A couple of weeks ago, in my local shopping mall, I ran into three different women I know. Well, to be more accurate, I didn’t actually run into them. I ran away from one, I ignored a second, and I ran towards a third.

The first woman – I’ll call her Libby, which isn’t her name – was a friend of a friend, someone I’ve known for years but don’t especially love. I caught a glimpse of Libby heading towards me as I walked to a café, and I literally ducked into a bookshop to avoid her.

To avoid making social arrangements I’ll later regret, I imagine bumping into the person at the shops.Credit: ISTOCK

It was silly, I know. But had I kept on walking, Libby and I would have been forced to acknowledge each other, and we would have had an awkward encounter, and neither of us would have enjoyed it, and, honestly, I just wanted to go and get my coffee.

I saw the second woman – I’ll call her Beryl, which is definitely not her name – while I was ordering my cappuccino. Beryl is a distant friend, someone I’ve caught up with once or twice over the years, and a perfectly pleasant person. I could have stopped and had a chat – one of those “Hi, how are you?” “Good, and you?” exchanges – but........

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