Hard to argue

Oh dear, I fear my comment has offended. Hard to argue, though, when you're too mad to speak

Oh dear, I fear my comment has offended 

For my final evening in Melbourne I headed out for dinner with Dale. He had told me about a Thai place that he had stumbled upon a few months previously where the food was great and he was convinced he had been served by a Thai drag queen. He said it was also close to a couple of the Melbourne gay bars so we could easily go for a drink or two afterwards should we feel the urge. I was pretty certain we would feel the urge. As we walked the street that Dale thought the restaurant was on I asked him what it was called. He couldn’t remember. I asked him what it was close to. He couldn’t remember. I asked him if his previous visit to the restaurant had been whilst under the influence of alcohol. It had. Having walked a fair way, Dale admitted that we might not be on the right road. We found a different Thai place instead and headed in. The food there was good, the portion sizes so big neither of us managed to finish our meals even after having just walked up an appetite trying to find a possibly fictional restaurant. The lack of having your dinner brought to you by a Thai drag queen did not impact too much on the enjoyment of the meal.

After dinner we headed to Sircuit for a couple of drinks, a bar which thankfully Dale had no trouble locating. One end of the place was taken up by several pool tables, all of them occupied. The bar at the other end had a few people spread out along it but the place was far from full. We got a couple of lagers and found a place to perch. The crowd in the bar were on the older, more blokey side. Both Dale and I have beards so we didn’t look out of place there. It catered for an audience I would say from thirties up, seemingly with no upper limit judging from the looks of a couple of the guys in there. It was apparently a “mixed” night although I failed to spot a single woman in the place. Dale had told me that there was an upstairs “area” but that it was only open on the men-only nights. I wasn’t too disappointed that it was closed having seen my fellow patrons.

We ended up chatting to a random guy who was there on his own, Dale striking up the conversation. The guy was out celebrating the end of the school term (he was a teacher, not a pupil). I asked him what subject he taught, his response being English and Drama. Without thinking I turned to Dale and asked if he had ever watched Summer Heights High. The teacher looked at me and said “I am nothing like Mr G”. Dale had never seen the show so I told him he should check it out. The teacher didn’t seem too impressed about being compared to Mr G and he soon headed home. After a couple more lagers the crowd in Sircuit was still looking the same so we headed back to Dale’s.

The next morning I was awake early to say goodbye and thank you to Dale before he left for work as I was not sure if I would see him before I left for the airport for my flight to Sydney later in the afternoon. Once I was up and awake properly I went for coffee and brunch before heading in to town for one final walk round downtown Melbourne. It was a really nice day and I wandered along the riverside path for a while, enjoying the sun and dodging the joggers who seemed to aim at me rather than try and go round me. I managed to pick a couple more bits and pieces for the secret Santa before heading back to Dale’s to pack my case, have a late lunch and then make my way to the airport. When I got back in to town late afternoon it was noticeably busier. I guessed most of the offices had closed early ahead of the break for Christmas and lots of people seemed to be enjoying the early finish by having a drink. I met Dale at Southern Cross as we thought we might have time for a quick drink but given how busy everywhere was I figured it was best that I get myself to the airport just in case there were big queues at check-in or security.

Hard to argue, though, when you're too mad to speak

I prefer to plan my journey so that I am at the airport with time to spare, especially if the alternative is killing time at home before leaving for the airport. It makes it a lot easier then if the trip to the airport takes longer than planned, there is a big queue at check in or security or if you find you have gone to the wrong terminal. If you leave with enough time to spare to cope with any of these unforeseen problems then the experience becomes less stressful. Having civilised flight times helps a hell of a lot too, as does travelling on your own. My trip out to Melbourne went smoothly so once I was checked in and through security I had a bit of time to kill before my flight.

The airport was bustling but not as busy as I thought it was going to be, it being Christmas Eve Eve. There were plenty of people travelling home for the holidays though, the presence of presents and people (mostly men) purchasing last minute gifts in the airport shops, being easy to spot. As I sat waiting for my flight I could hear a couple approaching above the general noise of the terminal. They were clearly in the middle of a heated discussion about something. I tuned in to their argument. They very graciously stopped near to where I was sitting to focus on shouting at each other, walking and talking was clearly too much multitasking for them. They turned out to be arguing about where they were spending Christmas and about whose side of the family was most annoying. It seemed a little late to be having the argument given they were already at the airport so clearly had flights to somewhere. I was surprised to see that they had two small children with them, who were getting increasingly upset at the shouting going on.

The mother ended the argument by throwing the boarding passes at the father, saying they could go without her and that she was going back home before she turned and walked off. As she left both children started crying, one of them calling out to his mother. Most people around me had also been listening to the argument and now looked away, not sure what the appropriate course of action was. The father stood there bemused for a while, a screaming child at either side. I wondered whether I should go after her, try and calm her down and orchestrate a family reunion. I wasn’t sure I could manage it or that she would thank me for it so I opted to sit there and hope that the child soon stopped crying. Thankfully the mother returned shortly after as she had walked off with a bag belonging to one of the children. The father had the sense to apologise as soon as she returned and it seemed to be accepted. The children were calmed down and they headed off to get their flight. I suppose Christmas isn’t Christmas without a big family argument and some tears.

“Oh dear, I fear my comment has offended. Hard to argue, though, when you're too mad to speak” 
Lyrics from Blood in the Water from the musical Legally Blonde