Blast from the past....

So do you kids remember Navy boy (aka Bachelor #2)?

I took my fella out to dinner last Wednesday since he's been a superhero with driving me around while my car is in the shop. Anywho, while out to dinner, I heard a familiar voice. Looked up, and it was Bachelor #2 at a table across from us... with his MOM. Now, I'm not one to diss going out to dinner with the folks, but I definitely had a moment of boo-ya if you will. Me= hot date, Bachelor= mom.... I win :)

So on Friday night, I was sitting at home watching a movie before hitting the hay early when i got a text message from a number I didn't know. Turns out it was Bachelor #2. The textversation went something like this:

Bachelor: Funny story, my phone broke and all my numbers were lost that I stored after December 2008. My engineer friend was able to pull them off just a week ago using presumably magic. Anyways, that is what happened to me if you cared to know. Give me a shout sometime.
Me: Who is this?
Bachelor: It makes sense that you would delete my number. This is ___, we once went to a baseball game. You made dinner at my house, I thought the okra was a bit overcooked lol.
Me: Maybe you should just delete my number...
Bachelor: Was it the fried okra joke? I understand, that is honestly what happened
Me: Um, moved on. In a relationship now. And it was zucchini.
Bachelor: Very well. Regardless, that shit was not intentional.

My thoughts:
A.) Convienient that you have my number again now that you've seen me out on a date with a guy ten times hotter than you
B.) How are you about to try and extend an olive branch then insult my cooking?!?
C.) Learn your vegetables. Okra and zucchini look and taste much different and I didn't deep fry anything when I cooked for you dipshit.
D.) Boo-ya!

In other news, me and the fella are just swell. His parents were awesome and I was heaven around all those mini horses :)

Oh, and my fella adores my cooking. And he knows the difference between okra and zucchini. I guess sometimes things just work out.

Meet the Family....

So now that my fella has met my family, he told me that my turn is coming up- next weekend.

I know its silly to be nervous, but now I've got all those questions running through my head. What should I wear? Are they gonna like me? What if they don't like me? What if I spill all over myself at dinner?

I am a little excited too. His parents have a farm with a llama. If all else fails, maybe Coco and I will get along. I do LOVE llamas :)

I'm an example :-)

So after I told the college roommate about the winner I found via online dating, she's decided to take a shot at it. Scary to think of myself as an example, but I did manage to find someone pretty wonderful who's just as dorky as me.

I can't wait to hear some of her stories. Woot!

BFF, meet BF

So this past weekend, I introduced my best friend to Mr. Avocado (who by the way I am proudly calling my boyfriend now - insert happy dance here).

Things went well and they hit it off. This is important, as everyone know that the best friend's opinion counts more so than pretty much anyone else's opinion.

We went bowling and played pool and air hockey, all of which proved to be most amusing. Topics of conversation ranged from why the original Swedish fish are the ONLY good kind to BF's idea for a Hulk 3 movie.

All in all, we solidified that we are all wierdos, and thus, all in good company.

Spin Cycle

Why is it that some women and men decide to cycle through exes like a laundry cycle? I've been guilty of this as well, though not nearly as bad as some.



Sometimes after a break-up, you have that moment where you're like, "You know, we could make this work. I'll change. It'll be better this time around." And it does get better- at least in the beginning. You're both (well usually) trying really hard and working on those issues that drove you apart. But being creatures of habit, we usually resort back to our old ways and those little things that drive the other one nuts start to drive them nuts again- yes, I'm talking to you mister obsessive pen clicker.



What's worse is getting to the point of breaking-up again and finding out the other person wasn't trying at all. I found that one out the hard way my senior year of college. He even admitted that he wasn't trying any harder. It's kinda like how I try egg nog again every couple years, just to remind myself that I still don't like it. Sometimes, ya gotta learn the hard way.

The thing is, to use the title from a book that changed how I date, it's called a break-up because it's broken!!
(Read it, love it, own it: http://www.randomhouse.com/broadway/breakup/)

Stop putting your exes through the spin cycle and find someone who's worth your time and doesn't think its ok to break your heart one week and then be your everything the next. And if you do get back together with them, remember that they were the reason you started that love-hate relationship with a certain Mr. Ben & Jerry. Just sayin'

Frog Princes

This doesn't exactly apply to me right now, but I was certainly a part of this lotto for a while there....

You know what's awesome...

Sitting in a crowded park and in a moment of quiet, having the guy you're there with do his best Mrs. Doubtfire impression, only it comes out super super loud:

"HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

Everyone stops and stares at the two of you and you're like, "Ya, he's with me."

Oh and his goat impression had me rolling on the ground laughing, literally.


I'd say I care what everyone was thinking, but that would be a lie. I think I've found someone just as weird as me. Score :-)

I find it funny...

That my ex from college is both married and has a child. This coming from the man, who when asked about marriage, responded "As Gene Simmons said, marriage is a wonderful institution but you have to be insane to be in an institution." Married with a kid... ha, funny how that works out. And in viewing the pictures of said kid on the ever popular Facebook, he spelled his own kid's name wrong. I was double-amused, first at the odd looking name and second realizing he's probably not gotten a good night's sleep in quite a while. He's a good guy but looks like life isn't going as he'd planned.

Glad I dodged that bullet. Woot!

Overheard conversations between the male of the species

From my favorite web comic:


Cyanide & Happiness @ Explosm.net


In other news, I was out of town for the past week or so, thus the lack of updates. Mr. Avocado is still quite wonderful- this Friday is my turn to cook for him. They do say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach....

How to Spot a Winner

So a friend of mine that I work with told me a question that her fiance asked her on their first date- "If you could have one of these two super powers, which would you choose- front row/first space parking for the rest of your life or the ability to talk to ducks?"

I proceeded to laugh my bum off (thankfully, its now reattached) and texted the question to my sister, my best friend, and Mr. Avocado. All responded duck-talking but Mr. Avocado took the cake with creativity and hilarity of answer. His reponse:

"Honestly, I don't mind having to walk to get to where I'm goin and I have been attacked by fowl before without a single moment to try and resolve the situation. Plus, have you seen the teeth that geese have?!? With all the hissing and wingflappin, a guy would like to know what he did to deserve that. Duck fluency would be a plus. Also, geese are protected by law and for what? More goose turds EVERYWHERE?!? First, we learn the language... then we fight back! They can take our land, but they'll never take... OUR FREEDOM!!"

If you aren't busting out laughing right now, there might be something wrong with you. Just sayin'

I've got date #3 with this winner tonight. He's cooking me dinner :) Who knew, there's a guy out there just as strange as me... and he's attractive to boot!

He took me out, it was a Wednesday night...

So the date with the new guy went very well. I think we'll start calling him Mr. Avocado due to a conversation we had before meeting up. I'd asked him a question I ask pretty much all my friends and people when I first meet them: If you were a fruit/vegetable, what would you be and why? Now, the whole point of this question is creativity; not everyone gets that and they answer with their favorite fruit/veggie rather than one that is appropriate for their personality. I, for example, am a pineapple. I'm a little funny on the outside and some people aren't quite sure what to do with them, but once you get to the super sweet inner fruit, you realize that it was totally worth the effort. His answer was avocado and he put a lot of thought into it- even made a joke about how he makes a great dip at parties.

Anywho, sorry about the long tangent. Mr. Avocado picked me up from work and apologized profusely for being 5 minutes late (he got slightly lost due to exit ramps being closed). I accepted and then proceeded to drool. I mean, I knew what he look like going into this, but he was even more attractive in person, with the personality and cheesy sense of humor to boot. Win! We drove down to Chinatown and walked around a bit in the little stores and admired the abundant Bouddhas and bonsai plants. Lots of great conversation and flirtation.

After some store browsing and lots of walking, we decided that we should work on that whole dinner thing. His friend had suggested a place, but after walking past it, Mr. Avocado decided that it wasn't the ambiance he was looking for. We looked for another place and passed up a place I'd heard about and had been wanting to try. We ended up eating there and talking even more. The food was good, but the conversation was even better. Its starting to get creepy how many random things we have in common, but good creepy :)

After dinner, we walked a bit more and got a tapioca smoothie (which are delicious by the way, aka bubble tea depending on where you're from). Mr. A is not a big fan of the tapioca, but after some teasing from me, he decided to suck it up (literally). The smoothie was mighty tasty, and we decided to attempt some more exploring. We got on the topic of 80s music, George Michaels/Wham! mainly, and he mentioned researching dances from music videos. I asked for a demonstration and much to my surprise, he obliged.

So recap, he's extremely attractive, intelligent, hilarious, and not afraid to act like an idiot for a laugh..... sounds like the male version of me.

He dropped me off and gave me a hug. After I got in, I texted him thanks for a great night and drive home safely. His response: Simply put, I hoped for the best and received! I'm gonna be selfish here and say that the pleasure was all mine.

He's taking me out again Sunday. I'm excited :)

Won't you take me to...

Chinatown :)


Props to anyone who got the obscure and dorky song reference there.

So after much flirting via text on Friday, the new fella set a date for our first date- Wednesday. We also had another 1.5 hours of phone conversation on Saturday evening- I was in watching the dogs that my roommate and I are watching. Good conversation yet again and lots of playful teasing back and forth.

I'm super excited to meet this fella. I got a new dress and everything to wear. And if you hadn't guessed, we're going to dinner in Chinatown. Don't worry, you'll hear all about it ;)

Woot!

Wow...

I wonder about guys sometimes...


Cyanide & Happiness @ Explosm.net

Dorks Anonymous

So I talked to the new fella last night on the phone. I'm gonna go ahead and say it went well because we talked for 3 hours. It was wonderful conversation, and we kept finding out more and more that we had in common.

He's pretty hilarious and he laughed at my jokes. I adore people who appreciate a good dose of wit/sarcasm. Let's see, he's also a middle child, like myself. One of the best things I learned last night- he loves kareoke :) He's a pretty big dork, much like myself, and he embraces his dorkiness, again, much like myself.

He's supposed to call again sometime and then he's takin me on a date to Chinatown. I dig it :)

Ring, ring...

So I try not to get my hopes up too early on, but I must say that I'm really looking forward to talking to this new fella tonight on the telephone. The great thing is, he seems excited to talk to me as well. He thinks I'm funny (which is always good since I am) and it seems thus far that our senses of humor mesh pretty well.

I'm sure I'll continue to babble on about him after we talk tonight. (I'm sure it doesn't help matters that I find him to be extremely attractive either, both physically and personality wise).

Butterflies? Just a little...

Medicine

So I thought antibiotics were supposed to make you feel better, not worse! Grrr... Still fighting off these cooties I seemed to have gotten so my weekend was fairly tame. Bachelor #2 has officially made no effort to contact me, so he gets deleted out of my phone today. It's a shame- I really liked that fella but I refuse to make all the effort to make plans and reschedule plans that I didn't cancel in the first place.

In other news, I heard from my ex this weekend. It was a short textversation, and we caught up on stuff and made small talk. I really do miss talking to him but still, I wonder where that came from... "mantuition" maybe? (I'll explain mantuition some other time if I haven't already).

Match.com still has its prospects. A new fella is supposed to give me a ring (read: phone call, not OMG ring) sometime this week. He's super cute and a little wierd like me as far as sense of humor goes. Only time will tell...

Cooties

So apparently Bachelor #2's story of being ill may not have been complete b.s., as I am currently fighting off some sort of upper respiratory thing. Yay antibiotics! However, the silence is starting to get quite deafening. I'm thinking a.) he's just not that into me, b.) he also has these cooties and is on a strict diet of antibiotics and no cell phone use, or c.) he's been eaten by a lion at the zoo and his cell phone is outside the lion's stomach, thus justifying why he hasn't even bothered to send one lousy text message or phone call all week. He gets two more days to get a hold of me somehow; otherwise, I'll take the hint.



In the meantime, Match.com has been quite amusing this week. I'm not sure if I was spotlighted or something, but I've been getting messages like crazy. As always, a few prospects but we'll see how it pans out. There is one guy that reminds me very much of the first guy I met on Match, but cuter somehow. We'll see :)

No dates this weekend *phew* but I do have my best friend in town, so there's likely to be some sort of fun story about a creepy guy hitting on us. I'm gonna put money down that it will happen at the beach (always does).

Frustration

So I was supposed to go out with Bachelor #2 on Friday. He texts me at about 3pm saying he's sick with a fever and cough, and he's gonna have to pass on our movie/plans. Not gonna lie, I was a bit bummed/frustrated since I hadn't seen him in over a week. I found other things to do but still...

I called him the next morning to see how he was feeling and what he was up to for the rest of the weekend. He said he still felt like he had a fever, but he had a BBQ to go to later that day so he was gonna suck it up. Ok. So he's well enough to sit out in the sun all day with friends, whatever. I tell him that I'm going out with my roommate that night and maybe we can meet up later. He says sure and just send him a text and he'll let me know. I text him after the concert that we were gonna be going out soon. He texts back that he's still at the BBQ. I had a good night out with the roomie but I was frustrated because she wanted to meet him and I wanted to see him.

Sunday, I got up and watched the Cubs game with a friend at a bar. Bachelor #2 had tickets to the game, which I was totally jealous of by the way. I text him post-game to see what his plans are and he was going to the night game as well. So again, too sick to see a movie but not to sit out in the sun all day at a baseball game.

I'm thinking its time for this guy to shit or get off the pot. I mean, I like him and enjoy spending time with him, but if he can't fit me into his schedule, its just not gonna work.

Ball is in his court now to get a hold of me to make up our missed date. We'll see how this goes. I refuse to make someone a priority in my life who does not make me a priority in theirs. To be continued...

Bye bye Bachelor #3

Well that was prompt.

I already dropped one of them; well technically speaking, he dropped me but whatever.

Honesty is always best in situations like this, and he admitted that he was a bit too conservative for me, even though he had a blast hanging out. I do tend to speak without a filter but that's just my personality; there are very few topics that I consider taboo and I forget that the general public does see them as such. I wonder if we can still go swing dancing though.... he was teaching me some awesome stuff .

Oh well, down to juggling two which seems a bit more manageable to me :)

Juggling

So in high school gym at my school, you learned to juggle freshman year. Being the choir nerd I was, I didn't have to take gym because freshman were required to have a study hall.

It really is a shame I don't have those skills now, since I have about three guys vying for my affection. Bachelor #2 is still in the running- I really enjoy spending time with him and he enjoys my cooking, which is a plus for me since I love to cook.

Bachelor #3 I met partially via Match and partially via this swing dancing business. He's a lot of fun, cute, and the man can dance. He had me spinning like a top Friday night. Good times.

Bachelor #4 came out of nowhere. A guy I work with just asked me out to lunch the other night, so we'll see where that one goes. I'm quite wary about workplace romances, but I'll give him a shot

Now we'll have to see how good of a juggler I am; I certainly don't want to drop anyone.

"The" Conversation

So how do you go about having that conversation with a guy you've been seeing for about a month as to what you "are"? I don't even know where to begin but I would like to see where all this is going. I know I'm allowed to pull over and ask for directions, but how do I go about doing this?

Help please and thanks.

And for the record, no I am not having this conversation with my brother in case you were confused by that last entry.

Worst... Match... e-mail... ever....

Ok, so I've definitely had my ups and downs with this online dating business. I figure eventually its gonna have to pay off.... hopefully. Last week, there was definitely a down.

Anywho, I decided to let Match.com send me a weekly e-mail with my new potential matches; daily was just too much and I wouldn't check them very often anyways.

So the end of the work day rolls around Thursday. I decide to check my e-mail quickly before I leave the office. My weekly matches are in my inbox, so I decide to take a peek and see if there's anyone interesting in the bunch. These e-mails have a thumbnail sized picture and a little info about your match, like age, hometown, etc.

I scroll down a bit and notice that the guy in the middle looks a lot like my older brother. Weird. I look at the guy's profile. Crap, same age as my brother, same hometown.... HOLY CRAP!!! Match.com decided that my brother and I are a good match for each other!! Gross, gross, gross!!!!!

After proceeding to freak out for the next 25 minutes straight while simultaneously attempting to avoid vomitting, I decided to send customer service a nasty e-mail. Seriously. Yes, I realize my brother and I have similar values, having the same parents and all. And yes, I also realize that sometimes people who aren't related have the same last name. However, I am paying a decent amount of money to hopefully be introduced to a potential love interest/partner. I already know this man and am, in fact, related to him! I know that cross referencing last names might not always work, but my brother and I have the same billing address for our credit cards. (Side note- we have a very Polish, very not- common last name too). I'm still waiting to hear back from an actual person at the website regarding this; all I got at first was an automated e-mail which I responded to immediately stating that it did not answer my question.

But seriously, my brother and I are an 88% match?!? We fight like cats and dogs....

If this is any indication of my luck with online dating, I may as well throw in the towel now.

Dance, dance....

So I'm taking a swing dancing class, as I may have mentioned before. There are actually a lot of similarities between dancing and dating, many of which mirror some of the good and bad dates I've been on.

1. You gotta have a good partner. Swing is all about leads and follows and if the lead isn't strong, you end up on the floor, colliding with another couple, or with the dreaded elbow to the eyeball. Dating is the same- does anyone else notice that they end up with an elbow to the eyeball when the communication breaks down? Maybe that's just my luck...

2. Chemistry- either its there or its not. Some of my best dance partners thus far have had some sort of unspoken chemistry with me (not necessarily romantic, mind you). I can anticipate what move we were going into next and we cut a rug like you would not believe. Then there were the guys who weren't sure what to do next and their timidity pretty much left us doing basic steps and none of the fun turns, which ends up being boring. Mirroring Bachelor #1 much? Heh...

3. Variety of partners- swing dance is a social dance. I mean, you can bring a partner with but typically others will ask you to dance as well. Kinda like dating- sometimes you have to dance with the gross sweaty guy a few times before the guy you're eying from across the room asks to cut in. But then, you're shocked to find out that the sweaty guy was a much better lead than the cute guy who cut in. Sometimes your toes get stepped on, sometimes you don't know what you're doing next, sometimes a guy sweeps you off your feet (literally). You gotta keep at it until you find the right partner and then it all just comes together.


I'm gonna keep dancing (and dating) until I find that right partner again. I do have to say though, bachelor #2 is showing a bit of promise :)

Flowers

So bachelor #1 decided to be super cute and send me flowers at work on Friday. Nothing like an embarassing display of flowers to get all the women of the office swarming around like vultures, asking who they're from and lots of "ooooooo's." I love the ladies I work with, don't get me wrong; I just don't like all that attention due to a guy that I'm not entirely sure about.

The flowers earned him another date last night. He offered to cook dinner at his place, which worked just fine for me. I got to his place, called on the way there, and then waited in the lobby for a few minutes, expecting him to come down since I'd never been there before. I texted him and he just told me his floor number and apartment number. I found it a bit odd, considering how polite he was. I went upstairs and set my things down.

He has a sweet place; I guess its where his parents are going to retire to but its still awesome- great view of the lake and the city. Probably at least double the size of my place too. Anywho, he starts cooking and we make small talk. He'd made brownies, which I helped myself to while he cooked. Dinner was tasty and we did a bit of talking then. The whole time, though, I just felt really uncomfortable.


He did the dishes and then we talked even more, lots of awkward pauses which throws me into babble mode. I'm pretty sure I explained to him all the different types of bras and why they exist. Yep, straight up babbling.



I suggest throwing on a movie (which should've been a no-brainer on his part since he does movie critiques in his blog). We sit on the couch and he's close enough to put his arm around me, so I anticipate.... and nothing. Halfway through the movie, he sets his hand on top of mine and just leaves it there. Doesn't try to actually hold my hand or anything, just rests it. It was wierd and sweaty... I excused myself to the bathroom after 30 minutes of awkward hand resting. Came back, watched the rest of the movie, and indicated that I needed to get home due to it getting late. I quickly gathered my coat and bag . We hugged and then he went in for what I suppose was to be a passionate kiss. Instead, it felt like he was trying to melt our faces together.... smooshing his lips to mine. It did not work. At all.

After that, I left and called my best friend on the way home to vent all about it.

I'm sorry bachelor #1, but I'm just not that into you. I wish you all the best and hope you find someone with a bit more patience.

Party like it's 1999!

So tonight, I have the bachlorette party of a friend from college who's wedding is two weeks from today! I am super excited because:

a.) I haven't seen her since I graduated in May of '07
b.) She is full of awesome and her soon-to-be husband is a wonderful guy
and
c.) This will be my first time participating in a friend's bachlorette party

We're starting out the evening with a pole dancing class. Fun times... looks like I'll get to learn a few things for sure. Then pizza + drinks/games + going out the bars for more drinks/kareoke.

The best part- there are at least 3 red heads in this group.... we've been known to get fiesty. Blondes may say they have more fun but red heads take that cake on that business.

I'm sure I'll have more details post-fiesta :)

Swept...

I really want to be swept off my feet.

The question is now, who has the right broom for the job?

By the way, bachelors 1 and 2 are still in the running. Had dates with each of them this week, and both were fun. We'll see how this goes... maybe one of them has a good broom?

Dating is exhausting...

Seriously though. It's a lot of fun, but being out later than normal really starts to take a toll on you eventually. After a weekend with two dates and a day of shopping with my sister, I was pretty much a zombie at work yesterday. At times, I just wanna go home and curl up with a book, a cup of tea, and be in sweat pants rather than all this dressing up nice business.

But to the juicy stuff... the dates! I'm currently seeing two guys, very different yet I'm attracted to both of them.

So bachelor #1 is a law student, so I'll refer to him as such. Originally, the plan was to grab dinner and see the movie Up. After my swing dance class that Monday, I had an alternative that he went for- swing dancing! We went out to dinner and then went to the studio where I take a class. They did a 45 min. crash course and the rest of the evening was open for dancing on both floors :) Mr. law student eventually caught on to the dancing, though it was a bit awkard at first. In swing dancing, its very important to have a strong lead, as all the signals as to what you're going to do next come from the arms. I had to give him a few pointers as to why I didn't know what we were doing next, but he fixed his form and we were good to go. I had a lot of fun, even if he didn't have too much rythym or understand that how fast we danced had to change with the tempo of the music. Definitely got an A for effort. I got a quick peck at the end of the night as well, which was sweet.

I like the law student because he's very intelligent and witty, but I do feel like I make him nervous. He always seems awkward around me, which in turn makes me feel a little awkward. He's very sweet and gentlemanly, but at times, it comes off as timid to me. He asked if it would be alright if he could hold my hand; I told him to just grab it, there's no need to ask. In telling a co-worker about this, she thought it was sweet that he asked, but I prefer a man to be more sure of himself and take a little initiative. I do like spending time with him though, so I'm going to be patient and give him a chance.

Bachelor #2 is a former Navy guy who now works at a Naval hosptial in the area doing fitness training with the guys there. I almost canceled on this one but I decided to give him another chance, as he was probably nervous at our first meeting. We were supposed to go out for sushi then meet up with some of his friends for drinks. I got off the train and starting walking when he called to inform me that the place we were supposed to go to was closed. He met up with me and we walked a bit further to try and find a new place to go. We decided to just order a pizza and watch a movie at his place. He seemed a lot less nervous this time and I got to know him much better, as he'd taken down the funny facade a bit. Kung Fu Panda makes for a great date movie by the way. Before I left, he gave me a kiss. I was shocked at the sparks I felt by that one little kiss, so we'll see where this goes.

I like Navy guy because he's very funny and can keep up with my sarcasm and throw even more back at me. He's not as physically attractive as bacelor #1, but he still is an attractive guy. I just hope he does let me in a little more so I can get to know the real him better rather than just the funny him. He's also a wine lover, which is a plus for me :)

Round 3's coming up.... a date with both of them this week. Let's see how it goes.

How to Woo Online

So in jumping back on the bike after falling off, I searched through profiles on Match again and found a few guys who caught my eye and a few who didn't. Maybe some pointers would be helpful on how to catch my eye at least....

A few tips:

1. Being honest is a plus. I've read profiles saying straight out, "I'm not romantic but at least I'm honest about it." That's something good to know going into things.

2. Use your big people words. Seriously. We're all adults here. Typing your entire profile in CAPS or in internet speak is not ok. To steal a line from the profile from I guy I went out with from Match, good grammar and spelling turn me on like you would not believe.

3. Have a good profile picture. I feel bad for not giving people a chance if they don't have a picture, but physical attraction needs to be there. And pictures of you and your friends are great and all, but I can't tell which one you are, it's probably not a good picture. On a similar note, if you are holding some sort of cup or bottle in all your pictures, it makes you look like a wine-o and that's a big turn-off for me.

4. Say something interesting. Stand out from the crowd. A lot of the guys I've actually e-mailed or winked at on that site had something different in their profile, be it a funny opener or a great quote from a favorite movie. This is your chance to show your personality, so let it shine through.

I suppose that's all for now. I certainly hope I'm half as charming online as I am in person.

He's just not that into me...

That book totally changed the way I date.

Mister Match.com turned out to just not be that into me. Luckily, I'd caught on throughout the week. Disappointed- yes maybe a little but I'll survive.

As we speak, I may be setting up a date for sometime this week.

Bring on the frogs boys!

Online dating - perhaps a mini success?

So after reviewing my Daily 5 religiously and checking out the people who are winking at me, I'm finding Match might be worth it afterall.

I do have to say that I for the most part dismiss people who merely wink at me. If you think my profile is interesting enough and you think I'm attractive, why not start with a quick message? I don't wanna do all the work here guys. Plus, actually writing an e-mail shows you truely read my profile rather than just thinking I'm hot from my picture. Whatev...

Anywho, I get an e-mail every time someone winks at me. I'll go check out their profile and see what their deal is but normally I don't respond. One guy winked at me a few weeks ago and I went through the normal motions of reading the profile, checking out the pictures, etc. This guy was really cute, I mean REALLY cute. Plus, he had a personality to boot. His profile was straightforward and honest with a dash of sarcasm thrown in there. Like I said, I normally don't e-mail the winkers, but this guy caught my eye too.

I shot him an e-mail with a cheesy opener (Did you get something in your eye?) It worked because we e-mailed back and forth for like two weeks and finally chatted on the phone twice for 2 hours at a time. We've been out twice now so we'll see where this one goes.

There's some good stories from those two dates, but another time :)

Dear Match.com

Dear Match.com,

I wish there was a way you could weed out fans of teams that I don't get along with. There are a lot of cute White Sox fans out there, but it just wouldn't work out. Seeing a cute guy's picture and then finding out he's a Sox or worse, Cardinals fan, breaks my heart just a little.

Maybe I shouldn't be so picky?

Love,
Lilly

The End of Birdman

Alright, so after a long break of being out of town and busy, I can finally close out this saga (not that you were on the edges of your seats or anything....)

Birdman texts me while I'm at work and asks if I want to grab dinner later that night. I agree, plus the idea of a ride home from work sounded wonderful and prevented me from working too much overtime :)

He picks me up and goes in for a kiss once I get in the car. It was as if he'd settled into a relationship with me even though we hadn't even talked about that. We were still casually dating, but I have a feeling he felt differently.

After a decent dinner, we went to his place and vegged out. Again, he went in for the kiss and ended up pecking me incessantly. I knew then and there that I had to figure out how to end this because it was just NOT working. I stuck around for about an hour and headed home with a "headache." I proceeded to send all the right signals the following week- being distant, not answering calls, anything to indicate that I had lost interest.

He called a few days later and we chatted. He asked if I wanted to see a movie that weekend and I told him I'd think about it. After hanging up, I knew I just had to end this. He really was a nice guy but without that physical chemistry, there was no point in dragging things out.

I hate that I'm this girl, but I broke things off via text message. Ya, I know. Please judge me for that one. I should've been a big girl and told him face to face but I hate confrontation and I hate hurting people more than that. He took it well; it seems he was expecting it.

I wish you well Birdman. Hope you find someone to share a nest with that enjoys the pecking that I did not.

Bird Man - The Saga Continues

Sorry about the delay in continuing this story. Life's been interestingly busy for the past week or so.

Anywho, so Birdman calls and makes plans for dinner that Friday night. He picks me up (he was early which I suppose is better than late) and we park his car and walk the rest of the way to the restaraunt. The place is a decently nice Italian joint, so I found something right away. We order a bottle of wine and a meat and cheese plate appetizer and settle in for some conversation. Conversation went well, the food was good. We head over to a bar where we're supposed to meet up with one of his friends who's visiting from out of town. We meet up and the night continues. His friend's think I'm a riot (which is kinda true- I usually play up the humor card when I'm nervous). The rest of the evening goes well- the bar we were at had a burlesque show so that was fun and exciting. At the end of the night, Birdman asks if he can have a kiss before putting me in a cab home. I give him a polite peck on the check and tell him to call me again.

Later that week, after speaking on the phone a few times, he invites me over for dinner on a Friday night. His sister, brother-in-law, and nieces will be in town for the weekend. I agree to swing by, although I was a little concerned that it would be awkward. After work, I head to his place to help get everything ready. Everyone arrives and his 6-year old niece takes to me right away. Dinner was ok, a little bland for my taste as far as food goes, but it wasn't too odd. Everyone but the two of us went to bed and we went out for a few drinks before going home. He gives me cab money again and invites me to spend the day with them at Navy Pier and the movies the next day. I agree since I had no other plans. It was a pretty nice day to be out at Navy Pier and Build-a-Bear Workshop wasn't nearly as crowded as I thought it would be. His niece decided that she was going to be my shadow for the day and had to be walking next to me at all times. I was fine with it because I love kids but still, I was surprised. We went to dinner at Hard Rock Cafe which was good but overpriced for sure. Finally, we saw Monsters vs. Aliens in 3D. I felt like a little kid again and that was super awesome. Company wasn't bad either. We head back to his place and the munchkins go to sleep. Shortly thereafter, his sister and brother-in-law dose off. Birdman decides to make his move. After some very awkard cuddling during a movie on TV, he goes in for the kiss...... and nothing- no spark, no heart-racing, nada. I give him a chance and try to show him how I like to kiss but it seemed like we were getting nowhere. I was bored to the point that I was figuring out what I was going to do the next day and how I needed to sort laundry. I head home shortly afterwards and just laugh to myself about it.

I'll continue the last of this story next time. Stay tuned to find out why this one is Birdman.

Side Note

Maybe Match.com isn't that terrible afterall.

*mini happy dance*

Bird Man...Part one of the saga....

So let's rewind the clock to about a month ago- the weekend before St. Patty's Day. It was my old roommate's last weekend living with me since she had to move for work. We decided to meet up after she got done with the concert she was going to see. The grand master plan was that I would've already been out with my BFF, but she ended up having to bail. My roommate calls and convinces me I should get spiffied up anyways and we'll all head to this punk bar called Exit. We'd always said how we needed to go there, so I figured what the hey.

I proceeded to get spiffied up and my roommate and her friend Brandon get back to the apartment. After a quick shot for good luck, we hop in a cab and head out. I was excited because it was supposed to be Industrial night, so if nothing else, I was hoping to be in music heaven. We head in and the place has a decent amount of people, but nowhere near a usual Saturday crowd due to everyone else being at the Irish pubs. Anywho, we proceed to go upstairs and hear what the DJ decided to play. After a few songs, I realized I wasn't going to be hearing anything I wanted, so we went back downstairs for some good old punk. My roommate's friend excuses himself to the bathroom and I grab a round of drinks. We noticed another guy followed him into the bathroom, so my roommate and I proceed to freak out that he's about to get jumped since the ladies room was a one person potty. He comes back out and we ask him what happened. Looking at us funny, he said, "Well, if you must know, I had to pee." The other guy comes out and overhears our conversation.

Enter Bird Man. After a few smoke breaks with Brandon, Bird Man (BM) realizes that we are not in fact there together and got the go ahead to hit on me. The entire time, I am completely oblivious. I fail at this whole picking up on flirting thing. At first, I think he's just talking to the group of us or Brandon. He invites us to another bar that plays more industrial music. I was game, as were my companions, so we piled into a cab yet again. The next bar was pretty sweet, definitely more my speed and there was a dance floor. *Insert happy dance here* BM paid for all our covers, so that was pretty awesome. My roommate goes away to get a drink, so its just me and BM. We discover similar tastes in music and get into a conversation about Nine Inch Nails. I text my roommate to find out where she went. Her response was one simple sentence that clued me in to what was going on: "I'm letting that guy hit on you." After reading that, I excuse myself to dance to a few songs while I figure out how I didn't realize I was getting picked up. Conversation continues to go well with BM, so after he politely asks , I put my phone number in his cell. He tells me he'll call me tomorrow and take me to lunch.

The entire cab ride home, I'm kind of in shock. I hadn't even entertained the idea of meeting someone new, but I convinced myself he wouldn't call anyways. Boys never call when they say they're going to. After sleeping off the drinking from the night before, I get up and make breakfast. Much to my surprise, my phone rings and its BM. We decide to meet up at a diner later that day for lunch. Conversation goes well again and we agree to see on another once I return from my trip.

It started out so well. But alas, there's more.... I'll save part two for my next post. Stay tuned.

Welcome to the Lily Pad

Hi there

My name is Lily. I decided after sharing some of my dating to stories with friends that some of them were just amusing enough to share with the rest of the interwebs. So here I am.

Let's see, a bit about me and my dating history. I'm in my mid-twenties and a bit of a tomboy with a girlie side. I've been a serial monogamist since I started dating around 6 years ago when I started college. I'd meet a guy or become friends with a guy and eventually the attraction was there, so we'd jump into a relationship. I've had my share of good relationships and bad ones, but I did learn something from every guy I dated. Sometimes they were tough lessons, but its much better to learn them firsthand. The thing is, I never really "dated" casually in the past; I'd always get into a relationship right away, so this casual dating thing is a completely new (mis)adventure for me.

So I guess as far as casual dating goes, I'm kind of a newbie. I learn by doing, so I'm diving in feet first... and I'm taking you all along for the ride. I'm hoping to also give some advice along the way, advice that I've learned firsthand and advice that I've read from some pretty wonderful books that have changed how I look at dating.

I'm not entirely sure I have a grand philosophy when it comes to dating. I'm basically searching for someone who takes me as I am, flaws and all, and most importantly, laughs at my terrible jokes. I'm only slightly kidding about that last part; sarcasm isn't nearly as amusing if you have to explain it to someone else. It would be great to have stuff in common too, seeing as I'm not really one to consider golf on a Sunday afternoon a high form of entertainment. I need someone who can keep up with me and challenge me to keep up with them. Of course there's the physical attraction aspect as well. I realize I'm far from perfect, so I try not to judge too much; however, if physical attraction and chemistry just isn't there, it won't appear out of thin air.

I don't buy into the concept of finding "the one" as if there is only one person out there who's right for you. I believe there are a handful of "ones" and sometimes it just depends on where you are as to which "one" you find that's right for you. I hope that made sense. I do believe in the power of love. I've been in love in the past. I've fallen in and out of love with probably two people total. I haven't given up hope on love because frankly, I'm too young to be that pessimistic. Heart break sucks, but healing from that and finding someone who rocks your world harder than you'd imagined makes up for the suckage of that past heart break.

So as you could probably tell, this blog may have a bit of a theme going on. I'm always one for a theme party, so I may have a little too much fun with this blog. It's been said in the past that you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince. In that case, bring on the frogs!!

Welcome and enjoy :)