I'm in the midst of a catch -up Christmas Card Tango.
You know the sort of thing. This year I'm not sending xyz a card because xyz did not send me one last year. But then with only days to go to Christmas I receive a card from xyz too late for me to respond to thereby revealing the fact I had dropped them from my list. No doubt xyz's timing is quite deliberate.
After decades of sending cards religiously - how apt - to everyone in my address book regardless that some never, ever, reciprocated I decided several years ago to whittle the number of my cards to the absolute essentials and where possible only those who returned the compliment. It seemed to work. For a while. But now I'm in this alternate year's catch-up routine.
What is galling about all this is that I met one of these xyzs at the funeral of a mutual former colleague recently. xyz and I worked side by side for several years more than 25 years ago but this was our first face to face encounter since that time. 'Hello', said I cheerfully to xyz. 'Er...hello' was the hesitant response to me. Clearly xyz had no idea who I was and worse he hazarded a guess as to my name and picked the name of someone else altogether. How could this be? We had exchanged cards every year without fail in the interim. He'd been sending cards to someone he no loner remembered.
Oh, how I dislike this annual tango.
On the other hand, here is a much more enjoyable tango. An all male version, in aid of charity, of the 'Cell Block Tango' from the musical 'Chicago'.
Our list has been culled to those who sent us a card last year, plus family some of who never send cards. We sent them cards regardless because that is how I was brung up. There will always be a card for Christmas and birthdays from the Gay Uncles (no cash enclosed).
ReplyDeleteI'm nobody's uncle, unfortunately.
DeleteVictor
ReplyDeleteI'd say xyz has sent you a card because you ran into each other.
I doubt that xyz no longer remembers you: what you describe seems more like he no longer recognizes you. It's a slightly different proposition.
Actually no Marcellous. We had a conversation and he could not remember me, nor working with me.
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