Single and 31 -- A Halloween Tale
So, on Saturday night, I originally had three different events to attend. One volunteer event and two parties -- that's quite a bit of planned activity with others for me. So, of course, it didn't happen. One of the parties ended up being cancelled a few days before, but I was still looking forward to the evening's events.
I work with the Mount Vernon Citizens Advisory Council and try to assist with their events when possible. (They basically serve as an information group for citizens in my district and a morale/support group for the Mount Vernon police station.) So, the group decided to serve spaghetti dinners on Saturday night.
It seems that the Saturday night before Halloween is the number one night for drunk driving. (Many people think it's New Year's Eve, but that's not true according to my police friends.) They decided to add to the fun by doing a costume contest at each meal serving. So, I made spaghetti and meatballs and trooped over there on about 7 p.m.
I arrive to find no one else had really dressed up much. All the other adults were dressed up as things like "Red Sox fan" and a terrorist (who looks like anyone with a coat and shoes on and a backpack). I however wore my wench outfit. This full costume consists of a linen blouse, full floor length skirt and a bustier/corset. I wear it to the Renaissance Faire each year in Maryland. It cost over $150 -- believe me, it's nice. I've got two silver pins -- one says "Goddess" and the other says "Yes, they are nice." I also have a wreath of flowers to wear in my hair. I wore it loose and kept "the girls" fairly under wraps since it was the police department.
I stayed a little over a hour and didn't even see the officers. There was definitely some communication issues about eating time. I have no idea if they even did the contest. I was a bit embarrassed because no one else had gone overboard like me in their dressing up. Of course, I'm also the youngest volunteer at this event(at least who was an adult -- there were a few kids under 10 years old). So, I stood out anyway and then I started thinking does this make me seem desperate. That I would dress up for the officers and put such an effort into it -- was someone going to think I was on the make? Crap. Thank God, my friend Rose called and said she was ready and on her way to my place, so I made my excuses and left.
Next, Rose picks me up at my place and we race off to pick up Anne. We're attending a party at a co-worker's condo in Virginia. I was excited about the party. This guy, Jack, is really cool, interesting and fun to talk with. His girlfriend even wrote a book, published earlier this year, on hosting the perfect party.
We went all out in our costumes. Rose dressed as Wonder Woman -- complete with 3 inch red high-heeled boots. Holly and I were both wenches and laced in so tight we could barely breath. The "girls" were as much on display as possible without being obscene.
So, you would think it would be great. I had heard of all the past fun. I convinced Rose to come because she got dumped last weekend and I thought it would cheer her up and convince her there are good ones left.
Wrong. It wasn't horrible, but we definitely thought it was a bit strange. The decorations were great and the set-up/layout of the parties was great, but the guest list appeared to be the problem.
First, there were three single women and one single guy. The guy was a huge, pompous Congressional staffer who thought he was a "big shot." The rest were all married - one even brought her 18 day old baby.
Second, there was no music -- none. They put on the Amityville Horror movie, but not very loud.
Third, the food was not hearty enough. Even if it is Halloween, you need to have something that is substantial just for the amount of alcohol being served. Not just candy.
Fourth, because it's a condo, we got a noise complaint from security. I assure you -- my house with me and 2 girlfriends in it was louder than that party.
So, by midnight, we were ready to go. But, how to exit gracefully? We basically said we had to go check out the other party, which would have been true if it was still happening. But, we had to get out of there.
The thing is if you have a party and you invite single people at all, you need to try to invite enough of them that there is someone for everyone to talk to. I felt really bad about Rose as this was her first foray back into the social scene as a single woman. Maybe we shouldn't have been invited. All of these people were Jack's girlfriend's friends from college and really knew each other. We were the only newcomers and maybe they just weren't prepared for how it changes the dynamic in the room.
Anyway, I may have looked good, but it really didn't give me an opportunity to meet anyone new. I was hoping...
Tagged By Tara
Well, I've been tagged - isn't that strange.
Tagged by
Tara. So, her questions:
What are your turn-ons and turn-offs (non-sexual)?
Turn-ons 1. Friendliness
2. Curiosity
3. Flowers
4. Mangos (smell of)
5. A good book
6. Goat cheese (to eat)
Turn-offs 1. Narrow-mindedness
2. Ignorance
3. Stupidity
4. Cruelness
5. Idiots who don't use their turn signals
6. Rare meat (I like it well-done)
7. Blood
So, who to tag? How about Peanut Queen and Magpie?
Magpie - Glad you found me...
Jury Duty - Waste of Time
Have you ever been called for jury duty? I got a formal summons to appear for jury duty this week and next. They are two week terms in my county.
So how does it work? Well, I was placed in the 200 block of Tuesday group and had to call in the night before after 5 p.m. to find out if my block was called. Then, I had to drive to the county courthouse the next morning by 8:15 a.m. From there, I find the jury selection room, hang out, and wait to be questioned and possibly placed on a jury. Sounds pretty straightforward, right?
I actually was looking forward to it. Being a part of our judicial system -- learning how it all works. Watching the wheels of justice turn up close and personal. I have no problem with being on a jury. I even thought I would be a great asset. I do believe in capital punishment, but I do think it's applied unevenly in this country and that it's sad that we are the last civilized country using the death penalty. I am torn over the issue and therefore malleable to either side. I am single, but I have nieces/nephews. I worked extensively with minorities in higher education and wrote my master's thesis on a minority issue. I'm a critical thinker who believes that people, including the police and district attorneys, are not infallible. However, I also believe that most of the time the police are doing their jobs to the best of their ability. I think I would make a great member of the jury.
The night before, I swung through the library and picked up some books to read, just in case it was slow. And there seems to be a great deal of truth to the saying "the wheels of justice turn slowly." The entire day was slow.
I spent over an hour on the road, just trying to get there. About 20 minutes of the delay was due to traffic -- there was an accident on the Beltway. However, the other 20 minutes of delay was because I got horribly lost and had to stop at a gas station to ask for help. I had to turn around 3 times before I finally found the place.
Then, I arrive to find out that it really didn't matter. Yes, they say to be there at 8:15 a.m., but they don't even start calling the first jury pool until 9:30 a.m. So, I ate my yogurt and read my paper. I had to wear a pink badge identifying myself as a jury member. About 9:40 a.m. I got picked to be a part of a pool. I march up to the 5th floor with about 20 other people. And we sit and we sit. A sheriff's deputy pops his head out and tells the first case was plea bargained and they had another one to look at. About 10:40 a.m., we are told to go back downstairs to the selection room because the second case was also plea bargained.
So, we all go back downstairs. We end up being told just to sit and wait. About 12:30 p.m., they announce there is nothing left on the docket, so we can go.
So, what did I learn about Jury Duty? Not much. It's a lot of waiting for little or no return. I might have to go back next week. I have to call on Monday night. I'll let you all know if I get selected.
Monster Titles - Find out Yours
Alright.... stole this from the Peanut Queen.
Check it out. If you want one, just click on a image and it'll connect you.
Since I don't use my real name on this site, I thought I'd stick with my on-line persona - Corona Red Roses.
So, it looks like I kidnap old people and orphans, and drifters. Interesting that as a very pale redhead off-line, I am still from a sunless enchanted sanctuary on-line. Oh, it would be nice to have some color.
History of Violence - Quick Movie Review
Just wanted to let everyone know just in case they are interested...History of Violence with Viggo Mortenson - horrible, horrible movie.
I was thinking it was going to be sorta like Pulp Fiction or with something of a storyline. Viggo's hot - so a point for that. Could have been good, even great.
Instead, it was just violent - with pointless nudity and sex. If you saw the preview, you saw the movie -- nothing additional is really added to the storyline.
I will just say that it was one of the worst movies I've seen in years.
So, please save yourself - don't go!
Dating -- Why I Hate Being on the Market
I know all I've been writing about lately is dating, but to tell you the truth, I haven't really gone on any dates yet.
The ex and I went out for dinner last week. We had a nice time, but it is easy to see why we were never right for each other.
As far as the Internet Dating goes, it isn't going well. I had one guy, Art, who seemed interested. He e-mailed me like 4 times in one day, but we've not been able to go out and it's been over a week since we talked about. So, what's the problem?
Well, Art called me the first weekend and we played phone talk for two days. Finally, we end up talking for like 30 minutes on Sunday afternoon. I thought we came to a mutual agreement to go out the next weekend. However, he didn't call me until Thursday night at 11 p.m. I don't answer my phone after 10 p.m. unless it's an emergency. So, I call him back early on Friday evening. I basically didn't want to spend forever on the phone, so I said I was going over to a friend's house in a bit. He proceeds to hurry me off the phone, briskly saying he will call me back. He was rather short with me.
Saturday, I got sick and didn't answer my phone all weekend. I e-mail him Monday and then called him Tuesday night. Well, he thought I blew him off. He only took the free 3 day trial on Match.com, so he didn't get the e-mail. I tell him I am driving to a date and wanted to set something up this weekend. He immediately starts stammering about why don't I call him back if I still want to go out with him after I have this date (technically it was just dinner with the ex, but I was trying to appear busy). I explicitly said, I'd like to set something up with you for this weekend. He obviously wasn't listening. By the end of the conversation, I was frankly annoyed. It's like he was being so accommodating that it was manipulative. It's like he wants me to want to go out with him so much that I am going to keep calling and basically beg him. I didn't like the feeling. So, I think I'm just going to tell him I've met someone.
I am just not feeling like dealing with this.
I even started this blog about this whole dating thing last Wednesday and just couldn't finish it.
I haven't been on Match in over a week. Right now, I am kinda liking the "being alone" thing. I've been busy. I just can't get excited about meeting someone right now.
I'll keep you posted.
