Old friends

It's been a busy day.

First thing Mr Flossmo and I did an emergency run to the local Sainsburys to get the makings of lunch  then we drove over to Farnborough railway station to pick up a very long time friend of mine who is over in the UK  from his home in Dunedin NZ. We first met in 1976 at the interview for university, again on the first day of term  and have been friends ever since, despite S living down under for most of his adult life. We do Zoom occasionally but haven't seen each other in person since well before covid so it was nice to have a relaxed conversation.

After a pleasant lunch we dropped S back to the station and then drove over to Basingstoke Odeon to see Oppenheimer. I think Mr Flossmo found it all a bit loud and a bit fragmented to start with but 20 minutes in even he was completely engrossed. I thought it was superb. For me, Nolan really looked deeply into the conflicting emotions affecting Oppenheimer and his family and friends: allegiance to one's country versus allegiance to one's friends; personal integrity versus hunger for fame and success, trying to keep everyone happy but never managing to do it. It made me think quite deeply about a lot of moral issues. 

The photograph was taken on the way home from the cinema. By pure chance the setting sun looked for all the world like a nuclear explosion, which, I suppose is exactly what it is. Let's hope it's the only one we ever see.