A sailor I know

A few years ago, I met up with my friend Gary in his stomping ground that is Singapore. He used to be a sailor until he went to the UK to pursue a degree in Naval Engineering?  I'm not sure. After getting the degree, he became a ship inspector. Now he is his own boss.

He is the adventurous sort who always looked for the next thrill. He used to invite me along, "Come, let's go and backpack and sleep under the stars."  Once he went to Tibet and smuggled out a Tibetan religious artefact for a monk. Impressive, no? He loved to travel, and he is always full of stories.

But Gary couldn't cook to save his life.  He stayed with me for a week or so before he left the UK. To be nice to me, he cooked me a meal.  It was half way into the preparation for the meal that I realised that he had boiled a chunk of frozen meat straight from the freezer to make soup for me.  My reaction could have been better but I was livid at the time.  I lectured him up and down about food safety and thawing procedures. I was sure he was going to give me food poisoning.

So next try, in order to pay me back for letting him stay with me, he took me out to a nice restaurant. We ordered a bottle of Chablis, I remember. After finishing our meal, we walked along the river's edge and he put his arm around me. It was so unexpected that I immediately removed his arm and stepped away.  "What are you doing, man?"  I really liked him as a friend, but no more.  But being so open and honest about things, I guess he misconstrued.  I didn't handle things well then either. I could have been nicer, right?

Gary never did settle down and start his own family.  He takes care of his mother who he is ill.  He's a good son. When I saw him in Singapore, I knew he would never marry.  He was a sailor once, and still a sailor at heart. Maybe I knew that way back when we were still students in England.  

He took me to see a show with a local comedian named Kumar - a drag queen extraordinaire - whom I had told him I would like to go see if possible.  Kumar was really funny and we had lots to drink and we had a rocking time.  After the show was over, he said, "See ya" and let me walk back to my hotel by myself.  I was a little upset that even as a friend he didn't see to my safety. Granted the hotel was about 500m away, but still...I think any friend would have walked me back, don't you? 

There is no doubt that Gary is a funny character, and someone I still call a good friend.  He is truly unique. He still wants to relive the old days of drinking at pubs in the UK. He won't come and visit me in Kelantan because we are almost a dry state because we are run by a Muslim ruling party.  So our next meeting is in KL or Penang perhaps? Or possibly Singapore! Again. 

This time though, I will make him walk me back to wherever I am staying.