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A new girl around me had been hospitalized over the weekend for a non-urgent issue. The same day, I wrote to her that I was available to visit her, to see if she needed any help or something (and if things were OK we might have had some fun afterwards). She replied back to me: "That's amazingly sweet but I'm exhausted. I've been hear since 11:30. I'm not fit for public consumption"

What did she mean by her last sentence?!!!

deeep
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    She's in no state be seen by the public (or other people in general). She's a mess (probably visually). If you were naked, or covered in bruises, or smelled like a 3-day-dead skunk, then you'd be unfit for public consumption. – Dan Bron Jul 26 '16 at 21:25
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    @DanBron Or she's not in a mental or emotional state to be visited. – StoneyB on hiatus Jul 26 '16 at 21:28
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    It's kind of a play on words. The expression "unfit for public consumption" might be applied to food that was of questionable quality, eg. It's not normally a phrase used to describe people, but it is, to her, a slightly humorous way to say that she's not prepared to be seen in public. – Hot Licks Jul 26 '16 at 21:29
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    (FWIW, I would say that her use of the phrase suggests that she's not displeased that you called.) – Hot Licks Jul 26 '16 at 21:32
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    @StoneyB I've typically seen this used as a self-deprecating expression, especially by women, to mean "my visual appearance is in disarray". As in: after a day in the hospital, she's in a hospital gown, her hair is a mess, she's not wearing makeup, she hasn't showered, maybe the procedure left her with some bruising... But of course that's only what she's implying on the surface, takin responsibility for not being able to meet, and it may actually be that she's mentally not up to it, exhausted, etc. By phrasing it about herself, she precludes earnest follow-up offers. The subject gets dropped. – Dan Bron Jul 26 '16 at 21:32

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"fit" or "not fit for public (or human) consumption" usually refers to food or water. When something is "not fit for human consumption" it means you risk getting sick, or even dying, if you eat of drink it.

  • The meat was declared unfit for human consumption.

In your particular case, your friend says metaphorically that she is not fit to be seen by anyone. Being a woman, chances are she worries about the way she looks, her face, her hair, etc.

A quick search shows that "not for public consumption" is often used metaphorically.

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Centaurus
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  • There's another little nuance I think might benefit your answer and it is that this is probably also a sort of pun on a similar phrase, "not fit for public view", which more literally suggests that something someone would be ashamed to have seen outside a certain situational privacy. The privacy in this case is of course the privacy of her own home. – Tonepoet Jul 27 '16 at 00:41