Emotionally Lame

My two friends/colleagues, trusty lunchtime walking companions, are deserting me. One friend came over this evening to give me the keys to their apartment; for she and her family are off to northern Denmark for six months and I'm taking care of the place while they are gone. My other friend finishes work next week and is off to live permanently in Zurich.

The three of us were stalwart lunchtime walking buddies (15-20 minutes/day) this last year. The university campus we work in borders wooded and farm land. There are some good walking paths weaving in and out of the surrounding area.

But, it was the jovial, interesting, interested conversation that made these outings such a treat. Three women (mid-twenty, mid-thirty, and almost fifty) sharing the ins-and-outs of their professional dreams, and the heart wrenching, still crazy, often amusing domestic disasters. It made for a wonderful mix.

I couldn’t even bring myself to express these sentiments to M. as she left this evening. I’ll probably not be able to express them to S. next week, when she leaves.

It’s really their fault; since I don’t have them around to keep my legs moving, I’ve become emotionally lame. Actually, the truth is I am just one of those shut-off-the-hose sort of persons when it come to farewells.

Those who know me well and long, have become accustomed to this personality deficit. They know that there is a fine line (approx. 3 minute time span) between the emotionally lame me giving a casual wave of the hand and a “See you later and off you go” farewell, and the teary mess of a me who goes into an Ugly Cry and starts hiccuping in very public places.

Neither of my walking buddies though has known me long enough to know this. Do you think I should tell them?

P.S. I asked another colleague today what the chances were that I could convince him to become my new walking buddy. His answer: 0%. Well, you got to like a straight answer, don’t you?

P.P.S. For those of you wondering, the 0% wasn’t personal; from his point of view, taking 15 minutes off from work to do something other than eat was a waste of time.