annanotbob2's Diaryland Diary

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Pals

12/2/24

Today would have been, should have been, the joint birthdays for Barb (awittykitty) and Paula (poolaboola) two of my early friends on Diaryland, who both died of cancer, deaths that I blame on the US (lack of a) healthcare system. Barb had a melanoma on her face, clearly identifiable, but she had the wrong insurance and no fucker would even look at it until it had metastasized ad it was all too late. But hey, her insurance did cover her for end of life care. What kind of fucked up shit is that? Health insurance that won’t cover the cost of a doctor but when you’re dying for lack of a doctor you can have a nice room. Cunts. Paula’s was different in every way except the final outcome. I wish I’d met Paula. She was vegetarian and I used to plan places I’d take her to eat when she came to Brighton but she never made it. I did meet Barb – I was the only person she ever had to stay with her in her apartment and she took me to what she called drawing nekkid people – or the life drawing class that she wrote about in her blog. We had mad conversations on Facebook chat that had a massive delay, Ah well.
I had a mad rush of blood to the head and agreed that Bloke could come with me to watch the starling murmurations over the pier in Brighton at sunset tonight. I said I was going to go, intending to say that I wouldn’t be back in time for tea. He said he’d like to come and I just agreed, regretting it at once. It wasn’t too bad in the end as he’s so deaf he doesn’t attempt to talk much when he’s out as he can’t hear much above the background noise of the city. This is a low bar for a ‘successful’ venture – failing to piss me off by talking shite at me. Usually about computers or some political situation that I’ve been avoiding reading about because there’s nothing I can do. Anyway, the starlings swooped and dived in formation against the deep blue sea and the orange sky for half an hour before diving down to roost under the pier. They do this every night in the winter – it’s so fantastic it’s all I can do to not give them a round of applause when they finish, or at least shout, “Bravo!”

12:39 a.m. - 13.02.24

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