Pineapple 12: Socks, Secrets & Second Chances

Dear Pineapples,

Another week, another whirlwind through Brida. Socks have vanished, spoons have re-appeared, and apparently, penguins are still lost in the desert. Some things never change. But the bigger surprise? The Mayor and Fruitloop are still talking about Mindset, and yes—we’re all still listening.

So, grab your favourite cup (tea, coffee, or maybe a cheeky ginger beer) and let’s wander through the town together.

🥧 Crème Brûlée: Socks, Penguins & Impossible Machines

Three friends. One table. A whole basket of problems—some serious, some hilariously absurd.

The Mayor, Fruitloop, and Sarah tackled everything from noisy motorbikes to penguins in deserts to socks that vanish without explanation. Along the way they invented quirky solutions (machines that turn angry people kind, anyone?), swapped cultural insights, and paused for reflection: why does humanity keep struggling with the big stuff? 🎧 Want to laugh, think, and maybe design your own impossible invention? Join the next Crème Brûlée.

👗 Lunch with Janita & Frank: Clothes that Speak Louder than Words

Sometimes it isn’t words that give us confidence—it’s the clothes we wear.

Monica brought a shirt that carried a whole movement. Rosii’s green dress whispered calm and beauty. Bruce caused a stir by admitting he feels most powerful without clothes (cue nudist beaches, cultural detours, and a LOT of laughter). Janita confessed the horror of “same-dress-sighting,” and the Mayor revisited a tragic pink shirt with flares.

Clothing here wasn’t just style—it was story, statement, and social glue. 👕 What outfit changed your confidence forever? Tell us in the Boutique Eglantine

🌊 Atlantic Corridor with Ismar: A Letter to His 12-Year-Old Self

“What would you tell your 12-year-old self?”

Ismar—64, in Brazil—answered with honesty and heart. Shyness, reading, sports (especially swimming, not just for fitness but survival). The need to control anger, stay tolerant, and handle responsibility with care. He recalled injustice, missed opportunities, but also resilience.

And when asked if his younger self would listen? He chuckled. Probably not. But the wisdom remains—for the next generation. 💭 What would you tell your 12-year-old self? Share it in Dear Abby

🗞 Special Report: Ritesh & Ismar, Side by Side

Two conversations. Two men. Two continents. One question: What would you say to your younger self?

🍍 Coffeehouse Chronicles & The Atlantic Corridor – Two Voices, Two Decades Apart

Sometimes the Brida Café feels less like a café and more like a time machine. Early August, the Mayor sat down with Ritesh (29, Bangalore). By the end of the month, he was with Ismar (64, Brazil). Different continents, different decades lived — and yet, somehow, the same table.

And if you’ve been around Brida long enough, you’ll know these two are no strangers to each other. Ritesh and Ismar have shared screens and stories before. This time, though, they came separately, each with the Mayor, to talk to their younger selves.

☕ Ritesh Reflects (Early August)
 Bangalore heat, new home, new marriage, new beginnings. Ritesh leaned forward into the microphone and spoke with the quiet conviction of someone who knows the floor can shake, but your feet can still hold steady.

His advice to his 19-year-old self (and to Clea, who’s just flown to Edinburgh):

• Expect joy when you first leave home, but also homesickness — nothing replaces a mother’s care.
• Guard your pocket money, but don’t miss the trips. Those bus rides and late-night meals become the memories that matter.
• Choose friends who lift you up — “half of your life decisions,” he said, “will be shaped by those in your circle.”
• Study, yes. But don’t chase only the highest score. Life is bigger than marks on a sheet.
  

His invisible gift? Confidence. The belief that you are not lower than anyone, no matter the room you walk into.
 His boldest line? “Not being praised too much made me try harder.” That one landed in Brida like a stone in a still pond — the ripples are still moving.

🌎 Ismar Remembers (End of August)
 Now cross the ocean and add 35 years of living. Ismar, from Brazil, spoke not as a young man starting out, but as someone turning back to face the boy he once was.

He would tell 12-year-old Ismar:

• Don’t be shy — especially with girls. Even if you stumble, let yourself be seen.
• Read more novels. They’ll give you stories, words, worlds to connect with.
• Control your anger. Fight only when there’s no choice.
• Learn to swim. Ancient Greeks said you weren’t educated without it. He still agrees.
• Don’t drag along a complicated relationship out of pity. Seven years was too long.

His invisible gift? Tolerance. A softer heart, a calmer temper. “If you think you control yourself,” he said, “you’re wrong. Do your best. But don’t worry too much. The part you control is maybe the size of a penny coin.”

He spoke, too, of corruption and blockages — the math medal that went to someone else for better handwriting, the job lost to nepotism. “It made me stronger,” he shrugged, “not pessimist, just realist.”

✨ Two Conversations, One Thread
 What happens when you place these two voices — Ritesh’s forward-looking confidence and Ismar’s backward-facing tolerance — on the same page? You get Brida at its best: a bridge between ages, continents, and lived truths.

Ritesh reminds us to seize the new — say yes to trips, yes to friends, yes to confidence. Ismar reminds us to release the old — let go of shyness, of anger, of staying too long in the wrong story.

Together, they tell us: growing up never stops. Sometimes it looks like bunking class. Sometimes it looks like walking every day. And sometimes it looks like sitting with the Mayor, one by one, and sharing your wisdom with the world.

🔮 Future Events: One Theme, Many Voices

Big news, dear Residents. From September, our events get a fresh twist. Instead of scattered topics, we’ll gather around one global theme—seen through many eyes.

Fruitloop is the keeper of themes (of course she is). Her first one? Mindset.
Yes, the Mayor could sing an opera about it—but for the sake of our ears, he won’t.

Here’s how it works:

• Pre-Meeting Mystery Box lands on your desk → you warm up, reflect, scribble thoughts.
• The Event itself → we meet, share, question, laugh, disagree (politely).
• Post-Meeting Mystery Box → tie the bow, reflect, and maybe write that haiku.
• Certificate of Participation → because in Brida, showing up is the win.

📅 Upcoming Line-up

Skip these events, and you’ll have to invent your own penguin-in-the-desert stories at home 🐧🏜️ … while the rest of us dive into this month’s theme..

🥔 Spud List & Council Secrets

This week, the Mayor was spotted dancing in his office. Why? Because a missing piece of Brida’s marketing puzzle clicked into place. Fruitloop hasn’t said what it is yet, but let’s just say the Mayor’s cryptic words were: “You ain’t seen nothing yet.” (Yes, the 1974 BTO song. No, we’re not linking the video.)

📘 Fruitloop & Mayor: The Brochure Battle

The German brochure is done, the French one is nearly there, and after a heated WhatsApp exchange (navy blue vs. readable blue vs. “oops, keyboard gremlin”), the verdict is in:

💙 Blue it is.

Brochures are now off for proofreading and printing. Champagne corks soon?

🐟 Brida Life Gossip

Breaking: The Mayor eats Fishskin crisps on Sundays. Is this normal behaviour? Residents divided.

Meanwhile, Nuggets the chicken is silent. Possibly judging. Possibly writing a haiku.

Meanwhile, Ismar’s and Sarah’s haikus have been stealing the spotlight in the Japanese Tea House — delicate, sharp, and always on point. This week’s chosen words? Crumble. Labyrinth. Oak.

And here’s your gentle nudge, dear Resident:
✨ Imagine the sense of calm when your haiku lands on the Tea House wall… the pride when your words sit beside Ismar’s… the joy when others read your lines and nod in quiet agreement. ✨

So sharpen your pencils (or your phone thumbs). Post your haiku. Because if you don’t… well, let’s just say the Mayor has threatened to lock the lazy poets inside the Japanese Tea House for a “considerable” length of time. 🏯 (And no, there’s no Wi-Fi in there.)

👉 Submit your Haiku here

🍫 Champagne & Sugar-Free Chocolates

The Mayor spent his weekend knee-deep in strategies, revising and re-re-re-revising. (Not rabbit-holing, he insists.) Fruitloop nodded, then offered sugar-free chocolate as a peace treaty. They are very expensive too!

🏛 From the Town Council: Peeling Potatoes & Clearing Names

Official Statement by The Mayor & Fruitloop:

“When trust is questioned, silence is not an option. Allegations of slander, corruption, and misuse of funds have spread. Today we present the facts. Not gossip. Not speculation. The truth.”

This was the Town Hall Gathering, August 22, 2025. If you value truth over rumour, listen back here:

📣 Now It’s Your Turn

🎙 Want a seat at the next Lunch with Janita & Frank? Drop in here.
🎁 Curious about the new Mystery Boxes? Explore them.
💬 Got a truth, or rant, to share? Dear Abby awaits.
🐓 Think Nuggets needs a cookbook? Drop your advice in The Kitchen Co-op.

Until the next missing sock,
Yours most deliciously,
The Brida Scribe