of, Liverpool's, Docklands.
It, had, been, one, of, those,nights, in, Town, with,Dave, My, best ,friend.
Dave,had, gone,through, Catering College, and, got, a job, as, a Steward,on, a Harrison Line, Ship,'the Magician',one,
of, a fleet, of,Cargo Vessels, that, traded, mostly, to, the Caribbean.
I, was, about, Seventeen, and, still, at, School,still,living, with, My Parents..and, yearning,for, Freedom.
Dave, had, come, home, loaded,flush, with,Cash.He, had, saved, His, Wages,from, an, Eight Week,trip, and, was, raring,
to, 'Hit Town', buy, Clothes, drink,a few,Beers, and,shake off, the Weeks,of, confinement.
How, strange,to,Me, it, all,seems, on, recall.
We, had, mostly, spent, the day, in,Clothing, Shops,for,Dave, had, a,great,Style,and,taste,for, Clothes,
spending, what,I, considered,way,too,much.
He ,pulled,out,a Wad,to pay, for, a Shirt,and, had, given,Me, a bunch, of,Venezuelan,'Bolivar', notes,which,
I,put, in, the pocket, of,My ,Denim,Shirt, and, forgot, about.
Music,Stores, were, next, on, the Agenda,and,We, traipsed, from, Store, to Store, looking,for,Cassette Tapes,
Headphones,and,New, Vinyl, Albums,all,of,which, were, duly,discussed,tried out,and, bought, or, rejected.
Soon, We,were, in, a Pub, and,although, We,were,both,under, Age,We,never, got,Questioned,and,
always, got,served.
In, those,Days,at, the end, of, the Seventies,every,Pub, had, a JukeBox,the Quality, of, which, was, always,
the Subject, of, heated, argument, but, it, was, a matter,of, Honour, to select, a Record, that, everyone,else, agreed,
was, an, 'Alright Song'...Motown, was, always, a safe,selection,and, mostly, Motown,was, heard...
Another ,Pub, attraction, was, the,'Space Invaders'..Table Top,Game,which, had, just,arrived, on, the Scene.
Mobile Phones, were,unheard,of,except, in,TV Programs, like,'Banachek', with, George Peppard,
and, His, looked, like, a HouseBrick, So, Public Telephones,were, always,in,demand.
Dave, had, come, from, a Broken Home, background, His, Black,West Indian,Father, and,White, English, Mother,
had, split up, when, He, was ,Younger, and, He, had, gone, to live,With, His, retired, Grandparents, who, He, called,
'Uncle Dan', and,'Nan'. They, had, a Golden Retriever,called, 'Silver', who, was, the smartest,nicest, Dog, I, ever, knew.
Dave, had, been,a bit, spoiled, by, His, Grandparents, and,I,suppose,I,was, jealous,because,He, always, seemed, to have, the best, of, everything, but, He, also,must, have, been, a bit,jealous, of,Me,because,He, always, liked, the,idea, of,'Family'.
Our, discussions, about, Our,futures,were, long, and, varied,and,We, would,spend, hours, fantasising, about, going,to,
America, getting, a couple, of,Harleys, and, riding, across, Route 66,both, ways,although,at, that, time, neither,of,Us, could, ride, a Motorcycle, or, drive, a Car.
Dave,was, a really, Good looking, Guy, and, Girls, were, always, hanging, around,and, of, course,this,could,occasionally,cause,
problems,and,fights, with, jealous, Boyfriends,etc.
Our, lives,were,taking,different directions, though,and,at, the end, of, High School..I, had, decided, to stay, on, for,'A',levels,whereas,
Dave, had, wanted, to, 'Go to Sea'.
It,had, been, about, a Year,and, We, had, kept, in, touch, by,Letter,but, We, were,drifting, apart. He, had,a regular, Girlfriend,
who,He,eventually,married, with, Me as, the Best Man, but,like, all, of, us, He, had, a wandering Eye, and,His,
'Conquests', were, many.
Staying on, at, School, had, been, My, biggest, mistake.It, didn't,take, Me, long, to realise, that,'A' levels, were,a lot,
more,difficult, than, the seven,'O' Levels, I,had, already,passed,So, one, day, I, just ,walked, out, and, didn't, go, back..
My, real, Education, began, on, that,day, and, now,years, later,I, still, have, no regrets.
One ,time,I, was, driving,with, My,wife,in, a Rental Car, in, Los Angeles,in, the dark,and,I, took, a wrong, turn,off, the Freeway, and, ended, up, in,
Longbeach, in, a District, that, looked, very, familiar, it, was, just, like, Liverpool's Dockland..I,carried, on, not, knowing, where,
I, was, going,trying, to get, back, to, the PCH, driving, through,Huntington Beach, and, places, I, remembered, from, 'Banachek'.
Episodes..finally,I, got, to where, I, wanted, to, be..Anaheim,and, Disneyland..
The Dingy,Club, We, were,in,was,dimly,lit.It, was, Tiny, by,Night Club Standards,and, it's,Clientele, were, all,
Shady ,Characters.It, was, called, 'The Norseman',and, it, was, the haunt, of,some ,very ,Gangster,individuals.
At, the top, of, the Street, was, a Pub, called, 'The Griffin'..and,Me, and,Dave, had, been, in, there,Playing, the,
'Space Invaders',Table, for, hours,and,Pool, for, Money, with, Sailors, of, all,Nations.
The Pub, had, called,'Last Orders', so, now,We, had, arrived, in, the 'Norseman'..in, the early,Hours, of, a very long, day..
In, the Centre, of, the, Tiny Club, was, a Dance Floor, made, up, of, Nine, or, Twelve, Glass,Squares, that, were, illuminated,
with, different, Colours, from, underneath. A small Bar,in, a Corner, served,Bottles, of, Spirits, at, inflated, prices, to,
inebriated, Sailors,and, all,around, in, gloomy, corners,sat,Painted Ladies, waiting, to, be, asked, to Dance.
The Place, was,filling, up,and,in, those, days,People were, smoking,and, a cloud, of, smoke,was broken, by, the flashing, strobe,
lamp, that,was, the only, source, of, Light.
Entering, the Doorway, of, this, Club,You, were, met, by,someone's, idea, of,humour..A real Coffin, with, a dummy figure,
was,placed,against, a wall, and, it, was, covered, by, a glass, top, of, course, this, was, used, as, a Table, in, the crowded, space, and,We, were, standing, next, to, it, having, a drink.
I, was, chatting, to, some,of,Dave's, Mates, from, his, Ship, which, was, berthed, in, the nearby,Dock,when, a nice, looking, Girl, caught, My, attention.So, I, asked, Her, for, a dance, and,We, made, Our,way, onto, the Dance Floor.
It's, hard, to, show, Your, moves, when, Your, head, is, hitting, a Strobe Lamp, but, I, did, My, best, to Boogie, to, 'KC', and,
the Sunshine Band',and, was,pleased, to hear, the Lady, ask, Me, to buy,Her, a Drink.
So, I, motioned, to Dave, to go, to the Bar,which, He, duly, did.
Returning, to,the Coffin Table,I,was, smiling, like, a Cheshire Cat,as, the nice Girl,I, had, been, dancing, with, gave, Me, a wink.
Dave, came, over, to, the Coffin, at, the same, time, as, the Dwarf.
Yes, that's, right, a Dwarf..He,was, a real life, Midget/Dwarf,and, had, been, watching, Me,from, a Phone Booth, in, the corner, near, the Bar.
"See, Her, over, there?"..He said,nodding, towards, the Bar
"What about,Her?", I, asked, in,Genuine Puzzlement.
"I've Shagged Her"..He replied.
I, was, uninterested, and,took, little notice,so,I, turned, away, to talk, to, the others.Next, Moment, the Dwarf, was, tugging, at, My Shirt, and,I turned, to face Him.
" See,Her, over, there?"..He said,now nodding, towards, My,Female dancing Partner..
"What about Her?"..I replied.
"I've shagged Her, too"..He said
I, couldn't resist, it, and, said..
" You're ,a right, Little Shagger?, aren't,You?"..
At, which, the Dwarf, took, offence, and, jumped,up,grabbing, My, New,Denim Shirt,and, knocking, Me ,off, balance, into, the crowded, Dance Floor,He, was, swinging wildly,trying, to punch Me,in, the face, but, I, was, laughing, so, much,at, the,
absurdity, of, the situation, I, couldn't do anything, until, the Bouncers,pulled, Him, off, still screaming ,at, Me,and, threw Him,bodily,out, into, the Street.
Dave, and, the others ,went,out, after,Him, but, He, had, disappeared,into, a Taxi,before, They, could, do anything,so, They came, back,inside,and, We, were, all,still laughing, like, a Bunch, of, Hyenas..when, the Nice looking, Girl, came, over, and, put, something, into, My,Hand..It, was, the Wad, of,Venezuelan Bolivars,they, had, fallen, out, My, Pocket, "You dropped, this",She said...
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