Seventh (lack of) sleep note. A picture and later a post.

[11calls]

[The post that appears first is a picture of poor Cameron Waltz from the Arts party. Where he's crying after his fantastic boyfriend Jeff has just serenaded him in public. Anyone who knows Alex knows that she's not the person who would put it up, and as soon as someone mentions it to her, it comes down and is instead replaced with an audio post.]

Yeah, sorry about that. [She assumes people 1. know that she wasn't the one who did it and 2. that the person who did it is gonna hear holy hell for it. Hear holy hell and also do penance which is what the rest of this post is about.]

While I've been living in America since college, I'm definitely a Canadian at heart. And in Canada, we have a proper Thanksgiving Holiday while America is celebrating Columbus day. [Yeah, the distaste in her voice for that "holiday" is totally palpable.] And before anyone makes a crack about copying America, our Thanksgiving started in 1578 and was made an official government holiday in 1879. For Americans playing along at home, that's 50 years before Plymouth Rock, and something like 90 before it became a federal holiday in America.

So, I'm inviting people to stop by tomorrow for turkey and stuffing and all the stuff that goes along with a proper Canadian Thanksgiving. We're not going to do a sit down dinner, not really, given that it's a Monday, but we're gonna have food and proper pumpkin pie which is not custardy and Nanaimo bars which are. I'm making them. I'm making them right now actually but don't worry, I've been making them since I was like ten. It's the only thing I can make other than coffee.

[Literally the only thing, because Alex burns toast.]

Comments

[11calls]

[Oh look, it's the asshole now.

Also it's Alex with a fair amount of custard powder on her shirt and cheek.]

When exactly did you use my phone to upload a picture of Cam crying to the network?

[nobasisinfact]

You're not the one who's being expected to cook for all of Riverview.

[Clearly her indignation is invalid.

He crosses to the refrigerator and pours himself a drink.]

[11calls]

You don't get to have that as a defense when you did this first!

[Alex is mad, that much is evident.]

I can't believe you didn't even put your assholeness on your own phone!

[nobasisinfact]

I knew you would find it soon enough for it not to do any damage.

[If he had put it up, it probably wouldn't have gotten taken down.]

[11calls]

Not do any damage?! Richard you know you’re someone who accuses me of having a self-destructive streak but I think you’ve got one too. You have probably screwed up the best friendship you have here over this.

[Or the best friendship he’s had (other than her) since Coralee left.]

And you used me to do it. And left me to deal with everyone being pissed off about it.

[nobasisinfact]

No one's angry at you.

[He's been tracking the post, at least the public comments. It isn't as if he's not aware of what he did or the backlash that it would cause. In fact, it's why he did it. Distance is important, especially now.

Just as he'd done it right before her Thanksgiving. It would make it easy for him to detach himself from the affair without her being as upset as she might normally have been. He was an asshole, after all. None of her friends and acquaintances would want him there.

And clearly, she could no longer use the reasoning that they were his as well, because he was an asshole who had burned all his own bridges, again.]

What's your headcount so far?

[11calls]

They're still angry! And they've got every right to be. I'm still angry!

[And she's just going to slam the base of the bar mix into the pan with a bit more force than necessary.]

And I honestly don't know!

[nobasisinfact]

Then one turkey should be fine.

[He'll just consider the matter settled. It's doing exactly what he wants, after all, and he has no intention to apologize to anyone. If this distances Alex from him as well ... that might be best for her.]

And something kosher for Stan.

[11calls]

I already ordered two kosher turkeys from the market.

[The words are a snap, because she's angry that he's not saying anything about this, that he's just... acting like he didn't do anything wrong. It's maddening!]

I cannot believe you're just not even going to say anything about this, Richard!

[nobasisinfact]

[In theory, he could say something. He could apologize, but he won't. This was strategic. Jeff, he's sure, won't talk to him again for the 'blow' that he's given to Cam (not that he particularly finds Cam's actions at that time shameful, but it's easy for others to think he would. Especially if they didn't know him well.) Others will follow suit, and Alex will most likely stop talking to him for at least a week (if she realized what he's doing it might be less)

In theory he could do a lot of things, but what he chooses to do is take his drink and leave the room.]

[11calls]

[Alex just made an angry sound when he stepped out of the room with his stupid drink and his asshole face and just looked to the now too cool to smoosh out mess of the bottom of the desert bar and growled. Fuck, fuck fuck.

Then she started over again, because that's what Alex did.]