New Kid On The Block
November 11th, 2009
Okay. I have never moved anywhere by myself before. I moved to Portland, Oregon with my high school best friend, Amanda. After a falling out, I moved to Kellogg, Idaho to be with a boyfriend. Then it was off to Denver to live with my sister and down to Colorado Springs to live with a boyfriend again. After a couple of years of boomeranging, I finally settled in Seattle because of – the boyfriend (surprise!).
Come to think of it, I’ve never been on vacation by myself. Or been to a bar where I didn’t know anyone. I’ve only been to a movie alone once – which, btw, I could hardly stand because I was watching Lars and the Real Girl and ended up crying like a baby because Ryan Gosling had gained all that weight and no longer looked like Noah Calhoun.
I really haven’t done a lot of adventuresome things as a single adult woman. I’ve played it safe. I’m just a talker. Or as my friend Teresa says, “all talk.” But I am trying to break the mold and become less dependent on the safety net of friends that I’ve created. Really. In order to get out of my comfort zone I live on a rural island, for pete’s sake.
So 30 days into it and I am starting to get a bit lonely. When you don’t have the distractions of the city, you have a lot more time to reflect on your life and how you want it to be. And sitting at home reading self-help books while sipping on a hot toddy because I don’t know anyone here is not exactly how I want it to be.
Oh God. Listen to me. Now I am really starting to sound like a Bridget Jones movie. All of the sudden I feel like I am going to a new high school but without the benefit of getting to see the same people everyday. I am the new kid on the block. Except here, the blocks generally have ONE HOUSE on them.
What are my options as an adult to meet new people? Knitting circle? Farmer’s market? Square dance? Barn raising? I know, I know – I am stereotyping here. But where am I going to meet men? The library? Singles night at Thriftway Market? Ladies night at the Red Bicycle Bistro the sushi/burger/fish and chips/nightclub? This is all so confounding.
Case in point – the other day Paige and I were at Perry’s Vashon Burger and an adorable man walks and the door, looks at me and says, “You should smile.” And I do. And he says, “That’s much better.” And I keep grinning, because I am an ass. But what else can I do? Slip him my number and mortify my teenager? Tell him I’ll see him at the hoe down?
And really, is this a joke? Do all the cute single men hang out at the burger joint? Though it kinda makes sense somehow – really? A burger joint that doesn’t serve beer? This must be some version of hell. There’s only so many burgers that this girl can eat. And I shouldn’t be eating any of them.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 11th, 2009 at 2:00 am and is filed under Daily, Dating. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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