My boyfriend felt really bad about the devastation of Hurricane Sandy
so he signed up to an organized clean up event in the Rockaways. He
came back feeling very sad but excited that he had been able to make a real contribution. He had been randomly partnered with a girl called Jackie to clean and strip a flooded basement. This was apparently such a good bonding experience that Jackie called him after to see if he wanted to join her in Staten Island to clean up there. And then…to feed the homeless, walk abandoned puppies, sort tins at
Thanksgiving…I couldn’t act jealous as it was all in the name of charity… until he came home from a music afternoon at a retirement home and announced that he was leaving me for Jackie. I couldn’t kick the feeling that she had won the boyfriend prize through all her ‘do-gooder’ activities while I was doing selfish things like getting manicures.