Neighbours

– At least it seems to be getting a bit warmer. Almost spring-like now. Even if today was blustery and wet in parts.
– Yes...
– A few more blossoms bravely peeping over the flowerbeds, a few more birds cheerfully greeting the dawn; that sort of thing.
– Mmm...
– Sorry – you seem somewhat preoccupied?
– Do I? Possibly a little tired, that's all.
– Have you had a busy day?
– Not really. Not at all, to tell the truth. I was half thinking this afternoon of getting the bicycle out, but then I thought it was a little too windy. Never sure what might happen on a bike, in the wind.
– Perhaps your momentum would have carried you along unscathed by the buffeting.
– Perhaps. But it was a risk I wasn't prepared to take. Though I did manage to wash the car.
– Despite the buffeting.
– Despite the buffeting. Although at times it was touch and go. And then, just as the weather started to improve, the football came on.
– That was a pity. Might have been nice to have gone for a stroll in the brief sunny spell we had.
– Yes. But what can you do? They don't pause the football coverage just to let people go out for a stroll.
– True... Although I thought you had one of those recording devices that allow you to pause live television. So actually you could have paused the football and gone out for a stroll.
– But if you pause it, it's no longer live.
– Of course.
– And before you manage to get home, some friend or neighbour will stop you in the street and tell you the result.
– Do you have that many friends?
– I have neighbours. Several.
– Perhaps if you had tried to avoid talking to them. Tried creeping silently past their house so that they didn't notice you. Or if they did, you could have made a sudden dash for your front door. It's maybe not very sociable, but certainly effective.