When I was living in England I threw a surprise birthday party for a friend. She drank too much and got sick against the walls of my apartment. She hurled the birthday brownies I'd baked for her at someone across the room. The next day she came over with her boyfriend, allegedly to help me clean. I had just put my lunch in the oven and asked if I should put more in for them. They asked what I was having and I answered: baked sweet potato with asparagus and feta. They sat on my kitchen counter and joked about how the Irish girl was eating potatoes while I scrubbed at the stains that her vomit had left on the walls. She was swinging her legs and kicked over an open bottle of red wine left over from the party. She giggled and asked “was I drinking red wine? No wonder the stains on the wall look like tar!” I was so lonely I just laughed with them.
She texted later to ask how my “spuds” were and I answered earnestly, then asked what she had for lunch. “Tinned ravioli on toast”.
