HC with the win

So the new season of the Bachelorette has begun. I'm trying to fight this weird need I have to watch this damn show. But once again, I get sucked in, even though I said it at the end of Brad's season and I'll say it again - Ashley is incredibly annoying. And according to Tim, definitely not hot enough to get guys to watch the show.

My early fave is JP. I also liked the guy who had the guitar gimmick in the 1st episode, but she got rid of him. I originally liked William, but his dorkiness is killing my desire. There are a bunch of non-descript dark haired guys of whom I have no opinion on thus far. The dates, though have sucked. Eating dinner in the Bellagio fountain surrounded by screaming "fans?" No thanks. A random interpretive dance date? Yuck. And I don't even remember the last one, but I'm sure it was lame. HC didn't watch it with us last night, but she gets the quote of the episode in the BBM she sent me 15 minutes ago: "ABC is running the Guantanamo Bay of dating shows." Took me a minute, but I realized she was making a smart political reference to torture. So wise that one.

another modern romance

Just in time for Valentine's day, another tale of modern romance. I've talked numerous times about the intracacies of dating in the modern world - with the addition of BBM, old fashion texting, online dating, facebook and google, there are so many ways to interact and discover things about potential mates or exes, that it often makes your head spin. A few weeks ago we had a particularly funny interaction that I thought I would share.

HC's internet ghost had been rather absent ... after the spontaneous trip to Vegas, he was slow in regaining contact and answering only when spoken to. As HC is notoriously in need of a "plan" this lack of purposeful interaction was maddening. So we crafted a BBM to him that would let him know she had noticed his silence but wouldn't be accusatory. These were early days after all. So, what she sent was: "awfully quiet out there ...."

Unfortunately the day she sent it, the city was being hit by a massive blizzard. As such, it was very cold and snowy outside, and as he is a boy, he read it quite literally, and responded (immediately I might add), with "was running errands all morning and it's a ghost town outside."

Not helpful buddy, not helpful at all.

no turkey, but still thankful

Today is Thanksgiving Monday. I could not be happier to have the day off. For that I am thankful. I am thankful for many other things too ... here is an incomplete list of other things I am happy for, right now, Monday October 11th at approximately 3:30 in the afternoon (I specify the time and date, because what I am thankful for changes at an alarmingly fast pace):

• my parents (obvious, but true) - they live far away and I get annoyed with them on the phone, but they are the most generous, well meaning people in the world and I could not have asked for a better mother and father.
• my friends (another obvious statement) - both near and far. I have been lucky enough to have travelled and lived in various cities and I have friends in all of these places. And I got to spend some quality time with a few of them, both new and old, this weekend, so that is wonderful.
• alcohol - this might seem weird, and mean that I have a drinking problem, but it's true. I'm thankful for the great bottle of pinot noir that SS and I shared last night over a pork loin dinner (no turkey for us), and while I was super hungover on Saturday, I'm thankful for the vodka sodas on Friday night (and from a few weeks ago at the Drake) that allowed my friends to get ridiculously drunk and provide hours of entertainment and great stories to last for years. But I promise that I don't drink alone (well not excessively) and I know when to stop. So please don't be freaked out that it's listed third here.
• BBM - I've mentioned this before, but really I think it's my favourite new technology.
• music - a soundtrack to my life makes things much more interesting.
• photography - along with the music, the images of my life that I wouldn't otherwise remember, remind me of all the good times I've had.
• the pathway system - I love that there are pathways dedicated to walkers, runners, cyclists, rollerbladers, etc that run through some of the most beautiful places in the city and that on sunny fall days like this past Saturday, people take full advantage of them.
• the Saturday newspaper - I do love the interweb and all the things you can find online, but there is still so much to be said for reading an actual paper full of stories from all around the world. Ideally with multiple cups of coffee.

There are obviously many more things that I am thankful for ... this is a list that could never end. But sometimes it's nice to stop and highlight a few.

team dating

So a while ago I mentioned, in passing, the concept of team dating. Allow me to expand on this thought. I was in Seattle at the end of June with HC and SS, both of whom were going through some man drama. As the weekend progressed and we spent more time discussing the conversations that had happened, the texts that had been received and what came next, we realized that what we were doing was in fact “team dating.” I would like to clarify that we obviously didn’t invent team dating, as it goes back to the 17th century and Cyrano de Bergerac. Oh and Steve Martin and Daryl Hannah. I would just like to think that we perfected it. In our modern times, there are a variety of things that go into team dating, an essential one being Blackberry Messenger (an essential tool in my life that I have mentioned before).

This real time conversation brings many perks, but can also drive a person more than a little crazy. The issue is that you can see when the message has been delivered and then of course when it has been read. If it is marked open and there is no response, you start wondering what is going on and often times your mind goes the worst possible place, as in what you thought was witty and flirty was actually stupid and not at all suggestive. More likely though, dude just read it and then went to get another drink while pondering how to sound smart and sexy back. And can I just say that it is much easier to sound witty, flirty, smart, sexy and everything else when you have your friends around. Especially those of us who need a little entertainment in our lives and so are happy to push the flirting a little beyond the pale.

But you can’t rely on BB messenger too much because as I mentioned above, it can make you crazy. You have to find a fine balance - just like regular dating, you need to be available, but not too available. Hence the power of the last text. While in an argument you are always trying to get in the last word, but when it comes to BB messaging having the last word is sometimes a sign of weakness. It must be said that there is a certain power in letting the conversation hang. It’s the text message equivalent to being in a bar, seeing the guy you are trying to woo, but staying at your table and making him come to you (a tactic that I have never perfected by the way).

I bring this up now because I'm currently in a situation whereby a guy I know may or may not be interested in a friend of mine. He's a really friendly guy, so it's kind of hard to tell. He sent me an email suggesting the 3 of us go out for a drink. It should be noted that this didn't come completely out of left field because the drink idea had been floated by me earlier this summer, but we never really followed through. Not sure what prompted it 2 months later ... maybe he's just getting through his "to do" list? (that's what she said). So the funny thing is that now we are actually "team dating." She and I are collaborating over BB messenger what I should say in order to set her up for a witty flirty response. And so tonight the three of us are going out. Not sure of my role - Facilitator? Third wheel? Fingers crossed this is not some elaborate set up for a threesome. Cause that would be weird and inappropriate. But it would make for an excellent follow up post. Stay tuned.

technical problems

I've been out of sorts all day ... it took me awhile to figure out why, but I think it is due to a variety of technical issues I am experiencing.

First off, my Blackberry is broken. More importantly, my BB messenger is not working. This is a serious problem as I do believe that BBM is one of the best inventions ever and it irks me that I can't send instant messages to my friends. Never mind that I could just phone them or email, but that just seems so intentional and formal. BBMing random comments is much more fun. I would also like to add that when I approached my work IT guy to discuss the fact that my BB isnt't working, he informed me that because it is not actually physically broken, he can't give me a new one. He then told me, in what I think was complete seriousness, to step on it or drop it in the toilet, and then come back and see him.

Secondly, my PVR didn't record Jersey Shore last night. I know that I can watch it on one of the dozen repeats between now and next Thursday, but I was looking forward to watching it after work today. I also fully realize that I should be embarrased to watch this ridiculous show where ridiculous people are getting paid ridiculous sums of money to do nothing but drink, speak incoherently, and pump their fists. It's also part of the current pop cultural zeitgest, and in the same way that I can sing the lyrics to a Justin Beiber song (the shame!), I also know about J-Wow, Snooki and the Situation.

Finally, I bought a new MacBook earlier this summer and have yet to transfer over my itunes music catalogue to my new laptop. As a result I have been listening to the same playlists all summer long, and while they are good, the repetition is starting to get to me. It is definitely time for me to remedy this situation (no capital S needed). Then of course the question becomes, do I download a song from the Beebs?