Mary Killen Mary Killen

Dear Mary: How do I get my friend to make time to see me alone?

iStock 
issue 05 November 2022

Q. As a radio producer one of the most infuriating – and surprisingly common – things people ask is: ‘When will you be a presenter?’ Can you help with a withering response that lets them know I don’t feel like a failure, but have willingly chosen a completely different job?

— M.G., London SE1

A. You might reply: ‘Oh God no, I’d hate to do that but … [assume a sympathetic facial expression] why do you ask? Would you like to be a presenter? 

Q. My best friend lives in Australia, and visits annually to see friends and family. Every time we meet she has invited along so many other people she wants to catch up with that we never manage to engage in any kind of decent conversation. Then she always calls me from the airport bemoaning the fact that ‘we haven’t seen each other properly’.

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