Dating Bender: Episode 7 - "Non-Starter"

I will never understand why men who get a girl to agree to go out with them will the suddenly falter on the follow-through.

Stats-
Name: Dylan
Age: 29
Hometown: ?
Currently Resides: Santa Monica
The Date: TBD

Dylan's first email to me was this:

Whats your schedule look like? Would you care to have lunch (or dinner) with me perhaps next weekend?

Once I checked out his profile, saw that he was cute and "seemed normal" I wrote back:

Very forward, I like it. Dinner sounds great (usually more fun than lunch), thanks for asking :-) You know, you are the first guy to actually ask me out on this site... it's been a lot of pointless emailing...

So far, I'm still free this weekend.

So, did he miss the "very forward, I like it" part? Because our next series of emails were him saying "Oops I forgot I might actually be going camping this weekend, but maybe Thursday, I'll let you know by tomorrow." And then, of course, him promptly NOT letting me know by the next day.

That was a sign of things to come.

On Thursday, when I still hadn't heard from him, I sent him a text: "So...Next Week?"
He replied that he could make Saturday work and I said that I could as well so we agreed to make plans.

Later that evening he sent a text to ask if he could call me. WTF? When did men become such wusses? I already told him I like that he was forward. You know the best way to see if I'm available for a chat? Dial the effing phone. Jeez.

I was already out so I couldn't talk to him but said we should talk the next day. He said he would call me then. Well, ladies and gentleman, what do you think happened the next day? That's right - no phone call from Dylan. Since I had already sent him the "So.." text on Thursday I decided I was not going to send him another nudge - I shouldn't have to nag someone into taking me on a date. I figured he was just a typical LA flake and that was it, so I made my plans with Parker (which turned out to be a great decision) and mentally told Dylan to eff off.

At 5:30pm on Saturday evening (really?!?) I got a text from Dylan: "What time are we thinking about grabbing dinner tonight? (If we're still on) :-P

Did you really think I hadn't already made plans for the night by 5:30? (Truth talk - prior to the dating bender I would have probably been on my couch, haha). Dude, this was supposed to be a first date - I am not some buddy you are grabbing beers with after work. What time are we grabbing dinner? I don't know...what time did you make the reservation for?

I apologized and gently told him I had made other plans since he said he was going to call me the day before and didn't, I figured he was going to flake out.
He said: "Yeah, I figured neither of us were really on top of it :("

Um, excuse me? Neither of us? Since when is it my job to plan a date that you asked me out on? You were not on top of it. Say it one more time for emphasis, you were not on top of it. My only job was to say yes (which I did already) and to show up. Don't like it? There's a surgery for that.

The next day I sent him a text saying that I would be happy to reschedule and let him know that since he was the one who asked me out, it was my expectation that he was going to take the lead on making the plans. (I'm honest). He agreed that he would like to reschedule too and then made some half-assed excuse that the reason we didn't end up making plans was because I wasn't available when he wanted to talk to me (yeah, that's gonna happen a lot, buddy, I have a life) and he got too distracted (all day?) the next day. Whatever.

I said: "Okay, well let's make a plan"
He said: "Indeed, let's do it."

...and then nothing. WTF?

So, I said: "Haha, I guess I should be more clear...You come up with a plan, then you ask me what days I'm free, we'll pick one of those days and make it a date. Like a real one. :-)

I realize this kind of makes me sound like a B*tch, but seriously this was getting to be too much. How do you ask a girl out and then not know it's your responsibility to make it happen?

He said: "Hahahaha!! Okay I'll do that."

...and then nothing. WTF? This time it was nothing for 3 days except for a stupid YouTube link he sent to me  that he thought was funny, that wasn't.

Yesterday Dylan resurfaced with this gem: "I still would like to meet up with you. I've just been so crazy busy as of late, that it's hard for me to find the time to make a 'hard set' time to meet up. Don't give up in our meeting up. I promise we'll have a great time."

My reply: "Well let me know when you can set aside some time."

Listen. No one, and I mean no one is that busy. Why would I possibly wait around for this guy? He doesn't even seem that great, he definitely needs a thesaurus, and while I was previously attracted to his forwardness (is that a word?) it was because I thought it implied masculinity, but I've had to give this kid step-by-step directions on how to set up a date and he still hasn't even managed to figure it out yet. So now he just seems like some boy I would have to train.

Something tells me though, we haven't heard the last of Dylan...

Dating Bender: Episode 5 - "Mr. Sunday"

Stats-
Name: Bernard (aka Mr. Sunday)
Age: 32
Height: 5'9"
Occupation: Movie Biz
Hometown: Philly
Currently Resides: West LA
The Date: Patio drinks in WeHo

As I said a couple times already, I was pretty excited for this date. I knew, at a minimum, we would have really good conversation and for me that is the key to avoiding the dreaded bad date. No attraction is a bummer, but you can always just dodge the kiss at the end of the evening with a nice "butt out, pat on the back" hug, but if the conversation is boring, a date will quickly start to feel like a visit to the gyno. (Most men would use a dentist reference there, but that's just because they don't have to go to the gyno...am I right, ladies? But, I digress...)

About 15 minutes before we were supposed to meet, Bernie sent a text that he was running 10 minutes late and told me not to rush. That was totally fine by me since I was running about 15 minutes late. When I finally arrived he said "I'm surprised I beat you here." I said, "Well you told me not to rush, so I took my time and let you get here first." He said, "good power move." (Hmm...what it actually was, was a good cover up for me just being later than him not a power play, but okay).

He already had a beer when I got there so I ordered myself a drink. We had good conversation, talked about what we do, our families, and ordered another round, which was a good sign. Then, as it turned out, one of his best friends was a manager there so we were sent over a complimentary appetizer that we didn't order. It was a nice gesture - I am not sure if it was supposed to show me how cool this guy is or if it was supposed to be a sign from the friend that he gave a thumbs up on my "hotness", both, or if I'm reading too much into it, but I was hungry so I appreciated it anyway.

He confessed that he was very hungover from the night before and I copped to the fact that I had plans to go bowling with some friends after so we tabbed out after our second round and called it an evening. He paid. We hugged (I didn't let him kiss me - I don't think you get that reward for a half-assed hangover date and discounted drinks at your friend's bar, sorry) At one point he even said to me, "If I wasn't as excited as I was to meet you I would have canceled." So I guess it was sort of a weird compliment...but all signs already point to this guy being a typical LA "dude." He suggested we do this again and I agreed, so I figure I'll hear from him at some point - probably in the requisite 3 days since he won't want to come off as too eager.

Chances I'll hear from him again: 4 out of 5

Here is the thing though - and I feel like a huge nerd for saying this - but I kind of understand what the "Bachelorette" must go through as we are all watching her going, "I can't believe she isn't into that guy, he is so amazing!" I think that if I didn't already have something developing with Parker I would have been a lot more psyched about Bernie. If Parker didn't exist, Bernie would be a great prospect for me - it's just really hard for someone to play catch-up in the feelings department.

That being said, if Bernie does call me to go out again, I am going to go. I owe that to myself.

And on the flip side of that, Parker and I are going on a hike tomorrow to introduce our dogs (seriously, could we be any cuter?)

Dating Bender: Episode 4 - "Accidental Vindication"

Let me just say that forgoing my pride and deciding to spend the day with Parker was one of the best decisions I have made in a long time.

I met him at a house party in Venice - like a true Gentleman he met me out front,
walked in with me and promptly introduced me to all his friends. To my (pleasant) surprise they had all heard of me and were excited to meet me. (Excuse me, who is this guy and how is he possibly so awesome?)

We hung out at the house for a little over an hour and then at the prompting of one of Parker's friends, decided to walk over to try and check out some of the live music that was happening around town - since there did happen to be a Music Festival going on in Venice, after all.

Two stops and shaking a third-wheel later, we ended up finding two really great bands! And for as much as time as we spent talking on our first date - we pretty much spent this date making out and not being able to keep our hands off one another, when we were able to sneak off and find moments alone, of course. ;-)

After the bands we walked to a different friend's house to join the BBQ-in-progress and join in on some board game fun. Here is the BEST PART - (not really the best part, because obviously the finding of the amazing guy who you really like and who likes you back and is not playing games with you is really the real best part...but...) as Parker and I were walking back from the bar acting all couple-y and love drunk from our public make-out session and grope fest (whatever, don't judge me) we were walking arm in arm practically skipping down the street - and guess who I saw, or more importantly, guess who I saw see me? As in, we made direct eye contact and held it for a good 10 seconds as we walked past each other on the street. Wait for it...

TMBOG2. No, I am not kidding.

I understand this is the kind of thing that you always wish would  happen, never actually happens in real life and only happens in the movies, but as I live and breathe it. freakin'. happened. to me. As continued walking down the street, I couldn't help but think of that episode of Sex and the City when Carrie is out with the New Yankee and runs into Big for the first time and feels so vindicated because she had accomplished the "perfect first meeting." Well Parker is TOTALLY my New Yankee! Except I didn't cry in his mouth when he kissed me - I actually realized I traded up and am so much happier to be spending my time with someone who can't get enough of me rather than some scard-y cat who got freaked out by a well planned meal. And obviously the joke was on TMBOG2 because while he was getting all freaked out that I was super into him, I was clearly seeing other people.

So, we got to house party number 2, and when all was said and done, we played 3 different games - the goal was to stay up to see the super moon at 4:32 am - I kinda love his friends! They are genuine, goofy and were so nice to me, particularly since I was a random girl Parker just brought around after 1 date. I also got the sense that they really like Parker and THAT is a very good sign. Parker and I only made it to 1:30 - made out a little bit more in his car before he dropped me back off at mine. (It was not easy forcing myself to get out of his car to go home - I could have kissed that man all night). He told me to text him that I made it home safely and we spent the rest of the night texting until we both fell asleep.

Uh oh. I mean, this is good, but this is bad. Sounds like we are both falling hard and fast. BUT - I am still trying to keep my head on straight, so I am keeping my date with Mr. Sunday today and am actually still excited about it (although I can't seem to get the feeling of Parker's hands roaming all over my body out of my mind...nor do I want to) ;-)

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Dating Bender: Episode 3 - "Putt Putt Putz" & Bonus Blog: "Playing It Cool, Fail."

Stats -
Name: Abe
Age: 33
Height: 5'11"
Occupation: Movie Biz (Production)
Hometown: Somewhere in North Carolina
Currently Resides: The Valley (do I need to say ugh, again?)
The Date: Drinks and Mini-golf (points for creativity!)

This was my first real "awkward first date" experience. Abe was nice, I liked him, and we generally had a good time... Wait, let me back up a minute...

We decided to meet for a drink in The Valley since the best mini-golf place is there and I suggested 7pm. I left my place around 6:15 knowing that it usually only takes me 40 minutes max. to get over the hill (I apologize to my non-LA readers if this is not making sense to you...). At 6:55 when I was still on Sunset I sent a text that I was going to be "very" late, not wanting to specify a time since I had no idea how much longer it was going to take me at that point.

Fast forward another 30 minutes and I had finally arrived at this (actually) great little Gastropub we were meeting at. But, with over an hour in the car, it really got me thinking. My first serious relationship was long distance: I lived in Austin and he lived in Dallas. That's a 2 1/2 hour drive. What I disliked most about that relationship was how disconnected we were from each other's everyday lives because spending time together was always an "event." We weren't integrated into each other's social circles and essentially were taking mini-vacations every time we spent weekends together - and I vowed never to get into a long-distance relationship ever again. What I mean to say by all that back-story is, dating someone that takes over an hour to get to on a Friday night is kind of like having a long-distance relationship particularly if you plan to go home that evening as well. All told, I was in the car for 1:45 last night getting to and from the date...I could be almost to Dallas by now! (If I still lived in Austin, I mean ;-) So already before the date I had kind of decided that this guy would have to be REALLY special for me to consider him a real prospect. He was dating at a disadvantage, which I'll admit is not really fair, but hey, them's the breaks.

On to the the date: the reason it was awkward - every time he did or said something he thought was awkward, he said it! Like, "oh I can't believe I said that", or "oh, that was awkward."  It was kind of endearing at first but then it just got a little annoying. Dude, let me make up my own mind! If he hadn't kept pointing it out, I wouldn't have noticed, I just thought he was funny. But I was still mostly having fun.

So after mini-golf we walked back to his car (we met at the gastropub and I left my car) and he asked me, "so how much do you want to see me again?" We had brought a flask of whiskey to mini-golf so it was funny at the time and actually not weird. So I responded with, "you should tell me on a scale of 1-5 how much you think I want to see you again." (Trying to get a little inside info. for my blog...hehe) He misinterpreted and asked, "How much do I want to see you again on a scale of 1-5?" So I said, "Even better! Sure." And he said 3. HE. FREAKING. SAID. 3. I was like, "okay, cool. You wanna take me to my car?"

He couldn't understand why I was annoyed, so I explained to him that 60% is not good. He tried to reason that 5 out of 5 seems too eager but he probably should have said 4 out of 5. I asked him why he would want to date someone who would be freaked out by you being eager to see them again? We decided to go grab one more beer to try and salvage the evening, but there were no seats so we ended up standing by the bathroom and he proceeded to tell me about his effed up sisters.

Still, I chalked up the end of the night to us having spent WAY too much time together on the first date, him being nervous, and relatively new to being back on the market, me asking a dumb question and then getting mad about it only because I had whiskey in my system and decided I would give him a quick peck when he dropped me off to indicate I was willing to try again.

So I leaned over to give him my hug/peck move and I got the cheek! W.T.F.!?!? All I could say was..."oh, wow." And I got out of the car. He felt like an idiot because he got out of the car and came to kiss me as I was unlocking the door to my car, and apologized for not realizing "that's what was happening." But, seriously, dude? You can't possibly be that bad at dating.

Chances I'll hear from this guy again: 3 out of 5 (lol)

BONUS BLOG: Thursday night I had plans with my girl Kelly. She is a dancer and had a show that I went to go see...while I was out I got the cutest messages from Parker; the man is really not into game-playing. Me like-y.

Him: What are you getting into tonight?

Me: At my friend's show and then going to a CD release later

Why are you so cool? Hah That sounds like a lot of fun?

Haha, you just happened to catch me on a rare cool night ;-)

Haha. Well sounds like you've got a great night ahead of you. I'll probably lay relatively low tonight, I have a late night tomorrow 

...and we had a late night last night :-)

Yeah we did. A great one :-D Was worth it.

Agreed.

Wish it wasn't going to be until next Thursday that we go out but I'll take it - though I'm going to the Venice Music Crawl on Saturday and then a friend's house party so if you have any interest in coming to the Westside let me know.

I know...damn our opposite social calendars! I'll let you know if anything changes.

Well, fast-forward to after last night - and on the heels of Monday night's date fail and I started thinking...I really like Parker; we had so much fun and our Chemistry is undeniable. I think I was a bit spoiled because that is how I felt with TMBOG2 and then I felt it again with Parker so soon so I might not have noticed how rare it actually is. (Kudos, Dating Bender for teaching me lessons!) So I this is what I sent to Parker this morning:

Me: Good morning sunshine :-) How was your night hike?

Hey! Really cool, but I'm a little sore. Got some cool pics though. How are you?

I'm good! A little sunburned from my Runyon hike yesterday, but I'll live.

No fun, sorry to hear that. What are you getting into today?

I have a BBQ to go to at noon, it's a going away party. But, I realized that I don't want to wait until Thursday to see you again either...so I was hoping the invite for the Venice Music thing is still on the table :-)

Yeah, for sure :-) And I'd love to see you today!

Cool, I'll let you know when I head to the Westside.

 Umm...so how cute is that? "I'd love to see you today!" Good thing the feeling is mutual or I'd be muy creeped out by how into me this guy is. 

So, EPIC FAIL for playing it cool with Parker, but he is making it awfully hard. I am a sucker for a man who pursues me. And don't worry, I am still going to date bend. Mr. Sunday and I are meeting for patio drinks tomorrow. Stay Tuned.

Juggling

Yeesh! So, one critical aspect of this whole dating bender idea that I didn't fully think through is the management of it. Keeping track of a bunch of guys, who they are, what they do, where they are from, what their families are like, etc. etc... is really complicated. Not to mention, when and where our plans are and where we actually are in the pre-dating, "making plans" process.

Case-in-point: Yesterday I got a phone call from a guy who had said he was going to call me over the weekend (meaning last weekend) to make plans this week. I had totally forgotten because he didn't call and now I am obviously VERY booked. His excuse was quite legitimate - a sick grandfather that he had to care for - but now I have this extra guy I have to fit into the rotation...oops! I guess he is just gonna get bumped to next week... ;-) I'm not complaining, this is what I set out to do and too many dates is a good problem to have, right?

Case-in-point #2: A few days ago I got a text message from the guy I have plans with tonight (Friday) wanting to confirm our plans and I also got a text message from the guy I had plans with on Wednesday confirming out plans for Wednesday. Obviously I responded to the Wednesday guy because he was the priority - but then I totally left the Friday guy hanging for over 24 hours because I straight up forgot about him! That's not usually my style, because it comes off as game-playing, but I guess that's kinda the point of this thing - to not let any one guy take up too much of my time. Well, it's already working...overtime!

That is why I have instituted the "Stats" listings that you may have seen on a couple of the posts so far. As I go through I may add some categories, particularly as I (hopefully) start to go on some second dates with a few of the guys. I've also taken to keeping notes on their "contact" entries in my phone.

Given the above, I'm starting to feel a little bit like this is a sociological experiment rather than fun dating - what do y'all think?

Dating Bender: Episode 2 - "Enter Parker"

Stats -
Name: Parker
Age: 30
Height: 6'0"
Occupation: Teacher (cute)
Education: Master's Degree (woot woot!)
Hometown: Boston
Currently Resides: Mid-City
The Date: Drinks at a bar/restaurant in Weho

Parker is actually one of the only guys I contacted first, and it was because we had this coincidental connection about our parents being from the same place and having relocated to the same city and having conflicting sports allegiances - but usually I like to let the guy make the first move.

When I walked in, he was already waiting for me at the bar - he was just as cute, if not cuter, than his pictures. (yay!) Pretty much from the moment I sat down, the conversation flowed like we were old friends who hadn't seen each other in years; we talked about music, food, our families, his "kids" (he's a teacher, see above)...for 6 hours! It was pretty ridiculous how much we have in common.

I'm not going to recount all of our conversation for you, for obvious reasons, but early on in the evening I ordered a drink and since he had already started a tab the bartender asked if he should put it on his tab and he said "yes." I said, "thanks."

Then we ordered our second round and the bartender didn't ask, he just put the drinks on Parker's tab, which makes sense.

I started to get hungry, so I said, "I'm think I am going to order a little something, are you hungry? He said, "I can always eat." I LOVE that answer. So we (and by "we" I mean I) ordered a steamed artichoke and seared tuna appetizers just for a little snack. The bartender, again just put it on Parker's tab.

At that point I felt a little bad so I said to Parker, "We can split up the bill later if you want." I didn't want him to think I was taking advantage because the tab issue is a little different than the bill coming at the end of the night, since his credit card is already being held by the bartender. (As you ladies know, the check moment is THE moment when you get feedback on how the date is going, and it usually comes at the end, I got it in the middle).

BONUS BLOG: When on a date, especially the first date (but I suggest all the way through date 3) you must always offer and BE PREPARED TO pay for your half of the date. I never offer to pay for the whole thing and once they've said "no, don't worry about it," don't insist on paying, that's weird. It's personal preference but, I usually don't do the wallet reach since it usually looks disingenuous and my purse it usually so disorganized it's just a bunch of me fumbling around in there for 5 minutes. I'll just casually say, "Hey, do you want to split this?" If he says "yes" then he is not that into you, girl and you are not getting a follow-up phone call. If he lets you split it and then tries to follow up with you, I HIGHLY suggest you respectfully decline. A couple important notes: 1. Just because he does pay does not necessarily mean you are getting a second date, he might just have been raised right. 2. If you don't do the cursory "offer" that might be a deal-breaker for some guys because it appears that you were not raised right. 3. If you are not into a guy and you don't want the second date, don't bother with any of this and let him pay, if it's mutual and he's a real jerk though, he may call you out and make you pay your part. ;-)

So, where was I? Oh yes...Parker and I... I offered to split the bill later even though it was the middle of the date since I had just put food on his tab instead of opening up my own tab. He was so sweet and said, "don't worry about it, this is my treat." But then we actually got onto a conversation about dating etiquette which I thought was really funny given that we were only on a first date. But we felt so comfortable with each other it didn't seem weird that we were essentially talking about the politics of dating while just getting to know each other. We even exchanged our worst first date stories.

He told me that if he really likes a girl after a date he'll text her that same night and let her know he had a good time. So, of course I teased him that at least I would know later if tonight went well or not. I told him I was surprised he did the "same night text", but if I have a good time, and particularly on a night like tonight (when we spent 6 hours together he bought me 4 expensive mixed cocktails and food) I would send him an "I had a nice time, thank you." text the next day. He said, he's honest and doesn't like to mess around with people. It must be an East Coast thing, but if he doesn't like you, he's not gonna pretend he does and if he does like you, he'll show it. -- I like that.

Fast forward to 1:30 am when we finally closed out... we walked outside the bar and he gave me a sweet peck. The ONE negative to the night is he didn't offer to walk me to my car. And I have to admit, as amazing a time as I had last night, that one sticks with me a bit since I had to walk 2 blocks to my car down Santa Monica Blvd. alone.

When I got home I (obviously) got the same night text -

Him: So tonight was really fun. Looking forward to going out again. If you're free next Wednesday or even this Sunday night let me know. I figure anything that goes almost 6 hours is a good thing ;)

I have a going-away party to go to on Wednesday night next week, and I thought for a moment about canceling my Mr. Sunday to go out with Parker again and then I thought, this is exactly why you are doing a dating bender - to break your old habits! Plus, I'm really excited about Mr. Sunday, we have some seriously good witty text banter. 

Me: Glad I got the post-date text ;-) I had a lot of fun too, clearly. I'm busy Wed and Sun :-( but I definitely want to see you again soon. Let me know what else you have free and let's figure something out.

Him: Clearly you are sooo popular. I'm free next Thursday as well if you are. [Just have other stuff going on Monday and Tuesday nights] Or we can do a hike during the day or something like that. Friday I leave for a wedding.

Me: Thursday is perfect :-)

Him: Thursday it is. :)

Yay! Date number 2 with Parker is already booked for next week. I'm really excited!

This probably goes without saying but, Chances I'll hear from him again: 5 out of 5

Oh, I almost forgot to mention, and this is kind of a bummer, since he's on summer break from school, he is traveling for 3 weeks in July. Not a huge deal, since he is coming back, but that likely means that date number 2 will be our last until after he gets back to town...good thing I have so many other guys to keep me occupied! :-)

Dating Bender: Episode 1 - "This is 40?"

Stats -
Name: Tommy
Age: 41
Occupation: Actor (Ugh)
Hometown: New York
Currently Resides: The Valley (Double, Ugh)
The Date: Drinks at Tom Bergin's (An Irish Pub in the Miracle Mile area)

I was really hopeful going into the date, we had a good conversation prior and my mom has been encouraging me to date older guys since, in theory, they would be more apt to settle down faster.
In his pictures he didn't look 41.

I knew immediately when I walked in it was going NOWHERE. Yikes! Honestly that has only happened to me two other times in my life and neither of those times were that fun either. I hope this is not a sign of things to come in the coming weeks...

He was nice enough, but there was NO spark and he was not nearly as cute as in his pictures. He didn't seem like he was trying at all, he looked tired, and not as "rugged" (read: a bit effeminate). Plus, he basically went out of his way to tell me that even at 41 he still wasn't sure if he was ready for a relationship, WTF?

We had moments of fine conversation, it wasn't all terrible. Then...he asked me about my siblings, which was sweet but...I mentioned that one of my sisters was dating a guy that no one in my family liked and he said, "She'll probably get pregnant in 3 months."

Admittedly, I had a bit of a crazy moment (and by "a bit of" a I mean ALOT-of-a)...I asked him, "why would you ever put something like that into the Universe?" And if that ended up happening I would kill him for having said that. I obviously didn't mean it, literally. But, I kinda did, in a figurative sense. Who says that? Your sister will probably get pregnant by the guy that no one in your family likes? (Again, admittedly, the normal reaction is probably not saying if it happens you'll kill someone, and I did apologize, but still...) The supportive options would have been along the lines of, "I'm sure it will all work out the way it's supposed to," or "maybe he'll turn out to be a great guy," or "she's probably just going through a phase, and she'll realize you're all right eventually," ya know, something to indicate he has a normal empathetic and/or supportive gene. Particularly because shortly after that he told me that two of his siblings are in bad relationships...WTF x 2! Obviously he's an idiot and there is a reason he is single at 41.

I do feel badly that I acted like a psycho, though. That has honestly NEVER happened before. It was such a weird gut reaction. I guess I have a button, a crazy button, that gets pressed when it comes to my sisters that I just found out about. You learn something new every day.

Note to self: Don't talk about not liking your sister's boyfriend on the first several dates!

Chances I'll hear from this guy again: 0 out of 5

Good thing I don't give a sh*t.

What a Difference Two and A Half Years Makes...Well, Kinda.

Wow, I am ashamed of myself that I let this project fall by the wayside! For those of you who followed in the early days, have been checking back periodically, or have recently found the blog, I am TRULY sorry. I do, however have what I consider to be a series of pretty decent excuses.

Right after the time of my last post, I went home for the holidays to find out that my mom had been diagnosed with breast cancer. It was one of the most difficult times in my life. I left Austin and moved home to take care of her while she got treatment and to take over her business while she recovered - I am happy to report she has been in full remission for over two years! (knock on wood).

Okay, sad stuff over...

About two years ago, I moved to Los Angeles because I got into Graduate School and have quite possibly been the busiest I could have ever imagined being in my entire life. Now that I graduated (and have yet to find a job quite yet) I FINALLY have some time to focus in on my personal life again...

I was being pursued by a guy who I thought was really great, and he happened to break up with me out of the blue via text last week after an AMAZING date two nights before (more on THAT in the next post). I have since decided that I am going to do a little dating experiment, that hopefully we will all be the beneficiaries of.

With the help of two very convenient dating websites, and possibly some real-life chance encounters, I am going to spend the foreseeable future dating like a man. (Confession: I did watch that stupid movie "Think Like A Man" this weekend, but I had already thought of the idea before that!) And NO, I will not be sleeping around, I am just going to line up a bunch of dates with different "great" guys and compare and contrast them (and write about it for you!) In fact, I already have a date lined up EVERY. SINGLE. NIGHT. THIS. WEEK. (edit 6/19: Almost every single night this week, and it's starting to look like it's gonna spill well over into next week too!) I'm going to take a page from the male playbook and not focus in on any particular person until they really prove to be something special. And this is LA, so who knows how long that will be...

I think this strategy will help me in particular because I'm pretty monogamous by nature so when I decide I like someone I tend to get excited and want to move into the "relationship phase" pretty quickly; this doesn't usually bode well with the men-folk. I don't know if you know this, but boys scare easily. ;-)

So, buckle up and let the hilarity ensue!

Glad to be back!
Love, p