@shewolfnm,
Hmmm...some good ideas here.
I can't tell him that my other friend (the one who is watching the cat) isn't okay with him staying. My visitor knows my catsitting friend and he might run into him sometime. My catsitting friend won't lie, either, so I really can't involve him in this.
He knows me too well for the girlfriend lie. He already knows that, as of last week, I don't have a new girlfriend.
Mame, I have to compliment you on that excellent lie you provided. If I decide to keep lying to cover up the first lies, then that lie could be the one.
I can't decide between doing what eoe said, or if I should just keep lying. Hmmm...if I use that lie about work though, I know I'm going to talk to him at least a couple times that week. I don't know if I am a good enough liar to keep up the facade all week when I see or talk to him.
Or I could still go with, "Oh crap, I was reading my return trip ticket wrong! What a dope I am! I thought it said the 29th! But I will be home on the 27th, so you can stay with me!" And, since my last e-mail, he's sent me another response and told me that his other friend already said yes to him staying there for most of the time. The problem is that he still really wants to stay at my place on the day before and the day of his interview, so he doesn't have to travel all the way from Jersey to get there, so once I tell him I'm going to be there, I won't have any good reason for him not to stay with me the whole time. I guess I'd have to just be honest at that point and tell him that I want my time alone before the new year and that since he already made arrangements with the other guy, could he still do that for the rest of his trip.
I do agree that I should have just told him the truth right from the get-go. Stupid.
Thanks for all the good ideas, everyone.
Still mulling, mulling...