What About Your Friends

I was at an apartment party in NYC on Saturday night. Seeing that many people squeeze into a 1BR convert was quite the feat. Surprisingly, the only neighbor complaint came after things were winding down.
In a city with 8 million people, you have to expect a little randomness to show up in the mix. The randomness at this party was provided by a 35+ balding man and his group of nerdy friends.
Early in the party, as in 'less than ten people,' the doorbell rang. In walks cue-ball. Neither of the hostesses recognize him, but he does say that he is friends with Mark, and they were supposed to meet at the party. Mark has obviously not arrived yet, but Telly Savalas is sure he will show up soon.
So the party starts to get in full swing. People are showing up. Lesbians are mixing sangria. Gay boys are trying to stomach beer that isn't Michelob Ultra. Gummi bears are swimming in vodka. And through all this, Daddy Warbucks is standing all on his lonesome looking like his puppy just died. Finally, he sees someone using a cell phone. He makes his move:
"Can I borrow your phone for a minute?"
Are you kidding me? You are meeting a friend at a party and you have no way of contacting him?? For real?
Long story short, after the carbon monoxide detector went off (and ended up in the freezer), and after the gummi bear vodka was long gone, Mr Clean's friends showed up. I didn't know that the AV squad was on the guest list. Apparently neither did the hostesses. Somehow, four middle-aged nerds managed to find their way into a party of twenty-somethings.
Please let me not ever be that desperate.