I let that marinate on my screen for a moment before I sent it. Did I say too much? Did my comment about sweatshirts make me seem like a slob or lazy?WasI lazy?
Waiting, three dots appeared as Betty typed a reply. I felt so proud of myself. I was joining a female conversation that wasn’t with my therapist—and with a woman my age!
Snatching Mr. Beans around his middle to give him an excited squeeze, he hissed before licking his chops a few times. I put him down on the floor, effectively preventing any future diabetes. He let out a disdainful meow of protest.
I peeled off another curve of cinnamon roll and ate it, eyes rapt on the screen, then a pic popped up with a new message.
Betty:I just bought the most amazing winter coat. I can’t wait for snow.
I analyzed the coat in the image. It was a gorgeous material, light in shade. The tailoring was really interesting and detailed.
Betty:Isn’t that color amazing?
I faltered, ceasing my munching for a moment before thinking fast and copying the image. Switching back to ChatGPT, I asked it to tell me what color it was. ChatGPT replied immediately. “A warm cream coat with gold buttons and gold piping accents along the seams, found in the latest issue of Vogue.” I thanked the gods of AI before switching back to messages.
Me:It is! The gold piping is especially beautiful.
Me:It really shows off the tailoring and sets off the cream color.
Betty:Right?
Betty:It’d be gorgeous with your hair. You should get one too! Twinsies!
I replied with a GIF of Austin Powers and a movie quote.
Me:“Twins, Basil. Twins.” ????
Ê
I was proud of myself, taking a big gulp of latte in celebration. Clicking the side buttons on my phone, I took a screenshot and sent it to Cat, wanting to share in my triumph.
Cat:Sybbie! Is this another new friend?
Me:It’s Nash’s sister
Cat:This is great!
Cat:How did you know the color?
Me:ChatGPT told me.
Cat:Brilliant! I should havethought of that!
I laughed, of course she’d say that. The way I felt at this moment was luscious. I could scarcely recall a time I’d felt this good. I asked Alexa to play music, dancing as ‘Love Shack’ by the B-52’s played over the house speakers. My phone dinged again. This time, Nash’s name surprised me.
Nash:Did you like it?
My hands shook suddenly as a multitude of feelings converged in a single moment. I needed to maintain composure, as these were, after all, positive emotions.
Me:Thank you. I enjoyed it very much.
Me:My cat especially enjoyed the yellow and red rose and the cream cheese frosting.
It felt good being able to describe the color of something, even if it made no sense to me. It was a few minutes before he replied.
Nash:You have a cat, too?
I took a picture of Mr. Beans, who’d made it to the front windowsill.
