Waves Goodbye

I think about how to leave a party all the time. Mostly when I’m at a party.

I have fun, I enjoy the people, but I also enjoy watching people.

I like the shifts and checks and little glances we give each other.

So towards the end of the party gets fun because people start thinking about when they want to leave, and when best to do it to not be rude.

There’s the outliers, of course, they come and go as they please, and so it goes.

But roughly a few hours before the perceived end of the party, it happens. One person will shift and check, and then shuffle their feet. Before finally finding the host, doing a little apology for leaving so early, but they had fun. The host hems and haws, but ultimately lets them go.

As I said though it’s a wave. That person broke the barrier, and that causes several other groups to consider and shift and check. But they then also pounce. It’s the first wave.

Then there’s a lull. Because it’d be rude if the host was forced to keep saying goodbye. And that’s a vibe killer.

So people chill, or fidget because they missed the window. So they hang until the perceived end time. That varies of course depending on the host, party, and nature of things.

But that’s the second wave. It’s bigger, if not the biggest wave. It’s natural, it’s expected. So no faux pas on anyone’s part.

And the party mostly ends. Except for the stragglers. Ideally, they’re the close friends, and there’s no qualms. Worst case, it’s the strangers and drunks that can’t read the room, and linger too long. Or they’re hoping to snag some romance out of the night–so they stalk.

They comprise the third wave. The awkward time where the vibe has died, but everyone has to play nice one last time before sleeping.

Don’t be the third wave. Be a good person.