seldear | Lydia Bennett Syndrome

I have a friend who always wants to meet and catch up, but only when I call her first. We arranged to meet today after work, and I sent her a mail at her workplace asking her to call me sometime today to confirm meeting up afterwards.

She hasn't called.

This happens every. single. bloody. time I try to arrange a time to meet with her. I ask her to call me and she never does - she just sends emails - which is all very well if I could access my home email at work: except that I can't. So I end up caving and calling her to check if we're still on.

I'm not going to bother this time. If she hasn't called by 5pm, I'm just going home.

I suspect that this is what I think of as "Lydia Bennett" syndrome. It happens particularly with married friends, who are all so busy 'being married' that they couldn't possibly have time to call you and catch up, a la young Lydia in Austen's P&P.

I'm not talking about being married with kids running your arse off, I'm talking about marrieds-no-kids who seem to believe that having a significant other means they don't have time to call someone for thirty seconds and confirm a meeting that they've already planned.

I have married friends who *do* call and arrange to do stuff with me - without my calling them first. It's not that difficult for them and if neither of us can make it, then we chat for a while and promise we'll do it sometime soon.

It's not hard. Really!

On other topics, most of the office left for lunch around 12:30. It is now pushing towards 3pm and most of them aren't back. Ah, Melbourne Cup Day and the Three Hour Lunch.