Craic On

She didn’t get up but indicated the chair for me to sit in. I sat down. She introduced herself and I said how nice it was to meet her. Given the circumstances, I might have happily lived into old age and never felt I’d missed out by not meeting her. “Now I’ve had this nice letter from your doctor. It’s says your suffering with your eyes.” I raised my eyebrows. This was probably not the moment for sport but I couldn’t help myself. “No”, I said, sounding suitably bemused.” “Well it says here that you’ve got a problem with your eyes. What I need to know is if you can see my face.” In view of the fact we were both wearing face masks this seemed a bit of a wasted question. I didn’t say so. “Is that right? Are you suffering with your eyes?” “I’m not suffering. There is no suffering involved.” “But you do have a problem?” “No, the problem is not mine,” I spat. “The problem is largely other people”. As soon as the words were out of my mouth I felt a strange mix of satisfaction and regret. “I’m projecting of course,