“You know what I hate?” asked Very rhetorically, “I hate when you say you are very, very tired. Well, guess what—I am tired from being used twice in a row when once is fine!”
Just lately, Very had been known to be very dramatic. “And another thing,” he was on a roll now, nothing would stop him, “sometimes I am just not the right word! Don’t get lazy and just grab at me when you know the word you really want is an extreme adjective and not just an intensifier or qualifier.”
I had no idea what he was talking about, but I could see he was getting very upset.
“Please, Very, come on, sit down over here,” I pointed to a very comfortable couch, which I knew he would deem just too squishy. “Sounds like you’ve had a rough time lately, what with being overused and all. Maybe you could just use a very cold drink?”
“NO. That is exactly what I am talking about. I don’t want a very cold drink, I want a refreshing drink or an icy-cold drink. You’re just wasting my time.”
I stifled a very small laugh.
Very started to cry. I’d never seen this side of him. “Just stop using me! Why can’t I ever catch a break? Make someone else do some extra work for a change! Just leave me alone!”
I leaned in to give him a very sympathetic hug, but just then, our good friend, Just, walked in.
“Talk about overuse,” said Just, just picking up the last words of our conversation, “you have no idea.”
MOV (“Manipulating Obstinate Very”)
