Our neighbor Tim said it to me in the street, joking, with a hockey stick in his hand. Somebody's having a party and I wasn't invited. He knew he was welcome at our house any time. He said it anyway, because saying it was the only way he had to open the door. Adults do not invite themselves.

Jana says she can tell within fifteen seconds of a first call whether somebody is going to hit their goal. I spent years proving her right. I took meetings from the highway on purpose, because I wanted my boss to hear the road noise. I thought it sounded like commitment.

Most people who get out of a place like that measure the distance. Look how far I went. That's the whole scoreboard. Dolly ran the other number. Look how far I went and look what I sent back.