You Gotta Have Friends....

I was very fortunate on my recent UK trip to hook up with a few old friends and make some new ones.

Given that I only had a couple of days in London this year, where many of my friends live, I had to do a "come one, come all" kind of gathering on the Terrace at Somerset House. (A lovely place, right on the river at Waterloo Bridge if you're looking for a venue, by the way.) A mixed bunch of Uni and ex-work friends gathered, a few of whom I literally hadn't seen for over twenty years. Obviously, none of us have changed a bit. Among the motley group was my old partner in crime, Drunk Mummy. When I say "old", she's actually a couple of years younger than me, but we're both on the wrong side of 40 so "old" it is. Sadly, she continues her self-imposed blogging ban despite pleas from around the blogosphere, but admits to trawling around every now and then for a quick update. She has various other 'projects' on the go, so we may not have heard the last of her however. I will keep you posted.

Up in Northumberland, I had a lovely evening with fellow bloggers Hadriana, Muttering and Meanderings, and Mutterings from the Mill, (who is also under a self-imposed blog ban). I have to say for four women who'd never met before and on paper, had little in common, we got on like old mates and covered a huge range of conversation topics.

It was a challenge explaining to family members where I was going that night, without reminding them about my blog. Not that it's anonymous, and I know I mentioned it when I first took to the blogosphere, but I'd rather not alert them to its existence unneccesarily. My mother kept saying, "So who is it you're meeting tonight?". I knew if I'd said, "I'm driving up the A1 to a pub I've never been to before, to meet three other women I don't know and have no idea how I'll recognise them", I would have been in for a lecture on personal safety. I didn't want to use the B-word (blog, that is) so I said something about us all being writers and belonging to some Internet group. I think she thought I was seeing someone about a possible book deal so I shall need to come up with a "book deal update" soon. I see I'm becoming a tad free and easy with the porkie pies these days. (That's cockney rhyming slang for "lies" to any non Brits reading.)

Anyway, it was great to see old friends and a real blast (as they say here) to make new friends, especially via blogging.