Date 72 - Ringing In the New Year

The New Year -- It wasn't with a bang. More like a whimper.

I feel like I've known D for ages. We connected online and developed a sort of friendship. He lives in Houston. I like knowing that he was out there and rooting for me. We'd talked about meeting for ages, but with his travel schedule and mine it just never seemed to happen, and frankly, wasn't that much of a priority for me.

D decided for us though. No time like the present. He booked a room at the Omni downtown and alerted his college friends in town that he'd be visiting.

It was high alert. Although I was stoked about meeting him, I was dreading it too. I wasn't on my A-game...and truth be told, I liked this guy!

I'd been sick for weeks with some viral / bronchial / cedar fever nonsense, and still wasn't completely well. But more importantly, my head wasn't in the game... I was focused on the house. Baseboards... flooring... paint...

I was relishing my time away from the office. Almost two whole weeks over Christmas and New Years. I didn't check email once... although I did occasionally experience anxiety over what nightmares would await my return. The "unplugging" was really good for me. I focused on making a serious dent in the remodeling projects -- and although I didn't get as far as I would have liked, major progress was made, and I felt like I was finally regaining momentum. It had been more than a week since I'd worn normal clothes or makeup.

This date seemed like a disruption.
A distraction.

And I just felt weird meeting this guy that I actually knew. It wasn't like it was a blind date... and yet it was. And somehow he convinced me to give up prime time - New Years Eve!

I spent most of the day running errands and trying to expunge physical evidence of my manual labor. I scrubbed as much paint off my hands as humanly possible and then splurged on a manicure. I went shopping for a new outfit and ultimately wore something that I already had. I slapped on some makeup and got my hair did and hightailed it downtown to the hotel to get him for dinner.

I walked into the lobby and there he was. *sigh*
He looked great. ... and he's my perfect height too... I felt positively girlish as we walked a few blocks down to Carmelo's for dinner.

The guy had it together. He'd been through finishing school... all subtle but noticeable and lovely manners. For instance, he took the curbside as we walked... had his hand on the small of my back when we were on unstable ground... opened the doors...

Dinner was delish, but it was obvious that he didn't feel well. I worried for a moment that it just wasn't working out, but then my empathy kicked in. I'd been sick for weeks and remembered how bad it was while I was still at work and felt like hell but didn't "look sick". I felt his forehead and he was burning up. We had planned to go to Antone's or another venue later, but I gave him a free pass. He needed to rest, and although cancelling our plans seemed lame, I certainly wasn't going out solo on a major holiday (although, you never know who you might smooch).

I walked him back to the hotel. We held hands. I gave him a hug goodnight (germs, you know...can't be too careful).

He insisted that we have brunch the next day before he drove back to Houston.
I appreciated the sentiment, but this seemed like even more of a pain in the ass. Now I'd lose two days on the house projects instead of one. It was New Year's Eve and I was home by 10:30. At least I'd get a decent night's sleep.

We went to Chez Zee for brunch the next day and had some of the most horrendous service ever. Evidently our order never got put in. Brunch would up lasting about 3 1/2 hours. Although we've always had great conversations, at that point even your fantasy dinner party with all the dead famous people would be flagging.

Finally, I bid him adieu.
We still chat, but I think some of the mystique is gone. At least for him.
I'm no longer his fantasy girl next door online... now I inhabit the real world.