pints yesterday, so mood is brighter. My phone rings.

‘Yo Lambo, it’s James [name changed] how you doing?

‘I’m good thank you, (I lied) how are you?’

I’m good thank you (he lied).

James is an old mate, more of an acquaintance than friend, who works a full-time yacht skipper. My first Atlantic crossing, on a client’s boat, had James as skipper. My lasting memory of the trip is James surfing down waves, one hand on the wheel, Vodka & Marlborough in the other. Scared or what. He also sailed on my boat, me as skipper (all my boats are dry) from Sweden to London. He’s fun and we have a laugh. Covid has cancelled his last job and is homeless for two weeks.

James also lives out of his car, with a storage unit in Southampton. His arrival two days later gave me just the kick up the bum that was needed, I had to tidy up for a start.

In ten days we de-cluttered the entire house, he cut the lawn and created a semblance of order. I cooked, he cleaned up.  We reminisced, laughed, drank way too much (he ho) and his bag of weed was just perfect.

We talked deep into the night and discussed addictions, at which point he admitted he was not good! Why do we perform that daft ritual on meeting? His gambling losses had taken a toll, especially with no income for six months. Horses and golf were his thing. He was not a happy bunny after all.

Two days later he was away on a delivery trip but I invited him to return if his next job fell through. It did but that’s for later.

However, James had shifted my mood considerably, we even cycled up the dreaded hill (the one I crunched my knee on) without pain in my knee. I was back moving, depression lifted and…

I instructed a solicitor to help make contact with my grandchildren and agreed to drive to Yorkshire, on my dads invite, to meet my two brothers whom I have had almost no contact since they refused to attend my wedding (to Sheila) and then tried to invoke a LPA (Lasting Power of Attorney) on my dad, when he was in hospital in 2018.

Neither went well. And Leeds United have just lost to Liverpool (4:3) so time to drown my sorrows.

And, the point I am making is, a friend in need truly is a friend indeed. Om James.

Part 5 soon.