Chapter 31 of 44

Other People

Parties, invitations, and favors owed. The largest chapter here, because the hardest thing to get out of is something you agreed to when you were feeling generous.

79 verses

1. 1 I've become unfit for company in a way I can't fix by eight Unverifiable
2. 2 I said yes in a mood that has since passed Unverifiable
3. 3 I've overcommitted to a bath Concerning
4. 4 I'm already in the clothes Concerning
5. 5 I've gone too far indoors to come back out Not reassuring
6. 6 I bought groceries and now I'm responsible for them Concerning
7. 7 I've been social twice this week and that's the allocation Concerning
8. 8 I peaked at about four and it's downhill from here Unverifiable
9. 9 I've started something I can't leave in the middle of Concerning
10. 10 My battery is at nine percent and so am I Unverifiable
11. 11 I've done the math on the journey and it doesn't work Unverifiable
12. 12 I have to be up at an hour that makes tonight impossible Unverifiable
13. 13 Something has come up and it's still coming up Concerning
14. 14 I'm in the middle of a thing that started yesterday Not reassuring
15. 15 I'd be bad company and you'd be too polite to say so Unverifiable
16. 16 I've committed to being horizontal Concerning
17. 17 I've hit the part of the week where I stop being a person Concerning
18. 18 My social battery died around Tuesday Unverifiable
19. 19 I've agreed to too many things and one of them has to give Unverifiable
20. 20 I looked at the invitation again and I've reconsidered Concerning
21. 21 The night has got away from me and it's six Concerning
22. 22 I've been asleep in a chair since four and I've only just surfaced Concerning
23. 23 I can feel a mood arriving and I don't want it in public Concerning
24. 24 I've spent the day being agreeable and I have nothing left Concerning
25. 25 I have to move the car before it gets moved for me Plausible
26. 26 I have to relieve somebody Concerning
27. 27 My ride is leaving and it won't wait twice Unverifiable
28. 28 I need to be home before something arrives Concerning
29. 29 There's a window and it's closing Not reassuring
30. 30 I have to let somebody in and I'm the only one with a key Unverifiable
31. 31 I promised I'd call at nine and it's five to Unverifiable
32. 32 The babysitter has a hard out and she means it Plausible
33. 33 My last train is in eleven minutes and I've checked twice Plausible
34. 34 I've reached the part of the evening where I start telling stories Concerning
35. 35 I can hear myself getting louder Concerning
36. 36 Somebody has just asked me what I do and I need to leave Concerning
37. 37 I've said goodbye to enough people that leaving is now the polite option Concerning
38. 38 My coat is by the door and I've made eye contact with it Not reassuring
39. 39 I have used up all of my remaining anecdotes Concerning
40. 40 The taxi I booked forty minutes ago is finally here Unverifiable
41. 41 I've reached the stage where I'm agreeing with everybody Not reassuring
42. 42 I said I'd do it and I'm going to, just not in the window you're describing Unverifiable
43. 43 I've started it and stopping now would make it worse Concerning
44. 44 The thing I need for it is in a place I can't get to today Unverifiable
45. 45 I've been quoted a price that has changed my plans Unverifiable
46. 46 I need one more weekend and I'd rather not say what for Concerning
47. 47 The store that has the part is closed until Thursday Plausible
48. 48 I looked at it properly and it's a bigger job than either of us said Unverifiable
49. 49 I have to be somewhere and the somewhere keeps moving Not reassuring
50. 50 I've written it down, which is the first stage Concerning
51. 51 I got as far as the shed and then reassessed Concerning
52. 52 Every time I go to do it something else has broken Concerning
53. 53 My back has opinions about that particular job Plausible
54. 54 The ladder is at my brother's and my brother is away Unverifiable
55. 55 I need a dry day and there hasn't been one Concerning
56. 56 I can't do another one of those this month Unverifiable
57. 57 I'll be there for the second half and that's the offer Unverifiable
58. 58 Last time I went I didn't recover until Tuesday Unverifiable
59. 59 Somebody will bring up the thing and I'm not doing the thing Unverifiable
60. 60 I've done my hours with that side of the family this quarter Concerning
61. 61 I've been asked to bring something and I can't face the bringing Unverifiable
62. 62 The drive is two hours each way for four hours of that Unverifiable
63. 63 I said I'd think about it and I have thought about it Unverifiable
64. 64 I'm not in a state to be asked how work is going Unverifiable
65. 65 I've got nothing new to report and they'll want something new Concerning
66. 66 The last visit is still settling and I need it to finish settling Not reassuring
67. 67 I've been told I have to sit next to somebody and I've said no Unverifiable
68. 68 I read everything and answered all of it in my head Concerning
69. 69 I put my phone somewhere safe Concerning
70. 70 My notifications and I are on a break Concerning
71. 71 I opened the message and then something happened and here we are Concerning
72. 72 The thread got long enough that replying became a project Concerning
73. 73 I was in a dead zone that turned out to be my apartment Concerning
74. 74 I archived the thread and the thread archived me Not reassuring
75. 75 I've been meaning to reply since a point I can no longer identify Concerning
76. 76 Every time I picked up the phone somebody else needed it Not reassuring
77. 77 I've been drafting a reply and the draft has grown Not reassuring
78. 78 My unread count went somewhere I couldn't follow Not reassuring
79. 79 I saw it, I meant to, and then the week ended Unverifiable