Mr. Frown?

So last night, Mr. Smile and I were supposed to go wine tasting. Or so I thought.

On Monday, he invited me to go, and so I rearranged my plans to be available for him. On Wednesday, when I still hadn’t heard from him about the plans, I got in touch with him to see what the plans were, and his response was, “You know, I don’t really think it is a good idea. It is really far and the drive will be murder.” Now, in my mind, I thought, ok, so we’re not going wine tasting, maybe he’ll take me to dinner (since he has yet to take me to dinner).

But no, Mr. Smile continues by saying, so I’m going to go play basketball and then it is my friends birthday party…. Blah blah blah. As he trailed off, I began thinking, what the eff just happened? How did he so nonchalantly just cancel our plans?

In all fairness, he did suggest making plans tonight instead, after dinner which I think is ridiculous, and also on Sunday, when I’m busy, but still, I was bothered that he cancelled on me without any sort of apology or anything. In truth, he kind of did the same thing on Monday. We had made plans for Monday a few days in advance, but when Monday rolled around, he said, “I don’t know, I might be tired.” We did end up going, but I didn’t like the feeling it gave me to have to wait around and see how he “felt” when we had made the plans a few days earlier.

The part that confuses me is that throughout the day, he sent me a million text messages saying, “please meet me at the party” (where he was going to be) and then, when I didn’t show to the party, saying that he was “L” and had been hoping to see me. In other words, he was being totally attentive and sweet (which unfortunately for me was too little too late).

So the question is, which speak louder, actions or texts?

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

For most of history, Anonymous was a woman.
- Virginia Woolf (1882 - 1941)

Transformations

So, tonight Mr. Neighbor took me to the Transformers movie premiere... For those of you who aren't familiar (and God knows I really wasn't)... going to this premiere is a pretty big deal. The movie itself was good, although Mr. Neighbor's company was better. We had another great night together, just like last night. Good conversations, lots of laughing, and just a generally great rapport with one another.

At the end of the night, Mr. Neighbor (who literally lives two doors down) parked us in his drive way and walked me home. As we were walking, I kind of held his hand for a moment to test the waters, and let's just say, the waters were dead calm. As we said good night, he gave me a quick hug, and that was that.

Or so I thought.

When I got up to my room, I text him "thank you for tonight" and he replied, "want to take a walk?"

So, I went back downstairs and when I reached him, he leaned in and kissed me. He told me that as he walked back to his place, he kicked himself the whole way for not having the guts to make a move. So we ended up taking a walk, and joking around, and kissing on the street.

He told me that hanging out with me last night was the best date he's had since he moved to LA a year and a half ago. He also mentioned that I'm wonderful. And you know, he made me feel wonderful - both aesthetically and intellectually.

All in all, he was so incredibly adorable as he expressed his feelings about me. I don't even know what to say... except that this is exciting, and I'm not going to feel too guilty about Mr. Smile just yet...

Who knows, maybe Mr. Neighbor will transform into more than just someone to run to for a cup of sugar ;)

It's A Wonderful Day In the Neighborhood

So, last October, when I was still with my ex, I met my extremely hot neighbor. He wanted to hang out and be "neighborly" but since I was in a relationship, I never followed up... Ever since my ex and I broke up, I've been kicking myself for not calling him...

Luckily for me, he has impeccable timing. Two weeks ago, he left a note on my car with his number, and last night, we went out to drinks.

He is very cute, creative, intelligent, and fun... We had great conversation, which was of a completely different calibre than my conversations with Mr. Smile. Wheras with Mr. Smile we are totally affectionate and lovey, with the Neighbor, we just engaged in really interesting, witty, conversation.

Which means that for the first time ever, I am officially dating two people... My question is, how long can you carry on dating two people before you have to let one go? I've only been on one date the Neighbor, and I'm already feeling:

a) guilty (bc of Mr. Smile) and

b) confused.

When it's raining men, at what point do you need get out of the storm and instead cuddle up by a fireplace with just one?

Seven Days

So, a number of musicians have attempted to approach the type of week I just had by putting lyrics together and singing a song to express themselves. A few examples:

Mary J. Blige: Seven Days

Monday, a friend of mine
Tuesday, we played a game

Wednesday, you went away

Thursday, things werent the same

On friday, you came back

I wanted to kiss you

On saturday

On sunday we made love

Now what are we gonna do

The Cure: Friday I'm In Love

I don't care if Monday's blue
Tuesday's grey and Wednesday too
Thursday I don't care about you
It's Friday i'm in love

So, you're probably wondering the relevance of all this... I've seen Mr. Smile every day since Friday. On Saturday night, we were at the same party and spent the whole night together. On Sunday, he brought all his friends to the Hollywood Bowl since I was going to be there. We slow danced. It was uber romantic. And last night, he took me to a hole in the wall blues club - which I loved. He appreciates music as much as I do, which is something I've never had in a relationship...

This only goes to show how far being "open" will get you... Who knows where this will end up, but for now, if the next few weeks are anything like the last, it is going to be the best summer ever.

Happy Hour

So, Friday lunch I'm sitting at lunch with my co-worker and the topic of conversation was, you guessed it, Mr. Smile. The night before, while I was at the Boyz II Men concert, I had text Mr. Smile, "I'll miss you tonight." And he texted me back... well actually he didn't text me back. The entire night, and throughout the next morning, I had anxiety. Remember my text analysis post? The last time I sent a nice text to a boy I had just met, our entire dynamic changed (for the worse). Anyways, when I told my co-worker, a man by the way, that I had text him, "I'll miss you" he gave me the "oh no" face.

I'm sure all of you have encountered the "oh no" face. It is the face people give you when you've done something they think is stupid, but yet they don't have the heart to make you feel bad about it. Despite the obvious "oh no" face, he told me, hey, don't worry, he's probably just busy, etc. etc. In any case, my anxiety was rising.

But, Mr. Smile never fails to come in on cue. Just as I was reaching the pinnacle of regret for my too nice text, he called me, on my lunch break, and asked to meet me for happy hour. He drove all the way down to my office, and took me out to a great little hotel for drinks. We talked for over two hours, and when we walked to my car, we shared our first official kiss.

Nothing like a sex kitten (pureed rasberries, lemon juice, cranberry juice and vodka) and some sexy kisses to end the week off properly.

Ladies, it was perfect. Sweet and romantic and passionate all at once - the perfect kiss cocktail if you will.

Happy hour indeed.

Words Of Wisdom From The Original Diva

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it may be necessary from time to time to give a stupid or misinformed beholder a black eye. - Miss Piggy

Man II Husband?

Last night at the Boyz II Men concert, we encountered ALL kinds of people. You had the couples (obviously), you had the single men (which the group aptly pointed out were ONLY their to pick up women), you had the young, the old, and of course, the ladies. Young women clearly outnumbered everyone else. These girls were singing, dancing, and some even crying (I kid you not) for the Boyz (two of whom have turned into some somewhat hefty men, I might add).

There was one group in particular, though, that specifically caught me eye. I was standing right by the stage, on the edge of a staircase. Now, anytime anyone tried to stand on the actual stairs, the guards would kindly ask them to leave ("it is a fire hazard... sorry ladies") and everyone would comply. That was until the JAP mafia arrived about half way through the show. They took over the stairs, and didn't take move for an answer. They screamed, they yelled, they took pictures (totally illegal btw - I myself got yelled at for this one - although they didn't), they pushed, they shoved, the angled themselves as close to the stage as possible, and I even heard one tell the other, "I told you we would get a good spot".

I looked at them and thought, my god, these girls are so annoying, and pushy, and aggressive. They must be like, 20, tops. And then I looked at their ring fingers. Each and every one of them had a sparkly, oversized, bling blingin' engagement ring, rivalled only by the ostentatious jewelry worn on stage by Boyz II Men themselves.

And that's when I had a thought: Is that why I'm single? Did these pushy, aggressive, loud, obnoxious girls, steamroll me in my quest to find a man I can marry... the same way that they nearly pushed me out of my prime viewing location at the concert?

When push comes to shove, is being aggressive the way to turn a Man II Husband?

I Went On A Blind Date And All I Got Was A Skinned Knee

Well darlings, I never thought I'd identify with this song, but, it is in fact raining men. Last night I went on a blind date with bachelor number 2: The Dentist. I got set up with The Dentist by an acquaintance, who happens to be his cousin. The past week, we've played phone tag and had a few coy conversations, and last night we had our first official date. Now there is nothing objectively wrong with Mr. Dentist: he is good looking enough, is successful (has his own dental practice), is educated, appreciates contemporary art, and had good taste in restaurants. However, I felt absolutely ZERO chemistry. No spark, no butterflies, no nothing.

In any case, after dinner, we decided to take a walk. As we are walking down Abbott Kinney, admiring the great stores and talking about our vacation preferences, distracted by a ruffly men's shirt (I kid you NOT), I tripped in a pot hole and tumbled to the floor. YES. TUMBLED. Even though I, in his words, "bounced back up like a rubber ball" I was in pain. My wrist hurt. My knee was bleeding all over my Diane Von Furstenburg dress and my pride was left behind in the pot hole. I don't remember the last time I actually hurt myself. I felt like I was 9 again after falling off my bike.

And although he tried to make me feel better, by recounting a story about the time he fell flat on his face and twisted his ankle, I didn't sense that he really cared all that much. He didn't take my hand to rub it (even though I was rubbing my own wrist for about 20 minutes) nor did he run into the restaurant to get me a band aid. We got back in the car, shared a few more jokes, at my expense, and that was that.

I don't think I'll be seeing him again. However, this was a very valuable lesson in that it made me realize even more the spark I had with Mr. Smile...

Two dates in one week = very good basis for comparison ;)

And by the way, in response to my post about the Boyz II Men concert, Mr. Smile called me on Tuesday and I invited him. Unfortunately, he has a biz meeting and can't make it so I'm going with a girlfriend... I did however take the plunge and extend the invitation!

Starbucks Wisdom

So, today I got my usual "it's 3 pm and I might (will!) fall asleep at work" precautionary cup of coffee (short mocha with extra moca and soy milk, just in case you're wondering :) from Starbucks. If you've noticed, Starbucks now puts some very insightful quotes on their cups. Kind of like a caffeine filled fortune cookie, if you will. Well, today they gave me two cups, one inside the other, each of which had a very relevant quote:

Cup one: The outside cup, which was visible said: "The minute you settle for less than you deserve, you end up getting less than you settled for" by Maureen Dowd, a feminist. Great point to remember when dating.

Cup two: The hidden cup, made an equally important observation: "Lips are the gateway to romance" a quote from Michael Buble, a musician.

I think these two quotes, especially together, make a very essential point: You shouldn't settle. Be with the person that fulfills all your objective requirements. But, also, don't discount the value of chemistry and passion. In other words - we deserve it ALL.

Who knew a caffiene fix could be so inspiring?