Goodbye Benji in Adventures in paradise

Couldn’t believe it when I got on the train to head down to the Gold Coast yesterday afternoon. It was a peak-hour train, and I’d literally just responded to a friend’s post on Facebook which was complaining about the ludicrous prices of Brisbane public transport (as he’s from Melbourne and must’ve been up). My response was that I’d be passing Coomera station soon and I’d wave.

I certainly didn’t expect to board the last carriage and have someone lean out and grab my arm. It was him! I’d assumed by the status that he was way ahead of me on the train line. So, of course I sat next to him and we chatted the entire way there. His station was one before the one I needed to get off at.

Man he’s funny. He was telling me all about his trip to the USA and Canada, and what he got up to, namely in Toronto, New York and Chicago, although he went to Vegas also. He was telling me all about the wild sex he had there, leaving no stone unturned and giving me every explicit detail, including penis sizes and how hot guys arses were etc etc. I had to wonder what the other patrons on the train were thinking LOL!

We go for the same types of guys, so it was really interesting listening to him. I didn’t say much at all. I really couldn’t get a word in edgewise anyway. He’s a guy covered in arm tattoos and is in his early 40’s, although could pass for early to mid 30’s easily. I only realized how old he was when I was saying I haven’t been in any higher than a threesome before (in response to his story about having a 5-Way in Chicago LOL), and he goes, “I’ve got a few years on you though.”

Man, it really sounded like he had the trip off a lifetime, including hooking up with a black guy with an 11.5 inch penis who turned out to also be a Drag Queen he ran into the next night lol. Man, I wish my life was that interesting.
He went travelling with a travel buddy who he said he doesn’t clash with at all, as his mate goes for fat hair guys and he goes for twinks, so they work really well together travelling.
I originally met him when I started working back where I am now, but he’s since moved to Melbourne. The chances of running into him straight off the plane onto the airport train to the Gold Coast, in the exact same carriage, are uncanny. There’s got to be some sort of ‘The Secret’, ESP, or starsign shit going on there for that to happen. Or a really rare coincidence.

Anyway, he got off the train and I waited my one station further. His conversations and making me laugh had really made the 1.2 hour trip go by really fast.

He snapped a selfie of us before he departed.

I had to wait a little while for a bus connection, but it finally arrived and I jumped on. As soon as I did, and I realised the bus was going the opposite way to what it usually does, I was thinking to myself, ‘Oh shit!’ The front of the bus definitely said Southport however, so I knew it had to get there eventually. Of course I’d happened to jump on one of the long-way-around buses that went to every single suburb on the way there, up mountains and hills etc. It seemed VERY dark outside by this point and I was getting worried that I hadn’t timed this trip right, because I hadn’t even arrived to meet Ben yet, and I still needed to leave enough time to get the last train back home again.
It was running through my mind though that if worse came to worse, surely I’d be able to find a hotel and check in for the night. I used to do that quite often years ago when I was working full-time and spending $100 on a random hotel didn’t matter so much, but these days it’s not really that sensible, but it is doable, so I didn’t want to have to unless I had to.

The bus FINALLY stopped at Southport, but because it’s changed so much since the new tram network started running, I didn’t even recognize where I was, despite having been there hundreds of times in the past. I hadn’t had a reason to visit Southport since Ben moved back to Brisbane, but since he was staying in temporary accommodation around there, that’s why I was going to meet him. I didn’t get to go to his farewell dinner last weekend, due to work commitments, but a couple of my friends went down.

The bus driver didn’t even tell me and the other two patrons on the bus that it was the last stop. He kind of just parked there. I had to ASK him and he was like, ‘Yeah’. Righteo then. Long day I guess!

I texted Ben where I was, and a red car pulled up alongside the road, except I wasn’t entirely sure it was him as he was wearing this long cream coloured overcoat thing, so I thought it was an old man instead. I had to step down to the road from the sidewalk, so I couldn’t just took in to see who it was. I opened the car door and hopped in. Luckily it was him. We had a good laugh that it could have been awkward if I’d just jumped into some strange old man’s car, and he did agree that what he was wearing could be considered quite ‘old-man-ish’ haha.

Turns out he’s been sick so he didn’t want to go to a restaurant like we had planned. He paid for my dinner last time, so it was my turn to shout him back. I’d even budgeted for it. Instead, we just went to an IGA and I got some snacks, and we continued driving back to where he was staying in the student village.

The last time I saw a student village was when my American friend Tiffany was studying here in Brisbane, and that was six years ago, so being in another one felt a little surreal. It was a block of about five different residential student apartment blocks, with about three to four levels of apartments, with five to six rooms in each apartment. The kitchen was like a common area. Apparently each student pays $250 a week for each room. Whoever owns them must be earning an absolute MINT if each of those small apartments is getting $1250 a week.

Anyway, Ben’s only there til next week, then he’s off on his big adventure overseas for two years, maybe longer. We went out onto the balcony to chat, so-as not to disturb the others in the apartment who were probably sleeping.

We chatted about a few things, but it was silent a fair bit of the time too, with us both just sitting there. I don’t think he felt too well. It was nice of him not to cancel though. I had made the effort to go down there, which does take a while on public transport. I was considering hiring a car for a while there, but figured I’d be meeting peak-hour traffic out of Brisbane if I did. Then when I realized how dark it was so early, I was kicking myself that I didn’t, because at least then I knew I could still make it home without having to worry about missing the last train service.
I looked it up at Ben’s and the last service wasn’t until midnight anyway. Ben said he’d have to drop me off well before that though haha! I think it was only 8:30pm, but it just felt like it was so much later. I had left Brisbane at 4:30pm to make it down there in time for dinner, but dinner was no longer happening, so I guess my only real expense was the public transport.

Ben was nice enough to drive me to the train station, so I didn’t have to catch a bus back to it. I was SO tired in his car that I felt myself dropping off to sleep a few times. The drive seemed to take nearly as long as the bus did! I swear when I’ve always caught the usual bus that it doesn’t take that long, although it does take a little while.
We hugged goodbye and he thanked me for being a good friend over the many years. I said I’d see him again soon and wished him the best of luck over there, and joked with him to say hi to Agnetha for me :P

I nodded off maybe once for a little bit on the train on the way home. I was so looking forward to bed. I think I’d been awake earlier than usual, that would explain it. I’ve felt pretty crap since getting back, even having slept. It must be that crap food I ate and the fact I haven’t been to gym in three nights now. I have work tonight and I’m considering having another sleep before I have to go in. I’m becoming an old man haha.

I might go eat something nutritious first.

Last updated October 17, 2014