." She interrupted. "Mine first; I'll need a change of clothes for tonight and for tomorrow. We can decide whether to stay there or go to yours. Where...is it, by the way?" "I've a flat in Clapham, top floor, view of the railway lines into Clapham Junction Railway Station. And only four miles to the Cross Keys pub in Hammersmith. Have you been there?" "No! Why does it feature in your life?" "I used to live very close by, in a shared house and the other guys took me there on my first night after. Without thought, I begin to pick out the notes of my favorite carol. A smile flickers across my face as I hear my father’s mellow tenor blend with my own husky contralto. Time seems to stand still as the warm melodies of the traditional songs flow through my body and out of my fingers. My floating hands articulate the surging ebb and flow of my emotions on this special day. The light tap against my shoulder pulls me out of the musically induced trance and I turn to see my brother, a strange. ’ The guy on the right spoke for both of them. ‘I’m Mike and this is Derik,’ he said pointing to his friend on my left. Those were the last three shots I bought the entire night. The two boys I picked out were on me like white on rice from then on. I pulled them away from the group they came with, made up of both guys and girls. But I knew how to flaunt what I had and made the choice of who they would hang out with a pretty easy one. They kept the drinks coming and I made sure they were keeping. You analyze and rationalize to justify turning this job offer down. It has too many unknowns, maybe you can find something else this week if you look even harder than you had these past six months. You start to analyze the source of the job offer. You have not kept in particularly great touch with your sister since you both became adults. If you turn down the job, it wouldn’t reflect badly on her, right? Maybe this was a pity job hire, or more elaborately, perhaps a made up company or job title.