Hans and the Rolling Stones
Hans was a huge German youth who adored the Rolling Stones. He’d never heard them before but took an instant liking to them and became besotted after just one listening.
The Hostel had a Dansette record player and I put on my Stones album. Immediately Hans came over with a look of incredulity. He was smitten. I had to play it through again and again.
Hans was massive – like a lumberjack on steroids. For a snack he would buy one of the large black loaves, slice it open with a huge sheaf-knife, slice up sausage and cheese in big wedges and eat it as a sandwich. It was enormous.
There were two very shy, timid and serious Austria girls staying in the Hostel. They were either mute or simply terrified of everyone. I think it was the latter. They kept themselves well apart from the entire riot going on around them and did not seem at all keen on sharing wine or playing table soccer. They would huddled together round the Dansette, play Strauss and try to blot out the rest of the world. They looked like a couple of baby fauns hiding from the hunters.
Hans would stride over, thump his fist down on the table so that the stylus skipped across the LP, and say ‘ROLLING STONES!’ in his booming voice.
He was very intimidating. The two girls would scuttle about collecting up their LPs and disappear. I felt sorry for them but there was no arguing with Hans.
He’d put the album on, turn the volume up and give us great big bear hugs, grinning and guffawing with pleasure.
I think we’d altered his life. We certainly had not enhanced the Austrian girls lives though.
The other girls in the place liked the Stones though. They kept us happy with their cooking and other delights. I had never tasted so many exotic dishes.
This hitch-hiking business was proving every bit as illuminating and fun as it had promised to be.
Life would never be the same.
You turned that corner and that was it.
A journey starts with one step. That set a pattern for me!
Yes but not all of us can make that first step when we should have, I am now at my age going to push myself to that first step.
It’s still a first step on a journey. SF will change your life!
I don’t know how long I have left, none of us do of course, heart failure could determine that but yes I do feel San Francisco will change me. I went to Canada and USA aged 21 and 22, but had to have my “sister” in line so it was a waste.
All we have is the monent. Our task is to maximise it! To seize our opportunities and experience them to the full.
Look at what you just said, that is exactly how you influence me, you make me feel strong and want to get there.
Good. That’s what you need. A big slice of optimism and something to look forward too – a bit of excitement! That’s life!
I need excitement, don’t think I honestly ever had it. This is David’s pc I use as it is a big screen, I have my own but it’s too small for me plus laptop and hand thing David bought me, I use to look at emails upstairs but have not figured out how to reply but I can’t get on with them. So I can only use this when he is not working – he works from around 6pm to 7am – anyhow I have to go off now to cook the dinner, we have dinner late – it will be midnight one day. See you in the morning, Sleep Warm.
Goddnight Anna.