A few days ago, I saw all of the chatter around the art show I curate – people coming for the opening and staying for the party – that I was excited.
“I may stay after on Thursday,” I commented to a few people.
The comment was met with excitement. And I was excited too. I was looking for some laughs and giggles and fun times with friends. I was looking forward to seeing some people during the opening – then hanging out with them at the party.
Good stuff.
Tonight, traffic sucked. I took the side streets between my house and the club. No big deal – except traffic was horrid. The 15 minute drive turned into over 45 minutes.
“Oh fuck,” I thought, “I hope this isn’t indicative of the night.”
I guess it was.
The show opened, people were filing in, and my phone buzzed.
“Sorry – we aren’t showing up tonight. Not feeling it.”
Ok. I get it.
Another person showed, didn’t get a wristband to stay as planned, then told me to have a good night as they left about 20 minutes after showing up.
This trend continued – then I noticed that the people who were vocal about showing up were not showing up. I had been taking the night easy until this point – drinking water and all. At this point, I went and got a drink – realizing that all I had hoped for – all that I was excited for – was out the window.
And it was.
I hit a point where I wished I didn’t have to be there. One of the artist had a huge number of people plan on attending then showed up. It was a huge party of friends which was awesome. But it reminded me of how my night had fallen apart.
I left about 5 minutes earlier than I should have. I didn’t care. I was done.
I looked at the restaurant nearby. I needed food. But decided not to go eat alone even though the idea of having some good food was more appealing than mediocre food. So I headed home and got something along the way. Ironically, the food I got, while decent, was cold meaning it was cold when I got it not because the trip home was long enough for it to get cold.
A good summary of my night.
“Expectation is the root of all heartache” is what William Shakespeare wrote.
Guess I’m feeling that tonight.