Some are pretty obvious like giving a hug to your parents or meet some friends again! Other are also obvious but do seems less important!

Yesterday it became clear to me that I really did miss the pool session with 2 of my mates. I do mean shooting some pool and not the swimming pool.

Pre-Covid period!

While I was younger (still young at heart), I did never see myself as a person who would regularly go to a pub. Never it crossed my mind that I would have a "Cheers" experience.
I liked to stay at home, watch some tele or play some games online.

But when my oldest did start with football (the real football, so for some called soccer) you do see people from elementary school and with other parents there is just a click. Two of those went on a frequent basis to the local pool hall. And were constantly asking if I would join them.

After a year or so, I decided to join them. This with the idea that it would be a one time occasion. I am a pretty closed person and do find it hard to make real friends. But hey I did enjoy myself. So it did became a monthly appointment.

Most of the time it was the same scenario. Starting with some chit chat and some coffee, moving over to beer and shooting some pool. All the three of us are used to competition and all the three of us don't like to loose! At the start we did play according to our own rules, not even close to real pool competition rules. (There are some nasty rules like that during each shot, after the first contact was made, at least one ball has to touch the side of the table. As time progresses we did start to get a little bit better and started to apply all competition rules in our games. Still the scenario was the same, drinking coffee, talking about sports and life, shooting some pool moving over to beer.

Just before the Covid restrictions did hit us, we came together at the pool hall 3 times a week. Mostly starting with Sunday, then Wednesday and Friday. We now all have our own pool cue. Our sons no longer play in the same team, but we were bounded for life!

During and Post Covid!

The Covid came along. Just before the first lockdown we did think that it would be a measurement for only 3 weeks or so, and while the pool hall was allowed to open for 2 more months in the summer, it has been closed from March last year until a few weeks ago.

In the mean time, we did had some meetings in the backyard of one of us, drinking some beer and discussing life. While this was great, it still was different.

I am the ugly one on the left :)
So a few weeks ago, the pool bar was allowed to re-open. Only the terrace outside and shooting some pool wasn't allowed. While the two other did want to go immediately I told them that I wouldn't go until 2 weeks after my first covid vaccination.

Last Sunday on my birthday I decided to go back. And while shooting some pool technically isn't allowed but we still did. As regular guests you do have some privileges.

Yesterday we did go for the second time. And o boy at those moment you know what you have been missing. Just like in the old days, it did start with a coffee, some chit chat mostly about the European Championship and shooting some pool. While the game play of the three of us is still rusty, the feeling does come back. Still we need to move around with the mouth masks but that is a sacrifice we are happy to take.

Probably we will never go back to the routine of three times a week. I am happy at home, but my wife is also happy when I am sometimes during the evening not at home, so that she can relax :). I am a busy bee! So Me-Time! looks selfish, but actually it isn't. During those evenings, I can talk with somebody else about life than my wife. I can talk football, which isn't here cup of tea and so on.
The three of us are always there for each other. We have been made at each other, we have cried together, but above all we do have fun together!

Next week it is time to go to the golf course again! That is going to be a disaster, game wise.

So, do you have some moment that you really did miss during the Covid lock downs?

Like to read about it!

Cheers,
Peter
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