Issues Abound
I had another date with Giggles last night; I fear her days may now be numbered. I picked her up from work around 7:00 and we went to grab a bite to eat. I suggested sushi as the fare of choice for the night and she enthusiastically agreed. I’m thinking about making sushi one of my shallower dating criteria. I want to end up with someone who is willing to try new things and is adventurous with food; I feel that sushi is a good test of these qualities.
Dinner was going well until about halfway through when this little conversation took place:
G: “There’s something I have to tell you.”
DF:
Nothing good has ever followed those words. I braced myself for whatever she was about to bestow upon me. “Ok…”
G: “I was pretty nervous when we got together the other night and the reason is that I just got out of a major relationship a few months ago.”
DF:
Hmm, that would explain why she was acting so standoffish the other night. Perhaps this could be a good thing; after all, it will mean taking things really slow and that’s what I’m looking for. I mean, the last thing I want right now is a relationship. “That’s ok; I actually just got out of a relationship myself not too long ago.”
G: “How long did it last?”
DF: “About a year and a half. Yours?”
Crap, things were going sour rapidly. The last thing we should be talking about on a date is our past relationships. My mind started racing with possible alternative subjects to interject into the conversation.
G: “Four years.”
DF:
Four years isn’t so bad, I mean, it’s not like she just got divorced or anything. “Well, there’s no sense in trying to put pressure on what’s going on here. We’ll just take things easy and whatever happens, happens.”
G: “There’s something else…”
DF:
Oh, Christ. “What’s that?”
G: “We were engaged to be married.”
DF:
Fantastic! Now things were really going to hell in a hand basket! “I’m sorry to hear that…”
G: “Yeah, it’s actually one of the main reasons I moved back here.” (she’d moved back into town about 2 months ago)
DF: “So, uh, do you have any pets?”
G: “I used to have a dog, but Andrew kept him.”
DF:
Oh, his name’s Andrew. That’s good to know; perhaps you have some pictures you can show me so I can put a face to the name? I’d really like to solidify this whole experience. Check please! “That’s too bad…um, read any good books lately?”
Once we got off that subject, the rest of dinner was actually quite enjoyable. After eating, I suggested we go play a little miniature golf since neither of us could remember the last time we actually did so. This, unfortunately, led to another minor setback.
Because she hadn’t planned on hitting the links, she deemed her chosen footwear for the evening inappropriate and asked if it would be ok if we stopped off somewhere and picked up a pair of flip-flops. Not a problem, and conveniently enough, there happened to be a Wal-Mart across the parking lot from the restaurant. Once inside the store, it took us a couple minutes to find the flip-flop section, but after doing so, we were greeted with a very wide assortment of styles and colors. I figured we would just grab the first acceptable pair and be on our way. Wrong. It was then that I began to worry that Giggles might be a tad high maintenance. For the life of her, she could not find a style that she liked. Allow me, now, to share my interpretation of the situation; we’re in the market for a two-dollar pair of flip-flops that will be worn on a miniature golf course and then likely discarded at the end of the night—there was no need to spend 15 minutes trying to find the perfect pair of sandals. I found myself starting to get mildly annoyed. Fortunately, she soon picked up a tolerable pair of flip-flops and we were able to move forward with the evening.
On the course, things went extremely well. As with any good natured game of golf, there had to be something at stake, so we agreed that the loser would buy the winner ice cream. There was plenty of playful banter as we putted our way along and a good time was had by all. In the end, I had her beat by a few strokes and so to me went the spoils. Unfortunately, all of the providers of spoils were closed by then, so I had to take a rain check on dessert.
I drove her back to her car and we stood outside for a good 20 minutes or so, talking. Most of the time were standing there, the only thoughts running through my head were of dinner and her relationship and how it was going to affect the end of the night and the rest of my time with Giggles.
What’s really bothering me is that I actually had a great time with her. I find her very attractive and every time we hang out, we become a lot more comfortable with each other. She’s an interesting girl who’s had a lot of life experience and provides unique viewpoints. Of course, the logical side of me is telling me to get the hell out while I still can; there is probably a lot more baggage here than I care to deal with.
Ironically, I just received a call from Giggles. She told me that she is making some chocolate cookies tonight and wanted me to come over and help. Unfortunately, I have a date with Carrie tonight, so it looks as though I will have to satisfy my sweet tooth another time.
