This is a long overdue post. If you recall the deja vu post from last month you'll remember this particular date was postponed. Well we went out a few days later (actually a couple weeks ago) and this is how it turned out.
After one drink we decide to check out a local street festival in the neighborhood. And it was awkward! It is difficult trying to maneuver through a super crowded street festival when you don't know someone well enough to grab their hand. It is uncomfortable trying to figure out who should take the lead and create a path in the crowd, especially when you can't hear. Sam is probably a good eight inches taller than me and that somehow made it a bit more awkward. Despite the awkward navigation Sam managed to accomplish one goal: he got meat on a stick. Street meat. Everything is better on a stick. Awesome!
After the street meat success it started raining. And this was my internal dialogue when the sky started spitting:
- Crap. My hair.
- I'm glad I wasted 30 minutes straightening my hair for this date. Awesome.
- Betti, you are not made of sugar. You won't melt. I can't believe I'm quoting my 7th grade camp counselor right now. Who gives a shit about my hair.
We continued through the street festival in the rain, passed a glaucoma testing van (this matters later) and finally broke free. The date had only been about 55 minutes at this point so we decide to grab one more beer byt couldn't decide where to go so we wrnt to Target. Yes, Target.
We decide it would be a great idea to go to Target and dare each other to do things. Mind you I now look like a drowned rat and I am a little bit sweaty (because I tend to get a little sweaty when it rains). Once in Target I dare Sam to ask the pharmacist what glaucoma is (we had been curious since we passed the van.) He walked right up to the woman and started with a little small talk and then very casually asked what glaucoma was. It was smooth and impressive. I stood by his side while he asked trying not to laugh. Then it was my turn.
Sam walks down one aisle then the next and ends up in the pet section. He points to a 25 lb bag of kitty litter and dares me to ask an employee if it would clean up the basement when my nephews pee on the floor. So I take a deep breath, grab the 25 lb and walk up to the nearest Target employee.
I go into this long explanation about how my nephews are very similar to excitable pomeranians and pee all over my basement floor every time they come to my house. (Side note: I am not an aunt. I have one sister who is also single and I swear my mother thinks she will never be a grandmother at the rate we're going.) I keep talking, spinning tales, wondering why this dude isn't looking at my like I'm nuts. Turns out - he's totally into it! He goes into all of the different unconventional uses for kitty litter. Apparently it is a very effective vomit picker-upper.
After I finished talking to the surprisingly knowledgeable Target employee I turned around to find that Sam was no longer standing behind me. I walked a few feet and found him doubled over in laughter hiding in a nearby aisle. He laughed while I put the kitty litter back on the shelf and told me he was impressed as he walked toward the exit. I had fun and thought we may do another dare but I guess one was it.
We walked out of the store and got to the corner where there was a metro and a bus line. I had that weird, uncomfortable are we done with the date moment. Then, when it was apparent the date was over, he went to give me a hug. So, something about me, I do not like hugging people, especially people I don't know well. (And don't even get me started on the obligatory hug-greeting.) So, he goes in for the hug and I gave him this uncomfortable half-hug because I felt weird and I was still kind of sweaty. After the hug he told me to give him a call if I was around. Um, dude I live here and you live less than a mile away, we'll probably be "around" quite often.
Despite my two awkward geek attacks, the lackluster exit and the mild sweat issue I had a really nice time with Sam. I would definitely like to see him again to see if there is some chemistry. Not sure if he was even mildly interested in me, I suppose only time will tell. But if there is anything I learned from this one it is that I need to work on my exits. And, maybe, just maybe, I am going to have to learn to hug people. Is it possible churning will make this New England ice queen a touchy-feely person? I doubt it but with churning, anything is possible.
Who paid: My friends have been asking me to update the blog with who pays on my churning dates so I will be adding that at the bottom of the post. For the record, Sam picked up the tab.
