The other night I made the rare trip out. Mrs. Lucky's co-worker (I'll call her Jeanette) was exhibiting some artwork at a nearby club and there was a kickoff party for the show. I'd met Jeanette at Mrs. Lucky's office Christmas party, and she's a lot of fun. She doesn't treat me like the husband of a co-worker; she interacts with me and laughs at my jokes. She gives me a big bear hug at the top of the evening and makes little Mrs. Lucky-approved innuendo that stokes my ego. Jeanette's husband was also there. I'll call him Larry. He's almost Jeanette's polar opposite: a little on the shy side, like me, but he feels compelled to start conversations. Because of my own social anxiety, small talk like this makes me uncomfortable, and I struggle to keep going so I don't insult the guy.
At one point in the evening, I was seated next to Larry at the bar and we were making our usual awkward small talk. He ordered whatever he was ordering, and I got my usual ginger ale, at which he raised an eyebrow. I explained that alcohol's a no-no with all the pain meds I'm on. Suddenly, Larry and I were best friends. He, too, has had spinal problems, surgeries and pain issues. He's not on the magnitude of medication I am (otherwise he'd be teetotalling as well), but we had enough shared experiences to keep our conversation going for several minutes.
I've had this experience with other people, and also at parties. But Larry's roughly my age and Mrs. Lucky really likes Jeanette. I think this could be the beginning of the first new friendship for me in a decade.
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