Copyright@ Gerry Rose

 Jilly said good bye to Babs and walked to her house. Babs had talked her through what to do regarding the bus. She said Jilly would be better off downloading the app on her phone and buying a city saver ticket, particularly if she was going on several bus journeys in one day. Jilly felt quite proud of herself as she let herself into her house and made herself a hot chocolate and thought about her evening. Jilly liked Babs. Babs was down to earth and kind. Jilly was not surprised when Babs told her that she used to be in the Police. Babs was a keen observer and certainly ran her group with efficiency. Jilly looked around her sitting room and felt that once the renovation was complete she would have more time for socialising. It would be good to be able to invite friends around for coffee, or a meal.

 The last 6 weeks had been about making plans for the house, but after spending yet another weekend alone she had decided she needed to make some plans for renovating herself.  

 Joining some Meetup groups came to mind. She had been a member of a Meetup group in Norfolk but it had not been very successful. The Diss Culture Vultures was a bit of a non-starter. She didn’t understand why people would join a Meetup group and then bring their mum or their best friend along. This was of course ‘normal for Norfolk’. When she downloaded the Meetup App and looked at groups in Brighton and Hove, she was completely bowled over by the choice. There was probably a Meetup group for every possible interest. She felt like a child in a sweetshop as she joined a cinema group, Bab’s group, a water colour group and an art appreciation group. She would be able to meet like minded men and women. Jilly doubted if she was ready for a relationship, but she was ready for friends of either sex.

 Tonight’s Meetup was the first she had attended. On the bus home, Babs had given her some advice which Jilly totally agreed with.

‘Jilly you strike me as a canny woman. My advice to you is to be wary of everyone you meet here in your first few months. It is hard moving to somewhere new and sometimes we are so eager to make friends, that we invest in the wrong people.’

 Jilly took this to heart. Apart from Babs, she didn’t feel she would have anything in common with the other people she had met tonight. Harry was ok, but he was too keen to tell everyone that he had a much younger girlfriend. He was very handsome though. Maria was a bit of a cold fish. Trish was a lush. Babs had told her that Trish was fun. Jilly did not understand why Trish, who was 73, behaved as though she was still in her 20s. Babs said that just because people have grown old, it doesn’t mean that they have grown up. Jilly thought that was such an interesting and insightful comment. Jilly was quite shocked when Babs told her she was the same age as Trish. Babs looked much younger than her 73 years. Jilly thought Timothy was just a rather scruffy man who was useless without his wife. She had thought it was kind of Babs to invite him out for a coffee. We all need more people like Babs, Jilly thought. Jilly also considered Bab’s last comment to her.

‘Jilly you are too young and talented to be sitting around and not doing some sort of work. Get paid work if you can, or do something worthy in the voluntary section. I have seen more women and men go downhill once they slow down. They seem to become very anxious and everything they do becomes overpowering and they make huge mountains out of a molehill. They do one thing a day and think they are busy. And if I hear anyone else say ‘I don’t know how I found time to work since I have retired’ I think I will explode.’

 Jilly tended to agree with Babs and thought that whilst not working sounds idyllic, she wasn’t someone who would be able to fill her day meeting people for coffee, or lunch, attending classes, or playing bridge. She was never going to become someone who indulged in pointless crafts. She liked lists and now after sort the house out, find some friends, get a job was next.

 Jilly knew that her skills were pretty niche. In Norfolk she had resorted to working in an antique shop. She knew that she had been copping out by doing this. Jilly’s job in Cork Street in the 1990s was the pinnacle of her success. When the family moved to Norfolk in 2000 it had not been about her ambitions. Now at 61 what did she really want to achieve? She didn’t really need the money, but she did want to feel that she was doing something valuable. Voluntary work was noble but she didn’t really want to do something that was unpleasant. She liked the finer things in life and didn’t really want to mix with sick people. She never could understand how anyone volunteered to work in a charity shop. The thought of handling other people’s clothing and dead people’s property did not appeal. She had been in a charity shop once and that was enough. She couldn’t do what Babs did. Jilly was intrigued when Babs told her that she was a prison visitor. She made sure that she never visited anyone that she had arrested and never revealed her former job. Since she’d retired from the Police nearly 20 years ago she felt confident that no one would remember her. Jilly didn’t want to work full time. A maximum of 3 days a week would suit her. Jilly finished her drink and got ready for bed.

 Jilly thought about the last thing Babs had said to her before they parted, ‘Let’s meet for coffee just the two of us sometime. I can tell you some of the people to avoid in Hove. There are some people who are tricky. I have seen a lot of people get hurt by them and from what you have told me about your experience of living in your village in Norfolk, you need to surround yourself with some kind souls.’ Jilly felt that Babs was someone who was worth getting to know. They had exchanged phone numbers and Jilly felt she had made her first friend in Hove.

 Sleep did not come easily to her that night, after not socialising much for a while, meeting 5 new people was a little overwhelming. When she woke up the next morning she knew what work she should do.