“Don’t forget you have to pick up the kids after soccer practice tonight.”
“Oh shoot, I already did forget – what time is that?”
“7:00.”
“Shoot, I’m supposed to be on a teleconference for work at 7:00.”
“Why?”
“They want us to work all hours, what do I know?”
“Well, your children will be waiting for you at 7:00.”
“They’re your children too; can’t you pick them up tonight?”
“…I’m still out of the country settling my parents’ estate!”
“Oh right. That’s still going on?”
“Good-bye.”
* * * * * * * * * * *
“Ready for the conference on Thursday? It’ll be fun to go to the casino afterward, if I don’t fall asleep in the hotel room first.”
“Wait a minute, that’s this Thursday?!”
“Yes, it’s been this Thursday since it was booked last year.”
“Oh no, I thought it was next week! I told my friend I’d babysit that night, I even wrote it on the calendar, what-am-I-gonna-dooooooo?????”
“You thought to write babysitting on the calendar but not a work conference?”
“Babysitting was a higher priority! What-am-I-gonna-dooooooo?????!!!!!”
“I dunno, take the kid with you?”
“I – hey, that’s not a bad idea.”
* * * * * * * * * * *
“Hey, I got the tickets all ready for the show on Friday – I saved them to my phone AND printed copies, so one of them’s bound to work.”
“Right, about the show: could you pick me up at the boardwalk on your way to the theater?”
“Aaaand, why would I be picking you up there instead of at home?”
“I may have agreed to work a shift at the arcade that ends at 7:30 that night.”
“The show starts at 8!”
“…Plenty of time.”
* * * * * * * * * * *
“So, I’m hosting Thanksgiving this year and was wondering if you could bring some dessert like cookies or a sheet cake or a chocolate fondue assortment – you know, nothing major.”
“Wait a minute, you’re hosting Thanksgiving this year? Didn’t you tell me a while ago that you’re defending your doctoral thesis that week?”
“What’s your point?”
“How are you going to prepare all the food when you’re simultaneously preparing your oral defense?!”
“Despite everyone’s insistence to the contrary, I’ve personally found sleep to be highly overrated.”
* * * * * * * * * * *
“Wanna meet up for dinner this Saturday?”
“Can’t – got the kids’ karate tournament. What about Sunday?”
“Can’t – got my cousin’s graduation party. What about next Saturday?”
“Can’t – gotta stay with my grandmother that night while everyone else goes to a wedding. What about next Sunday?”
“Can’t – gotta work that night for a group project that’s due that Monday, and we all have to wait until that date for stuff to be processed `cause it’s on a schedule. What about the following Saturday?”
“Can’t – we’ll be in the mountains getting away from it all. What about the following following Saturday?”
“Can’t – we’ll be at the shore getting away from it all. What about – ?”
“Gonna cut you off right there and say ‘Can’t’ – how about a weeknight instead?”
“Mondays to Thursdays are permanently booked with sports practice, band practice, and/or clubs for all ages, and Fridays are the only nights where we can actually take a breath but I can make an exception this one time.”
“Forget it – Fridays are the only nights we can take a breath, too.”
