Couch Mashed Potatoes

tonight we attended a small party for the Tony Awards
a get-together/ a viewing/ a gathering of friends
our presence was mandatory for the sole reason that our new apartment's cable/internet has still yet to be installed
so basically we needed a place to crash

my friend Connor and his roommate Schneider hosted the impromptu shindig and it was really a lot of fun
we talked throughout the entire ceremony
(probably no one more than I)
and as the dreadful three-hour telecast stumbled along i couldn't help but notice how many friends of conny and schneidy's seemed to stumble in as well
not a ton of people by any means, it wasn't that kind of evening
but a girlfriend
followed by a couple
and then another group of two

it felt like sitcom life
comfy couches
a television set
grey goose flowing liberally
jokes and a unified experience
the lightness of youth

this has never been my experience outside the homes of others
friends of mine have never just dropped by
(well, that's not entirely true)
some
but rarely

my apartment never looked much like that revolving door of characters and circumstance that grace/plague national TV
solace, quiet and a certain sense of peace i often seem to find
but the buzz and whir that comes only through the excitement of others i'm afraid i've found less often

i try to control things too much
things that i shouldn't
towel racks and conversations
the opinions of others
i'm not always easy to be around

but tonight i made a lot of jokes
and often people laughed
it really can be very easy to entertain when you try / drink

and it felt quite nice that somewhere in this city the real phoebes and jacks of the world are getting together
on their comfy couches
in front of their television sets
with the grey goose flowing liberally
sharing jokes and a unified experience
basking in the lightness of youth

sitcom life

once a week
for thirty minutes at a time
four commercial breaks
and then it's back to life