The number of unanswered e-mails in my in-boxes has been steadily growing for quite a while now. At first, I chalked it down to my general unmotivated state—yes, the one that has plagued me for months now—but upon casual inspection of the pile, I reached a startling realisation: Over 90% of this unanswered e-mail was from married women!
Quoting a scene involving a most underrated actress on a most underrated sitcom:
Newly-turned-single bloke: Was that a smile, Sally? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you smile.
Sally: Why yes, it was. I only smile at single men, you know; got to conserve [my skin’s] elasticity.
And this, boys and girls, is roughly analogous to what’s going on with my reply pattern. Though I’ve not consciously thought about it, I just don’t see the point anymore with people I’ve deemed “occupied”. The effort doesn’t in the least seem justified. Yeah, it would be “nice” if I could be a part of your life as more than some arbitrary bystander, but honestly, it wouldn’t bother me if I wasn’t.
So, if you’re sitting out there all-eagerly awaiting a response and don’t receive anything, you now know why.
It’s nothing personal; it just doesn’t seem worth it.