EVERYONE QUIET PLEASE

Several months ago, my aunt mentioned that my super-brilliant cousin (the one writing a book about the Venerable Bede) and her husband, who is equally brilliant, retreated to their respective book rooms between meals the last time the entire clan stayed over summer at their house.
She seemed baffled by their withdrawals.

And when I say "entire clan", that significantly does NOT include me.
Yes, I have been invited, nay entreated & urged, to come one of these years. But my book room for necessary retreating is located in San Francisco, instead of somewhere deep in the Berkshires.
Just pretend I'm there. Hiding out.

Some of us aren't nearly as social as everyone else would like. My own idea of perfect company is another person drinking tea and munching a cookie while reading a book. And by reading a book is meant actually silently and intently devouring it, with greater attention than she devotes to the cookie.
It is an excellent cookie, but only a cookie.
The book is much more deserving.


“I have to be alone very often. I’d be perfectly happy if I spent Saturday night until Monday morning alone in my apartment; that’s how I refuel.”

---Audrey Hepburn


The radiant miss Hepburn sounds like a perfect friend.

After several hours of dealing with people during work, when I have to be reasonably social and even dogforbid helpful and informative, I'm drained and burnt out. I suspect that folks who tend to go out every night are not like me, in any case wired quite differently. As well as being stark-raving mad, and a humongous pain in the gund.

Worst possible environment: a noisy nightspot.


Remarkably, despite their love of hubbub and bustle, the Chinese are not a particularly loud bunch. A fully packed and bustling Chinese dining hall is less oppressive by a very wide margin than a bar with two dozen people in it, half of whom are young and/or blonde. Unfortunately one cannot retire to a restaurant to spend five hours in the corner with a book by oneself. Especially if one isn't hungry, and just intends to sit there reading.
The staff might object. The owner certainly would.
Lighting up a pipe is out of the question.

We all like company, but some of us take all sorts of warm satisfaction in people's presence, though not in actually interacting on a chitchat level.
Having other folks around is very comforting, and can be cozy.
It is so much better when they can entertain themselves.
My cousin and her husband have the right idea.
Meals are a good break from studying.
They probably eat out often.




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