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FeedPeeking Back into the Dating World
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Well, hello there! Long time no see. Yes, I know, it is all my fault but a girl’s gotta take a break once in awhile, as I’m sure you, my hopefully still adoring fans, understand.
In my last post I promised that my life was going to be boring and you all wouldn’t be missing much. Boy, was I wrong.
In the past month or so I’ve traveled all around the Western USA, gone on multiple dates, gotten food poisoning twice and even started dating someone regularly. The first three may come as no surprise but the last one shocks even me.
But here I am getting ahead of myself. Let’s go back to the beginning.
Last we chatted (OK, I wrote, you read, but I like to think we can have a dialogue, if only in the comments section), I was still laying on my couch, depressed over my foray into the world of emotionally attached sex and masturbating to keep myself occupied.
That pretty much sums up September and October. They were depressing months spent interacting with only close friends and not daring to branch out to make others, especially of the romantic variety.
However, November brought renewed vitality to my life with NaNoWriMo, a trip to my hometown for our annual rodeo, another Las Vegas raucous adventure and a decision that I was ready to give real dating—you know, the kind with actual dates not just sex—a try.
If only I had known what I was about to get myself into.
I blame my grandparent’s. This November, they celebrated their 85th and 90th birthdays and are still in love, after 60-plus years of marriage. They hold hands, take care of each other and still kiss every night before going to sleep.
They didn’t inspire me to go out and get married by any means but looking at them surrounded by love and family made me realize that allowing myself to be a little more vulnerable may be worth it.
To be fair, it’s not all my grandparents’ fault. Who I should really blame are all the wonderful restaurateurs in Portland that make me want to go out on romantic dates to try their dishes. Or maybe it’s the homeowners in my neighborhood with their fall leaves and twinkle lights.
Whomever is to blame, around Halloween I started feeling romantic and having a desire to cuddle by fires and drink mulled wine. With renewed enthusiasm and confidence, I revamped my online dating profiles, this time with the intention to attract both one night stands and potential repeat offenders. I was ready to peek out into the world of dating and, with encouragement and help from Token Straight Guy, I implemented a plan to put myself out there, in every sense of the word.
Then I got food poisoning.
Twice.
My friends think that I should be more careful about who I eat but I like to think it was a matter of fate. Had I not been stuck in bed for days at a time, I wouldn’t have spent hours on my phone using my OKCupid App to email potential dates. And had I not spent hours emailing potential dates, I would never have come up with my idea for the Twelve Dates of Christmas.
And had I not been determined to go on twelve dates before Christmas, I would never have met the wonderful, fabulous and sexy D.E.
To be continued ...
Blogger Bio: Queerie Bradshaw loves food, social justice and sex. Born a farmer's daughter, she believes everyone deserves a good roll in the hay, and feels empowered by her feminine sexuality. She frequently travels both domestically and abroad, exploring women and wine from all regions. Now a law student who dances burlesque on the side, she fights for international rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of good porn. You can visit her website at QueerieBradshaw.com, follow her on Twitter (twitter.com/QueerieBradshaw) and friend her on Facebook.
Photo by: J. Robert William
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Reader Comments:
Good for you on two counts: the dating and the dinner dating. What's with coffee dates anyways?
I don't drink coffee, so I'm with you on avoiding that, but tea dates or other drink only dates require less of a commitment than dinner, so they tend to work for strangers/random people met online/at a bar. But you're right, dinner dates are a heck of a lot nicer if the person is good company.
Indeed, less commitment. Beverages don't require any paperwork and hardly any time. However, meeting people and food are fun for me, so I generally feel fearless in dinner and conversation. By the time I've emailed an online date several times I can tell if she knows how to make, like, sentences and what have you. I figure like this: I'm going to eat anyways, and if she's a drag at least I will have a good meal. Anything less feels like I'm being interviewed. . .don't like that.
And here I go, logging onto dating sites after I put myself on hiatus. Many thanks!
not overlooked, on food-poisoning: "My friends think that I should be more careful about who I eat. . ."Nice!
I love commitment. My partner and I have had our relationship in the closet until recently. We're very happy!