“No, I’m not on duty on March 8th for the sake of payment. I’m a lonely person, and holidays are a real test for such people, especially International Women’s Day, when no one congratulates you, and February 23, when you have no one to congratulate, and Valentine’s Day... And I don’t like New Year either, perhaps more than any other I don’t like joyful dates for the almost physical feeling of a passing life, for the sad recognition of the fact that another lonely year is left behind, despite all the wishes made last New Year’s Eve under the Christmas tree to find a life partner and for the control glass of champagne drunk while the chimes were ringing. True, this year I finally didn’t make any wishes. Ruthless statistics combined with personal experience indicate that no Santa Claus can find a good husband for a thirty-eight-year-old woman...”