"When he is late for dinner and I know he must be either having an affair or lying dead in the street, I always hope he's dead"

This quote by Judith Viorst is an amusing method of revealing the frustration of being in a relationship with someone who is undependable. It suggests that the speaker is so fed up with their partner's absence of reliability that they would rather have them dead than having an affair. This could be analyzed as an indication of the speaker's deep-seated anger and resentment towards their partner, as they would rather have them dead than betray. It could likewise be seen as a sign of the speaker's desperation, as they are so desperate for their partner to be reliable that they would rather have them dead than need to handle the pain of infidelity. Ultimately, this quote is a funny way of revealing the speaker's disappointment and disappointment in their partner's absence of dependability.