Milkman came at 05:04. Left two pints and the bill. Cost five pounds ninety four for six pints. First time I’ve seen how much it costs.
Wildthing’s funeral today. Steve Wildman, or Wildthing was a close friend and neighbour. We met at ante-natal classes thirty two years ago when we were both preparing for the birth of our first born children. Our wives were there as well obvs.
Our second born children, @Hannah and @Lois have been best buddies since the womb. Steve was a regular visitor to our house. We would have occasional jam sessions, he on trombone and me on geetar with Joe on trumpet and had a couple of public performances over the years at the various royal wedding and jubilee celebrations held around the corner on Curle Ave.
Steve retired a short few years ago from his job as Commercial Director of Siemens Energy, or Oil and Gas, or similar. They kept changing the name. I’m really not sure what his title was either but he did spend a lot of time overseas negotiating multi billion pound contracts.
Steve was one of the few people responsible for maintaining and being able to drive the Rustons Car, a vehicle manufactured in Lincoln circa 1922. He was a mechanical engineer by trade and a motocross enthusiast, sponsoring his pal Dick’s Team Tett racing outfit.
I went along to one race meet in Monmouthshire last summer where we both kipped in the awning they used to fix up the bikes. Steve owned a large collection of Husqvarna bikes and was an occasional visitor to the Isle of Man for the racing.
He was a larger than life character who lived life very much to the full. He was a volunteer at Joefest and he and I ran the bar at our daughters’ various joint birthday celebrations.
Steve was a regular visitor to the shed when lockdown restrictions eased. You could almost see the level of the gin in the bottle drop as you looked at it.
It is hard to believe that Steve is no longer with us. He is a big loss. He was a great guy and highly respected. Steve’s attitude to life was an example to us all.
We plan to arrive an hour before the funeral to make sure we get a seat. Our thoughts are with his family, Eve, Lois and Kester.