Friends–An Interesting Perspective

While most folk know I have been out of the Navy for way longer than I was in the best posting I had was HMAS Parramatta from Feb 1988 to Jan 1991 (I discharged in 1994) .

I have been following a Facebook group HMAS PARRAMATTA - Past and Present and saw this…

CIVILIAN FRIENDS - Disown you for running around their house naked in front of a bunch of people none of you have ever met before

MILITARY FRIENDS - Take photos and then join you

CIVILIAN FRIENDS- Think its disgusting that you got so drunk you pissed your pants and drowned the phone in your pocket - in their bed

MILITARY FRIENDS-Upon hearing what happened say "That's fucked - that's why I don't sleep with my mobile in my pocket anymore" and help you turn their mattress over ...

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Get upset if you are too busy to talk to them for a week

MILITARY FRIENDS: Are glad to see you after many years; and will happily carry on the same conversation you were having last time you met.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Never ask for food

MILITARY FRIENDS: Are the reason you have no food

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Call your parents Mr and Mrs

MILITARY FRIENDS: Call your parents Mum and Dad

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Bail you out of jail and then tell you what you did was wrong

MILITARY FRIENDS: Would be sitting next to you saying, 'Mate...we fucked up ....but what a giggle?

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Have never seen you cry

MILITARY FRIENDS: Cry with you

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Know a few things about you

MILITARY FRIENDS: Could write a book with a shed full of direct quotes from you

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Will leave you behind if that is what the crowd is doing

MILITARY FRIENDS: Will kick the backsides of whole crowds that left you behind

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Would knock on your door

MILITARY FRIENDS: Walk right in and say, 'I'm home, got any beer!

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Share a few experiences.

MILITARY FRIENDS: Share a lifetime of experiences no civilian could ever dream of.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Will take your drink away when they think you've had enough

MILITARY FRIENDS: Will look at you stumbling all over the place and say, "You had better drink the rest of that, don't waste it." Then they carry you home and put you safely to bed.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Will talk crap to the person who talks crap about you.

MILITARY FRIENDS: Will knock the crap out of people who use your name in vain

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Know where you buried the body

MILITARY FRIENDS: Helped you bury the body

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Will call you 'mate' as a term of endearment

MILITARY FRIENDS: Will call you a 'wanker ' c*#t or 'tosser' as a term of endearment

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Are for a while.

MILITARY FRIENDS: Are for life.

CIVILIAN FRIENDS: Will ignore this

MILITARY FRIENDS: Will forward this to their military mates

Why did I share this with you? certainly not because I agree with all of these things but many certainly ring true with my experience.

What I do know is some friends I chose and others are because of circumstance, many I have not seen for a very long time and with the exception of a few many are MILITARY FRIENDS

 

I have a friend who describes her friends in rings, kind of the onion theory of compartmentalised friendships. It makes me think of Protected Mode CPU Ring Execution (but I’m a geek like that)

I think I’d like to treat everyone in the way described in this supposed to be funny posting but I suspect life doesn’t work out that way. Although there was a time in my life where it did and I’d like to reclaim at least a little bit of that.