he knew many people who displayed their pleasure with sighs or hmms as they ate  like children  utterly absorbedunembarrassed if someone were to point it out to them  he enjoyed their pleasure and was never the one who may have sought to belittle them for what purpose

                                                         however recently he attended at dinner party at a friends home  he heard it was ostentatious he hadnt been invited before an thought it odd  Wear a tie and jacket, please . .

he wore the requested  others wore sharp suits a few dressed in tuxedos 

he was seated across an enormous table white linen lit table candelabras china silver their kitchen was run by a chef dinner served by waiters hed remind himself to never do this again  he was seated across from a gentleman who throughout dinner while not sighing or hmming declared the delicacydeliciousness of each course by sharply averting his eyesleft wait  wait    wait for it then sharply avert his eyesright  perhaps twothree times every course  he did not engage in conversation during his shifty eyes despite on more than one occasion he carried the weight of the discussion  

he  was   fascinated

when dinner was over the ladies adjourned to a parlour  the gentlemen went outdoors onto a broad tiled veranda that overlooked gardens fountains sculptures and acres of lawn for brandy and cigars So this kind of stuff actually happens he thought  hed remind himself if asked again to decline 

                                                         he listened to differing conversations subject matters volleys as he walked between clutches although he didnt spend enough times in them to form an opinion 

                                                                                                he was far tooinvolved with the Cuba cigar he savoured also he had opted for Irish whiskey the waiter excused himself when he returned he carried a single leadcrystal tumbler on the silver serving tray the whiskey threw a caramelcoloured halo on it the tumbler had a fantastic weight  it was pleasurable in its own right

he kept to himself

at the partys conclusion he thanked his friends

                                                  Did you have a good time? Some people remarked you proved elusive.

I had a fine evening it was exquisite literally a once-in-a-lifetime event Thank you very much for the invitation

to his disappointment he wasnt able to get the gentleman to a side and ask him about his eyes

                                                                                                   he was a soughtafter guest

1949,  Thursday – Veterans Day,  11  11. 21

1057,  ReggaeFriday,  12  11. 21