Old Friends & Old Stuff

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A dear friend of mine - of nearly sixty years - recently had a potentially fatal health scare. Thankfully this was dealt with swiftly by our wonderful health service, and he is now chipper and in good spirits; sanguine about his experience in true Brummie fashion: indeed, the comment made by another of the Lads [explanation, blog posts, passim] exemplifies that Brummie fortitude and black humour: "... you never know when you'll reach the red Rizla..."

Old friends and old stuff - I value both greatly - represent continuity from the past to the present and onward to the future, generation to generation, a touchstone: heritage embodied in memory and object alike. Keep both safe while you are able, and pass them on as you yourself will pass, for the sake of your own and your family and friends' histories.

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