Two yentas discuss the little things that are getting on their nerves, such as the steady drip-drip sound from their upstairs neighbor’s apartment.
This is a pleasant enough short-short story. Asimov draws on his long experience with older Jewish women to flesh out his two protagonists. He doesn’t say they’re Jewish, of course, but like the Palvers from Second Foundation, they somehow feel Jewish anyway. Interestingly enough, they’re both said to be in their fifties, making them roughly the same age the Good Doctor was when he wrote the story.
It wouldn’t be a short-short without a twist at the end, and there is one. I didn’t see it coming, at least, and that makes me feel better about the story. Perhaps someone better than I at pre-guessing the ending of mysteries would enjoy it somewhat less.
