100 things: 1-10, random facts

A couple of blogs that I frequent (and am now trying to comment on because I have my own blog and feel weird about lurking) are doing the random facts thing. #1-7 are taken straight from the e-dating profile and I swear they are all true, as good as they make me sound. ;)

1. I have lived on 3 different continents

2. I have traveled to 2 other continents

3. I have lived in 5 of the 6 New England states

4. I like dogs AND cats. They both have their pluses and minuses - dogs take more work but want to please you. Cat are independent and can be left alone for a long weekend but don't give a crap if you want some love if they aren't interested at the time.

5. I will watch professional sports voluntarily and enjoy doing so. Mostly baseball and football, but I do enjoy watching soccer and of course the Olympics (although, technically that is amateur sports) every time they come around.

6. I like beer. I am a woman and I like beer. I like "real" beer, too, the kinds with flavor.

7. I like to cook, bake, and clean. The cleaning gets really intense if I am stressed out or need to procrastinate.

8. I loved Dawson's Creek, and I'm not afraid to admit it. I also have friends who loved Dawson's Creek and aren't afraid to admit it. I cried when I watch the final episode.

9. I am a middle child and an Aries. I can usually use these two facts to explain my personality - on one hand I like to please people and am the peace-maker that many middle children are; on the other hand, I am extremely independent and opinionated about some things as fiery-tempered Aries supposedly tend to be.

10. Even though I like being active and like watching sports, I do not consider myself very athletic. I was too awkward during those middle school years when people start really getting in to sports, so I tend towards the walking, sometimes jogging, swimming, gym-type things for exercise, rather than team sports.

An updated run-down

Lest anyone get behind on how the e-dating is going, here is an update to a previous post.

Guy #1: closed

Guy #2: closed

Guy #3: never heard back from connected to my favorite football team match. We both went away for a weekend and he was getting back second and nothing. It reminds me of a guy I very briefly dated in college after getting set up on a blind date. Spring break rolled around, we both went away, and neither of us ever called the other again. We ran in to each other a couple of times and just said hi. He had previously closed the match because we were communicating outside of the website. We'll consider this one closed-ish.

Guy #4, the cook: Really nice guy. Had dinner and went to see a cover band for date #2. He's super busy with work this week but I haven't heard back from an email I sent. I suppose I should call. My sister is rooting for this guy because, and I quote, "He would be a good addition to the family dynamics." I think it is just because he really knows how to cook.

Guy #5, now known as the "right on" guy because he says it so much: Met up for a drink and got ice cream. Seems pretty laid back. We are REALLY good at playing phone tag, but actually talked tonight and are meeting up for a second time next week.

Guy #6 was parenthetical in the previous post because there had been no communication, let alone meeting. This #6 is still for the taking but there are a couple of possibilities (temporary epithets that may be altered if I get to know them): tall guy (as in more than a foot taller than me); Latino guy (my friend's El Salvadorian boyfriend is excited about this one); the guy who likes to fly planes; another physician (see guy #1 from previous post); and the guy whose picture I had to request.

Have I already posted about this whole picture thing? I fully expect to be judged by my pictures when a guy receives our match. I assume that if a guy initiates communication he must think that I am attractive in some sense. I would like the same opportunity to be judgmental if I am paying to use this service. Is it wrong of me to say that?

Closed matches: 283.

For it's one, two, three strikes you're out... *UPDATED*

Oh, well. We are still seven games up. :)

...I mean, six games. :(

Root, root, root for my home team!

From an email forward going around...

The moon slipped into the earth's shadow at 5:52 a.m. in the second total lunar eclipse of 2007. The plunge into darkness was evident at Woods Hole, where a sliver of the moon stood out next to the Nobska Lighthouse.

Baseball fans will remember the lunar eclipse of Oct. 27, 2004 -- when the moon glided through the earth's shadow and turned a prophetic shade of red. It was the night the Red Sox won the Word Series for the first time since 1918.

Tonight, the Red Sox start a three-game series in the Bronx against the Yankees, the reigning division champs that have won the American League East nine straight seasons.

This year, Boston has an eight-game lead. And a lunar eclipse.

...and apparently an excerpt from the Boston Globe.

To be a fly on the wall

Sometimes I think that we should put a video camera in our office at work(/school) and share our funniness with others. A great reality TV show would be a bunch of grad students avoiding work and hanging around talking. I would certainly watch it! The things we say are priceless, as far as I am concerned. We have actually started a quote book.

Today:
After walking in to my office to grab something, Grad Student #1 (GS1) says to GS2: Hello, GS2.
Because GS1 did not say hi to me, I mockingly say: Hello, GS1.
Labmate1 says to me: Why don't you ever say hi to me in a sexxy* voice?
Me: That was a sexxy voice??
Labmate1: Yeah!
Me: Man, labmate, you are easily turned on!

In the past:
After reading snippets from an email forward about what tree you are based on your birthday, Labmate2 wants to know what tree she is.
Me: You are a chestnut. You are a born diplomat, can be irritated easily, sensitive of others feelings, hard worker, sometimes acts superior, etc.
(female) Labmate2: That sounds just like me!
(male) Undergrad labmate, under his breath: Yeah, and you have spiky nuts.

*subtle lyrics trivia

Flourless cookies

Lots of sugar, butter, peanut butter, oats, chocolate chips, raisins. Is your mouth watering yet? Just because they are flourless, does not mean they are good for you. They are good though! As with a lot of the yummy things I make, this came from my sister. The recipe is in the comments.

The cake comes with sprinkles...and ice cream

I do not really know what the subject line means. I will attempt some clever follow-up metaphor to the previous post.

The sprinkles: an email from the ex asking me why I am so angry and a phone message asking me to not be angry, that he thought I would think it was cute. What is cute? That we were matched because you lied??

The ice cream (otherwise known as the silver lining): Guy #5, the advertising analyst, was better in person than on the phone. That is good. He still says "right on" a lot more than your average person though. I have a second date with Guy #4, the *executive* chef, tomorrow night. Dinner and a drink after at the bar nearby where there is live music.

The icing on the cake

I know that there were things about my ex that just didn't work for me. I will also defend our relationship and say that there were lots of good times, the memories of which made me keep thinking maybe it would work itself out. Then there was the long drawn out break up that should have been shorter. The past couple of weeks exemplify so beautifully why it would have never. ever. worked itself out, and although dating is getting old already, it makes me happy that I am out there.

A little over a week ago, I got an email from my ex asking if I wanted to go to the south of France for a week, drink wine, relax, he would buy my ticket, and he was leaving Sunday. I declined and was heading out of town to visit friends anyway. I get a message SATURDAY that he was at the airport calling to say hi before he got on the plane.

Since then, I have received emails from him in different cities throughout Europe, not just the south of France. He said his passport will be full by the time he gets back. A French guy at a cafe in Amsterdam finally made my ex realize I was not the problem, that he was. His friend in Berlin said hi. He took a photograph of me with him on his trip. He was looking at it on the train, and emailed me a picture of the picture of me on the train. Sad. I did not respond to most of the emails.

One email mentioned that he had joined the same online matching service that I had to see if we would get matched up. I figured it would never happen, given the age limits, excluding his race (bad I know, but give me a break), and other very important things I have set up for my profile (like wanting kids or being spiritual). Today it happened. I need to learn profanities in other languages to hurl at the computer next time something like this happens. There are not enough profanities in the English language. His name and town showed up and I thought it could not be. But it was. I was so angry I was shaking and did not even hear what my office mates were saying to me. It got even better. He lied in his profile. We were matched because he lied. I know this because I have known him for four years now! His age. That he never smokes. That he drinks maybe once a week. It says he is Christian, which is how he was raised, but he does not believe in anything spiritual. He kept telling me that he had realized he did want kids, but his profile says 'maybe'. It says that one of his life skills is being a good friend and companion...Maybe for someone other than me. I do not really want to talk about it, as there is nothing really to say. But some of you out there can thank God now. You thought it was really over before, but now it is really, really over.

Oh, yeah. I emailed him to tell him to stop emailing me and that this whole match thing was the icing on the cake. He emailed to ask why I was so angry. He is a true Jacka**.

jnmhmmmtr5vvv (that is from the kitty who is staying with me for a couple of weeks. He wants my hands on him instead of the keyboard, so he just plopped his head right on top of my typing fingers.)

Falling in love and lyrics #6

First of all, I hate coming up with post titles.

Second, something philosophical. I was thinking about love (go figure!). By my count, I have fallen in love four times, two of which I could (have) envision(/ed) being the real thing/the "one". I think it is easier to fall in love than it is to find a soul mate, and maybe this is because I haven't found the one soul mate?

In all of this e-dating, I answer one of the multiple choice questions in this way - I think there are many soul mates for one person. I have heard lots of opinions, thoughts, and feelings on this topic through various avenues. The aspect of the phrase 'soul mates' that I often think about is the assertion that every one person has one soul mate, and then I put this in the context of modern times. The world has become smaller through travel, or so we say. So two hundred years ago, were there fewer people who found their soul mates than there are now because travel and more widespread opportunities were not available as they are now? That is not to say that you can not find a/your one soul mate close to home, but is everyone's soul mate close to home? Has travel made it more or less possible to find a/your one soul mate? Do you overlook the next door neighbor who is your soul mate because you want to go to college, travel, or be on your own for a bit, or rather do you go to college, travel, or be on your own for a bit to find one or more than one other, more suitable soul mates for who you become thanks to modern times?

Third, and still on topic, the lyrics. :) I really had no idea which part of this song to post. Every line has some meaning for me from various situations and relationships, but I'll just give you the line with 'the one'.

Goodbye my lover
Goodbye my friend
You have been the one
You have been the one for me

Subject: Yummy easy summer recipe

My sister was right in her email. This was yummy and easy and a perfect combination of fresh produce! Nothing like garden tomatoes, corn, garlic and basil mixed with tortellini! I think a splash of white wine would have been good or some parmesan. I did not go get fresh corn, but Trader Joe's frozen roasted corn is pretty close. The recipe is in the comments.

The run-down

A friend said to me today, somewhat paraphrased: It is hard enough to meet new people. If you are meeting people for the purpose of looking for a relationship, presumably you plan on sleeping with them someday. This is a good point, because although I don't think, "Gosh, could I sleep with him?", I do think I am looking for a physical attraction when I first meet these guys in person.

Here is the executive summary of my e-dating thus far:

Guy #1, the physician: attractive; good kisser; I wasn't really sure what he wanted; date #2 was a little weird; he did not return my call and instead closed the match.

Guy #2: (see the end of this post) I closed the match, knowing it would definitely NOT work out after we met.

Guy #3, connected to my favorite football team: I think he maybe is too nerdy? I can handle shy/awkward, but I would definitely need him to put in more effort if he is interested. Waiting for him to call. Should I tell him the ball is in his court? I can only handle so much shy/awkward, so I need him to suck it up if he is interested.

Guy #4, the cook (see #2 on this): just got home from meeting guy #4 and he seems like a nice guy - a little quiet, a couple of years younger than me, has a cute dimple when he smiles, likes to hang out and have a couple of beers with his friends. He might be more my speed.

(Guy #5, advertising analyst: he is out of town for work, tentative first meeting next Tuesday.)

(Guy #6? Outdoorsy ecologist type guy who is cute and has a cute dog. Waiting for him to respond to my request to communicate.)

I have 241 closed matches. That is a lot of no-gos!

Lyrics #5

Lyrics story #1 for today:
This one is on the radio right now and I had to post. I very fondly remember an un-named friend blasting out some great "misheard lyrics" in college to this one:

I'll be love suicide
I'll be better when I'm older
I'll be the greatest fan of your life

Misheard as:

I'll be love's supersize
I'll be better when I'm older
I'll be the greatest van in your life

*UPDATE* Lyrics story #2 for today:
I just auditioned for a friend's a Capella group and sang a song that I love. There is one line that really stands out and I hope I keep the words with me when I am married:

40 years go by with someone laying in your bed
40 years of things you say you wish you'd never said
How hard would it have been to say some kinder words instead?
I wonder as I stare up at the sky turning red.

This is a group of early to middle aged women for the most part. I heard a couple of noises when I sang this part.

Things I would have posted about if I had a blog earlier this year, Part 2

1. My adviser got tenure. This is good and bad. I had some plan B's so I wouldn't have to move if she decided to, like being: a cocktail waitress at a strip club, so I could keep my clothes on and still make money; being a personal assistant to a high power executive, so I could have the illusion of leaving my job at the office; being a high school science teacher, so I could make a difference in teenagers lives before they get to college and think they have to be pre-med; beg my old bosses to let me do a couple of years of work in their lab for my dissertation. Looks like I'm sticking with the academic track.

2. The growing list of weddings between this Labor Day weekend and the second weekend in September 2008. 5 so far. I am sure I will write more about these wonderful events. I am very excited and honored to be in one of them!

3. Driving from L.A. (the city, not the state) to Baltimore with a good friend who was relocating. It was great to spend time with her and see lots of land. I would love to take a few weeks and do the drive again someday, but with less stuff in the car. ;)

Spiced Blueberry Muffins

With the fresh picked blueberries from the weekend, I made these muffins. They are great. AND, the recipe is from Self and a bit on the healthy side. They were totally worth typing in the whole recipe to share, but I found a link. :)

And if the link doesn't work, the recipe is in the comments.

Lyrics #4

This is what every summer day should be like:

We were just wasting time
Let the hours roll by
Doing nothing for the fun
A little taste of the good life

This weekend I got it in the form of friends, my godson, blueberry picking, homemade chocolate cake, some fresh Vermont air, kayaking, and homegrown tomatoes.

Tomorrow, it's back to work and e-dating (not necessarily in that order).

Lyrics #3

I heard this on the radio on my way home tonight. I totally reminds me of this guy in college who would happily serenade us with an entertaining rendition from this band upon request (KHC, you'll know who I mean).

Two strangers learn to fall in love again
I get the joy
Of rediscovering you

Anyone, anyone?

Stay tuned

I'm off to meet up with connected-to-my-favorite-football-team match guy. We have been exchanging pretty extensive fairly personal emails during the past week. We're both out of town this weekend and I have stuff planned the beginning of next week so we're fitting each other in tonight. At 9:00. Which is REALLY close to my bedtime (seriously!). The things I do for dates. ;)

Right now, it is him and the guy who has two cats and says, "Right on. Right on." I have not met either of them and only just talked to connected-to-my-favorite-football-team match guy 20 minutes ago, so I don't know his speech quirks yet.

Stay tuned...

***Updated***

Hmmm...I don't know what to say. One more date before I decide? This was not a real date. He is the right amount of nerdiness, something I have realized is probably important given my somewhat nerdy nature. He is also from the midwest and talks. really. slowly. I was already finishing his sentences for him.

It did raise a (not so random) observation about how people present themselves or how they talk about their daily activities. I exercise regularly, and if it comes up in conversation I will say as much. But it is just regular old exercise so that I can feel healthy and maybe live an extra year or two, not really because I am trying to impress people by saying I worked out. Usually I follow saying I work out with the fact that I am a lazy gym-goer who gets bored with all the machines, weights, and people watching after about 55 minutes. I sometimes can't even stay there an hour. People should really consider what it sounds like when they mention, on more than one occasion, that they go to the gym every day. I am not saying that it is inappropriate to mention, just that people should think about what that statement implies and use it carefully.

Important realization

Presumably, if I were in a relationship, I would tell that man I had a blog. He would then want to see the blog, and may even read it. If I meet someone through this whole online thing, this would also apply. Therefore, I must think before writing anything that can come back to bite me in the behind.

Things I would have posted about if I had a blog earlier this year, Part 1

1. I had my thyroid removed. The whole thing. I have the (fading) scar to prove it.

2. My ex and I broke up over the course of 4-ish months after 3+ years. We should have had a cleaner break.

3. On a lighter note, this past April was the third time my niece and shared our birthday!

The choices, the choices

A sampling of the things people put in their profiles:

1. One guy said that he didn't like how image conscious New Englanders are and that he really wished people would get to know others before they judge them. He then went on to say he was looking for someone who is beautiful on the outside...and on the inside. And that is the order in which he wrote it. Match closed.

2. One guy says he is most passionate about food. His (presumably) Italian grandmother got to him early and taught him how to make gnocchi at age seven. Match still open.

While I'm at it...Lyrics #2

For anyone who is reading and wants more to read. Here are more lyrics. I guess this is one that jumped out at me from my iPod because it makes you think a bit.

Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose

I didn't give you much to go on, so good luck!

I love my freckles!

I have a freckle on my pointer finger! I have some faint freckles on the backs of my hands but this is a nice little dark freckle. I love my freckles. When I go to the beach, as I did today, I get lots of temporary freckles that usually fade within a day or two, leaving my background level of freckles (which is higher in the summer than in the winter anyway). This one is certainly new, and I hope it stays for a bit!

I always get ahead of myself.

Yesterday I did not get any matches. This was concerning because I think it was the first time, except when I have actually turned matching off, that I did not get a single one. Today, though, I got several. And some fun ones too! One whose job is connected to my very favorite football team; one who is a professional chef; one who is a designer for exhibits. I hope that I am being sufficiently vague for people to never come across this blog and know I wrote about them. Just to reiterate, I already have mentioned that I have no shame and share details about "e-dating" (as my roommate now calls it!) with anyone who will listen though. The one who is connected to my very favorite football team though - I think my Dad would just love him from the beginning because of that.

I am trying not to get ahead of myself though. Case in point - there was one match waaaaayyyy in the beginning who seemed ideal. He closed the match after some communication citing that he has too much happening in his life at the moment. Suuure. The thing is, I had talked about him so much, without even knowing him, that a friend who recently got a new job asks me about him every time she stops by! I have to tell her not to go there and then fill her in on any other recent e-dating escapades. I have already mentioned the connected-to-my-favorite-football-team match to my sister though. So much for not getting ahead of myself...

OOoo...Gotta go, I have a recent communication from the connected-to-my-favorite-football-team match...

Fun with lyrics!

We have been listening to some great music at work lately. And by great, I mean completely random, but fun and memory-provoking. I've decided to post a little lyrics trivia because as the songs come on, I'm amazed at how many words I remember from them. I will probably start posting random lyrics as a song catches my attention. See if you know the artist and song title! I will post the answer as a comment, so you are the only one who will know if you got it.

I distinctly remember singing this song at the top of my lungs when I was little. I'm sure my Mom thought it was hilarious. I was just listening to it on a cassette tape.

Say my name
Sun shines through the rain
A whole life so lonely
And then you come and ease the pain

Living vicariously

I'm still relatively new to the whole use-the-internet-to-find-a-partner thing. It's interesting, entertaining, and time consuming if you want it to be. I have definitely specified things I do and do not want in a partner that I never before thought mattered...and maybe they only matter because there is a specific demographic using the internet to find people to date. These are preferences that I have changed only after specific communications of experiences with the whole online thing. There are different guys - the ones who come across as a tad bit too eager, the ones who I think would be great to date if I only I had received the match a little earlier so they weren't already "pursuing a match", the ones who apparently don't tell their friends that they are using an internet dating service. Me. I'm not ashamed. Ask, and I am MORE than happy to tell you all about it and show you my profile. :) One friend said to me, and I quote, "I don't know why you would need to use an online dating service. It's not like there is anything wrong with you!" Ummm...thanks?

Every day, my matches can provide a little procrastination and entertainment for all of my friends at work who are already in committed relationships. "Oh, where's he from?" "His dog is reeaaalllly cute." "He could be alright, just like the guy in 'Knocked Up'." "Yeah, close that match." One (male) officemate said he was going to set up profiles just to mess with me, but other (female) officemates think it's great that they can live vicariously through me and my dating stories. There's a part of me that loves telling them and thinks that this is what a lot of young adults do (dating, not necessarily using the internet to do so ), and being that I have never "just dated" much, it's a good experience. Then there is the part of me living vicariously through my office mate and looking over her shoulder to see what part of her wedding she is planning now.

Then there are the novel dating situations I have rarely, if ever, found myself in (due to the lack of "just dating" experience mentioned above). Even though you've talked with someone for a couple of hours on the phone and met and walked around talking for a couple more hours, if they give you the perfect opening to say you don't think it will work, do you just say: "No."? Or do you soften it up a little? "No, I'm not really interested in seeing you again, but thanks for asking." "Even though it was nice to meet you and we had some good conversation, there's just something that makes me think it won't work. Good luck!" Do you do it the old fashioned way and call him and say no thanks, or take the modern out, send a message back, and close the match?

Stay tuned...