The Conservation Society part 3

Between the first Facebook post announcing his death and his actual demise on the Arts and Crafts verandah of The Conservation Society, Arnold, now sunk in morose voyeurism as threads of comments kicked his existence into the past he lost the will to live, his virtual demise having eclipsed the rumour of his own reality.

Well before Arnold hung artfully arranged as a Jake and Dino Chapman in the garden of The Conservation Society not only had the Facebook post announcing, prematurely, Arnold's death not been taken down once it had been confirmed by his ex-wife who had seen him shuffling about like a trapped animal in the gloom of his flat through the letter-box; the announcement that he was indeed alive, Arnold noticed, received a reception so luke-warm as to be more devastating than being pronounced dead.

'Fuck, he couldn't even succeed at his own death'. Came one comment.

Great news?' Read another.

Most fell into virtual silence following his resurrection.

The Comedy fanzine, though it issued an apology for the distress caused to the erstwhile comedian, allowed not only the former life-rubishing posts connected to his departure to remain undeleted but also allowed a debate as to his age, 'actually, I 'm only fifty-seven' he said to no one.

'75, isn't he!'

'No, he wasn't 75, 70 more like'.

'Nah, he was over 80'.

Arnold did not know what was being indicated; none of the many commentators had thought to dial his landline or mobile phone to confirm for him or herself the rumour, or even after confirmation of life, knock at his door apart from the silhouette of his ex-wife through the frosted glass of the front door of his basement flat; what could this mean.

To say that Arnold felt bitterly betrayed was understatement. He felt keenly now that the world in which he had lent his affable if flawed personality, his talents, his class, his excellent manners, his time hosting events listed in the most cultured listing magazines in the country, his efforts, albeit behind the scenes, to make things generally nice for other people- had been rewarded with, clearly, and Arnold scrolled once again through weeks of comments, had been rewarded with collective malicious joy at the moment of his 'death', his resurrection followed by the worst coup de grace or nail in the coffin; total indifference.