He and I often talk about relationships. We've been friends for years, weathering my divorce, and his break-ups, consuming buckets of coffee and more than a few beers.
We are both kind of "in the dumps" about the outlook of said relationships, both of us now single with little to no indication that this state will change anytime soon.
"What I don't get," I say, "is how people can just go from one serious relationship to another. Back to back to back."
"Yeah," he says. "I don't get it either."
"It's not as if I can't understand how someone might be able to bounce back from the end of the relationship." I say. "What I really don't get is how they can continually be so lucky as to find someone who likes them back, even if it's just for a short time."
Maybe the two of us just have poorer timing than most. We are unable to synch up with others as easily.
Maybe we try less hard.
Maybe we are continually in the wrong place at the wrong time, or always pouring our energy and emotions into the wrong people. Masters of barking up the wrong trees, as it were.
Either way, I think we both believe the like and love are lucky things. And we both wonder why it seems like everyone else is more lucky than we are.