was middle age defined by behavioral habits ? ( avoiding danger ? inability to sleep in ? caffeien intolerance ? regular checking of the bank balance ?)
deb tapped her pen on her clipboard ." i wouldn't know ."
barry dropped a small rocket into the room ." or is it when people discover , or rediscover , faith ?"
" good heavens ." deb sounded appalled ." really ?"
barry retracted ." perhaps not . maybe middle aged is defined financially . when the mortgage is pay off ."
deb swept back her hair and anchored it with a hand , exposing her smooth , unlined forehead ." middle age is forty ?"
"fifty ." barry was firm .
"oh ? okay ." deb sounded as though she had never heard of fifty ." you think ?"
never once during this exchange did either barry or deb look fully at me .
"minty , have a woerd with your friends . " barry brought the meeting to a close ." people who know . what do they think about middle age ?"
" i've hunted out a few statistics that might help ." deb said kindly . she handed over a sheaf of papers , and her hair mimicked the pliant , supple movements of her body ." maybe you could go over them during your days at home ?"
the following morning , i came in early whren i knew baryy would be in the office and presented him with a memo delineating why paradox pictures would benefit by hiring me full time . i had dressed carefully in linen trousers , a camisole that exposed a hint of cleavage , and a tight denim jacket .
at home , his wife's thank-you postcard of a matise silhouette in brilliant blue was still pinned to the kitchen notice board .
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