Help me find a half-remembered article

April 26, 2011 2:29 AM

Half-remembered-article-filter: Being a single male in your 40s.

Some time in the last few years I read a very witty article by a male writer on what it is like to be single in your 40s. It was in the style of Charlie Brooker in a way, but very literate and urbane. I'm almost sure the writer was American, and the line I particularly remember was something about sitting and regarding the empty hole at the centre of your own life.

It may have been from the New Yorker or a similar standard of publication, though I think I read it on the writer's own site. This is very vague I know, but not being able to find it is frustrating me immensely. Anyone happen to know what I'm talking about?

posted by StephenF to human relations (4 answers total)

Feels like a long shot, but was it The Referendum in the NYT by any chance? Sorry, that's all I've got.
posted by sapere aude at 10:01 PM on April 26, 2011 [3 favorites]

sapere aude you are a _legend_ in your own time and place, and I will revere your name for the rest of my days. That is the article. I have no idea how you managed to get it from my half-assed description.

This is the line I partially remembered: 'What they also can’t imagine is having too much time on your hands, being unable to fill the hours, having to just sit and stare at the emptiness at the center of your life.'

The pleasing warming feeling of finally finding something that has been niggling for ages is washing over me. Mmmmm.

Thanks :-)
posted by StephenF at 8:56 AM on April 27, 2011

Awesome. Glad to help. That article stuck with me as well. Slainte!
posted by sapere aude at 1:20 PM on April 27, 2011

Fantastic article. I am neither single, male or in my 40s but still thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
posted by nothing too obvious at 11:15 PM on April 27, 2011