Encounters of the "Bloody hell!" variety

[Banana Woofwoof]

The other day I was talking to a friend about the People I Have Met on a Train.  I used to travel loads on a whim- to Dublin or occasionally on the overnight ferry to Wales where I'd meet all sorts.

I read  Modblog every day.  Then I found this entry:

http://modblog.bmezine.com/2007/04/10/gorgeous-diy-fetus-scarification/

Which nearly made me fall off my chair.

The aforementioned Andrew Niland of the entry is the very same person I was telling my friend about.  We met in 2002 on a train back from Dublin.  I had my panda eyes on and we spent the whole journey downing whiskey miniatures and promising to keep in touch.  We did, until he moved to Canada to get married and I went on my merry way to London.

I left a flabbergasted comment on the blog and this morning received an equally flabbergasted e-mail from Andrew!  It's so nice to hear from him and it's really bizarre that we both remember each other so clearly.

Anyway, have you had bizarre encounters on a train or wherever, or ever randomly found someone you used to know online?

[Al Tha Funkee Homosapien]

Some of  the entries on that blog and site make me cry.

[explodingvinyl]

I LOVE coincidences like that. This really made me smile. x

[Des Nilsen]

Well, this isn't too remarkable, just unsettling in a way.

A month ago I was wandering over to my friend's house for saturday night drinks, smokes, sounds and films when I saw a police car outside his house and a man pinned to the pavement by three coppers. He was shouting something I couldn't totally make out - "suchandsuchaperson LIVES!"

They took him away and I was told all about it - My friend had been talking to the neighbors when he saw this guy, his cousin, walking along the street. He said hello and the fella just snapped and went for him, throwing punches and headbutts, falling over a wall fighting with the neighbor and trying to punch his wife. Totally weird and unprovoked. Apparently he was pissed senseless and was having a rough time of it.

Later that evening after my friend had paid a visit to his aunt to clear it up I was told this guy's name. Turns out he was my best friend at school or a year or so aged 8 or 9. I actually mentioned him here recently in some school memory, days beforehand.

He's my friend's cousin and I never knew. Everyone was fairly freaked out by it all. I didn't recognize him at all on the pavement, he looked like a dozen other angry drunk men.

-

[Emma Raducanu]

This is more an encounter of the bloodddy hellll veriety.

Have in been sat on the train for a good 10 minutes, I turned to realise I was sat next to an old school teacher, who'd given me any number of detentions and who I thought was just a bit of an ole twat really.

[Cardinal Tit Storm]

I may have told this story before, but it would have been a long time ago so bear with me.

I'd gone into a music shop to buy some strings, and had stopped to look at the guitars on my way out when a bloke sidled up to me, obviously wanting to talk. He was probably in his late 50s, smelt of booze, but didn't seem to be overly drunk. His opening line was something like "I'm buying a £1000 acoustic guitar, and I cannae play a note!". I thought he might be speaking shit, but just then a shop assistant came from the back of the store carrying the guitar, and the bloke led me over to have a look at it while the sale was completed. He rambled on quite a lot, seemingly wanting someone to share in the excitement, but I didn't think to ask him why he was doing what he was doing.

We inspected the guitar, and then he said "you look like you can play... you can have it if you want." He was totally serious, and tried to persuade me to take it, but I was so completely gobsmacked all I could think of to say was "I couldn't do it justice". Which would have been the case. I left him to it and walked home in a total daze. Not entirely sure I did the right thing there! I'd love to know what that guy's story was.

I'm not a very sociable person really, but I do think that these sort of encounters with strangers are one of the great joys of life. They freak me out though.

[mothman]

He didn't look like this



by any chance? Only maybe a bit younger, with sunglasses?

[Cardinal Tit Storm]

Heh, no. If it had been Rufus it would have been an electric guitar, and I'd probably have taken it!

[mothman]

Excellent!

[Beagle 2]

...We inspected the guitar, and then he said "you look like you can play... you can have it if you want." He was totally serious, and tried to persuade me to take it, but I was so completely gobsmacked all I could think of to say was "I couldn't do it justice". Which would have been the case. I left him to it and walked home in a total daze. Not entirely sure I did the right thing there! I'd love to know what that guy's story was.

I'm not a very sociable person really, but I do think that these sort of encounters with strangers are one of the great joys of life. They freak me out though.

It probably reinforces my image as a cynical bastard, but that's one of those things that I'd really wish hadn't happened to me afterwards. There's no way I could have taken it either, but I'd always have the nagging thought in the back of my head "what if he was just some lottery winner who was a bit pissed, thought he'd nip across the road to buy a guitar (as we'd all become terrible impulse buyers in that situation), and thought while the guy was getting it "Nah, don't be such a sad old twat, and anyway, when would you have time to play it...".

Still, I guess he'd just have told you. Probably just  nutter who either didn't have any money or expected at least a blow job.

[petula dusty]

My sister went to Australia last year alone to visit her son who's out there working and she decided to take a boat trip on her last day. Whilst on the boat, and rather than spend the trip looking out to sea alone, she started chatting to a mother and daughter who were sitting nearby. During the conversation my sister happened to mention where she grew up and, oh my goodness, the mother and daughter lived in the same area, gosh small world, and ooh blimey, the daughter went to the same school, and fuck me if the daughter hadn't dated my brother when they were both teenagers and had never forgotten him. Cor lummy, what are the chances eh?