I own a Fiat 500 (Carlos Fandango Fannymagnet to give him his correct title) and as such belong to the owners club group on Facebook.
A particularly lovely black model was put up for sale today and the owner posted a picture.
Oh look, they have a lovely 2CV, what are the chances of that? (I sold my 2CV Robyn before moving to Ireland, it had a St George Cross roof).
On closer inspection, it was my Robyn! Still going strong and looking beautiful 🤩 How spooky is that?!
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I'll tell you a story (christ, I sound like I'm morphing into Max Bygraves!) going back to one day when I was on holiday in South Africa. We were on our way back from Cape Town down the garden route and we stopped for a day/night in St Plettenburg Bay. When we got there, we got offered the chance of doing a boat trip and some paddle boarding from our hotel and we jumped at it.
So off we went to the boat, just down the road. Started talking to the Captain/Owner. He asked where we came from, obviously you guys are from London. South London, originally Welling/Bexleyheath now Petts Wood. He looked surprised. 'Jeez fella, thats where my ex-wife's sisters brother and folks lived! I was last over 4-5 years ago and we played 7-a-side at the astroturf place in Bexleyheath, was it called goals on a Tuesday night'. Now I think back to when I was playing, one of my old school mates Will had a sister who had lived out in South Africa for years and her husband had played a few times with us to make up the numbers...
"You brother-in-law...whats his surname?"...
"It was an unusual double-barrelled one... R-F" (if you read this @AFKABartram, you'll know exactly who I'm referring to!)
Well fuck me, it was actually my old school mates brother-in-law. Thousands of miles away from home, a completely random decision to go on this boat ride, in the middle of the bloody river and here was this fella that I'd played football with before. It was so utterly random. You couldn't make shit up like that.
Said our goodbyes at the end of the boat ride and went back to our hotel which was in the tree tops, like tree houses.
For dinner, the hotel had this huge round table event every night where everyone staying at the hotel ate dinner together.
We got sat next to this old couple.
He introduced himself and asked what I do. I explained I worked at a London Uni as a Research Accountant, looking after Research Grants.
He asked me what Uni I was at and I said QMUL.
He looked genuinely startled.
'Goodness me, you're John D.......???'
'Well thanks for your help in the past. And when you get home, say a big hello to your lovely boss JC from me. What a lovely woman she is'!
It turns out, he was a retired QMUL Professor and I'd been looking after some of his grants for 2 years and we'd spoken by email hundreds of times.
I took a photo with him and my wife together and text it to my boss, she was just as gobsmacked as we were.
All of that happened on the very same day in SA. For just one to happen it would have been a bit freaky, both both on the same day? No drugs were involved, promise.
I've had similar on holiday bumping into people from Bexleyheath etc but never the same street.
A couple of months later, I was persuaded to go to Womad in Adelaide. I really enjoyed it, and heard my name being called. I thought it was someone I'd met in the hostel earlier, it was actually a really close friend and neither of us had any idea the other was even in Australia, let alone there. We ended up travelling up to Darwin for a couple of weeks then she went back to fruit picking and I carried on down to Sydney.
Bizarre = You name your cars.
They took the plunge, and accepted the job - all expenses paid, house and car provided, excellent money, had a swimming pool
The wife was far more nervous, as she had the 2 kids to look after, whereas husband could go off to work etc - so she was worried about being lonely / not knowing anyone
They get there, spend a week settling in, and on the Monday morning she takes kids to primary school - at the school gate, another mum walks up to her and say ‘excuse me are you so and so’ - she says ‘well that was my maiden name’ - other mum says ‘did you go to such and such primary school in Strood, Kent’ - yes she says
Turns out the other mum and my colleague’s sister were in the same class for 1 year, sat next to each other, were friends etc
The other mum had emigrated with her family after 1 year at that primary school
They got on like a house on fire, became firm friends and all that
😳
That said, I also have a canaries story. On two consecutive holidays to Lanzarote in different years in different hotels I bumped into a different ex boss from the same company.
Two days later we get on a bus at the O2, on our way back from an afternoon club in Soho. Get chatting to this bloke, he's been helping set up the Great British Beer Festival, so we get talking about beer and beer festivals. I mention I have a mate who used to be one of the head brewers for the Firkin chain, who moved from Chadwell Heath to Peterborough, and that we are going up to stay with them later in the week, and it just (happily) happens to co-incide with the Peterborough beer festival. Oh, Eddie and Gina you mean? He says... err... yes...
There was a third within days of that, but neither me or the missus can recall what it was.
Fast forward to the last game of this season, bump into Kev Merrick in the lounge before the game chatting about when he, Roy King and Steve Dixon came over to see us. After the game we are talking about Dicko to Chris and Sue. Then we go to get our bus back to Chislehurst, we almost miss it, but the driver kindly waits. Go upstairs - who is sat there - Dicko, on his way back from watching Orient get their League one trophy.
BUT the 2CV is the motoring work of the Devil - hateful car - just awful
Soz, X, and all that - but horrible car !!!
Jesus H Christ…..FFS. 😠
Start chatting about footie over a couple of beers, conversation turns to jobs.
My new Canary mate is a postie, "whereabouts?" Dereham in Norfolk,
"Oh my mate lives in Dereham, in a thatched cottage. " I reply.
"The one on the main rd?" "Yeah thats it the old pub"
"I am his postie "
Walking around a volcano in Costa Rica, get chatting to a English couple who are on the same hike route.
"Where do you live?" they ask, "SE9" we reply.
"Oh we live SE9, in North Park" we say what number, the tell us and we find out they live next door to friends of ours.
It is indeed a small world.
When his missus asked later who they were, Brian would say they also worked at Plessey's. His missus thought this was amazing and used to tell everyone when they got back home that, once again, Brian had met someone who he knew from work and it is incredible what a small world it is that wherever they go in the world there's someone from Plessey's there too!
I think it did start with genuinely bumping into a colleague but bless her, she still doesn't know he was winding her up all the other times.
Got into Miami and as being 20 wasn’t allowed beer.
Been away for 4 months and thought let’s go home.
Booked flight, and whilst perusing the duty frees heard my name called.
My mate (Steve Donegan) had been in Miami on his own. Ain’t seen him for ages.
Got on the beer.
Plane delayed overnight.
He only had dollars (touch), I only had sterling (cab home from Heathrow)
seat tickets next to each other (prior to meeting).
Never seen him since.
still owes me a tenner.
A lot down and around rathmore rd
To cut a long story short it turned out that they live two streets from us. I'm sure the the cruise liner checked the names and addresses and put us together!. Luckly we hadn't previously had a fall out 🤣.