Page 16 - Toast of the Remote Hosts

Banish Tedium
Exactly how many weeks have we been doing this? If you start to suspect your usual screen dates may be getting weary, take heart. It’s not you, it’s the terror and tedium of our days. Take a week off. As Dan Hicks once trenchantly observed, “How Can I Miss You When You Won’t Go Away?”
Most of your remote cocktail party crowd will quite naturally be your closest cronies. A regular date with the A- team gives folks something to look forward to; like a regular night at your favorite bar. But as the weeks of self-isolation drag on you run the risk of falling into a deep rut. If you have a regularly scheduled bull session with your oldest chums you may find enthusiasm slumping over time. When the inside jokes and familiar anecdotes become stale, Old Man Boredom will come calling.
The best way to avoid this is by periodically spicing
up the guest list with surprise guests. This will add a dose of unpredictability, just like In The Before Times. And speaking of gossip, remember it’s not tattling if the subject is invited. When conversation veers toward a mutual friend, why not text that person the link and have them join, impromptu?