My friend steve came to visit yesterday. He was in the capital visiting his brother and popped by for the afternoon. It was great to see him, and I’m pleased to report he and Jenny are doing well. They now live in Aberdeen, but steve says that, because of his work, he should be coming to the capital quite often. He’s now a social worker, having taken a second degree, but I didn’t have the heart to go into all the politics of how, for us crips, social workers are dangerous and evil.

Anyway, we had a great afternoon together: I just took him to a couple of the local pubs, and we just talked. I had forgotten how astute Steve can be: I always remember the steve who was forever climbing on things at university and being generally vulgar, but not the astute, highly intelligent steve with whom it is fascinating to hold a conversation. I was with the latter yesterday, and our discussions ranged from Scottish independence to bond films. It was a great couple of hours, and ended all too soon. Once I got back, I realised that it had never occurred to me how much of a good man steve is, and how much I value his friendship. Of course, I keep writing about my friendship with charlotte on here, but forget to say that my friendship with steve is of a similar nature. They are both kind, warm people with whom I have had a great many adventures. After all, it was through steve, if memory serves, that I got into that large group of mostly drama-student friends in the first place; and it was with steve that I went to Paris on a film studies trip with, upon which we both got absolutely drunk on Leffe! I realised this last night, once I got home having just seen Steve start the journey back to his brother’s, and really hoped I would see my fine old Yorkshire friend again soon.