My Match Adventure

My Nana married a man she met online. My best friend is engaged to man she met on eHarmony (I think?). Although a marriage proposal is not even remotely close to what I'm looking for these days, I decided to give online dating a try when I saw a promotion on match.com. If nothing else, it might let me try a few new bars or restaurants in the area and maybe I'll meet a few friends since I'm still new to the area.

It started out as a source of entertainment every Sunday. I didn't take it seriously and it was fine by me if it didn't result in any dates. My girlfriends and I would lay around one of our apartments every Sunday afternoon, laughing hysterically at all the amusing profiles out there. Some people just don't have "the moves". I got a few e-mails, which made us laugh even more. I know I have grammatical errors and spelling errors on this blog plenty but these e-mails were on a whole new level. Big turn off. Pass. One guy just said "hey." Eh, sorry. Thanks for playing. Try again.

I was on the phone with my sister one day when I got another match e-mail. My eyes caught the word ninja and I started reading the e-mail out loud to her thinking it would be the epitome of weird pickup attempts. We were nearly in tears by the end of reading his profile, not because he was so weird but because he was straight up hilarious.

I slept on it, showed my friends, and decided to actually write him back. After a few rounds of e-mails, he asked when I was free for drinks...wait...you mean I'd actually have to go on a date with someone? A total stranger? Uhhh...that sounded awful. He could stand me up or be awkward or rude or clingy. And I'm enjoying being single anyway so really, what's the point? But my friends convinced me it might not be that bad and worse comes to worse, we have another funny story to share over dinner. Since funny guy stories are our specialty, I took one for the team.

I survived and didn't hate it. I've only gone on a few official dates and I throw all rules out the window. I forget what topics to stick to, I don't have any "moves" and I just am myself. I definitely had a few blonde comments and talked about an ex briefly but whatever, I was me. We laughed, he bought me a beer and it really wasn't that awkward. It could have been much worse. Whew, ripping the band-aid off didn't hurt as bad as I thought.

No idea if we'll talk again, which is fine by me. He's a cool guy but I'm not trying to date seriously. I'm just glad it wasn't a God-awful horror story. My membership ends next week and I will not be paying money to renew it. I will stick to the traditional ways of bar hopping with girlfriends for potentially cheaper results.

I may or may not have a date tonight...

"I apologize to you if I don't seem real eager to jump into a forced awkward intimate situation that people like to call dating. I don't like the feeling. You're sitting there, you're wondering do I have food on my face, am I eating, am I talking too much, are they talking enough, am I interested I'm not really interested, should I play like I'm interested but I'm not that interested but I think she might be interested but do I want to be interested but now she's not interested? So all of the sudden I'm starting to get interested. And when am I supposed to kiss her? Do I have to wait for the door cause then it's awkward. Do you do like that ass-out hug? Where you like, you hug each other like this and your ass sticks out cause you're trying not to get too close or do you just go right in and kiss them on the lips or don't kiss them at all? It's very difficult trying to read the situation. And all the while you're just really wondering are we gonna get hopped up enough to make some bad decisions? Perhaps play a little game called "just the tip". Just for a second, just to see how it feels." -- Wedding Crashers


Yup, that pretty much sums it up.

You know you're reading a good book when...

...you're reading it as you wait for your macaroni noodles to cook and then when they're ready you're so distracted by what's happening in the story you dump them down the sink rather than the strainer. Yup. Definitely just did that. Wasted a whole box of mac & cheese. Good thing I just happened to have another box waiting for me.

Hobbies and careers

I like to work. I do it as often as possible, and right now that's hardly enough. And yes, that's with two jobs. I've seen a lot of people buy a camera and turn themselves into a business. Suddenly they're booking engagement shoots, weddings, babies etc. and actually making decent money while having lots of fun. Then there are sites like Etsy that lets people who are crafty turn their hobby into a business. I've seen graphic designers begin to freelance. I want to learn something, become good and turn it into a side business. Nothing too pushy but something that lets me be creative, maybe work with my hands at home on my own schedule, and that people enjoy.

If I'm starting from scratch, what should I do? What do I want to do? What would I be good at? Especially with the restaurant at a lull, I need something else to fill my time and bank account. Any and all ideas are more than welcome!

Not what I expected

This weekend has been full of "not what I expected-s". I made it through the week last week without Dunkin Donuts. I don't know how I managed considering the temps were near 100 and I couldn't stop sweating but I made it. I had some less productive days as a result but whatever, I saved money and Miss Faith owes me a gift card!

It was payday and I realized I had about $17.40 left over after all my bills were covered for the month. Super cool. It's time to get some money out of savings until the restaurant shifts pick up again. Especially since I don't work at all next week, again.

I went to Red Box so M and I could watch movies, make dinner at home and save money. We got caught up with a TV viewing of The Break Up and didn't even get the movies out of my bag. Waste of money. We made a salad and it turns out I have a slight allergy to uncooked red peppers. My tongue was getting all itchy so I isolated each part of the salad and the peppers were the culprit. How bizarre, huh?

I FINALLY had a waitressing shift on Saturday and it went pretty well. I made about $110 in tips, unfortunately most of it was cash.

Neither M nor I had plans Saturday night so we met up for drinks, and even said "nothing too crazy". I ended up dancing on a bar at one point-the manager asked me to, I swear.

I woke up late for work and had to take a cab to get there on time. Stupid cash tips makes me think I have all sorts of extra money to spend. I figured my shift would kind of make up for the extra money I spent but I had 2 tables all day. Big waste of time and money. And later I found a $50 bill.

I wanted to go to the gym, grocery shop, prepare dinner and lunch for today but I needed a nap first. I didn't get out of bed the rest of the day except for to pay the delivery guy for my taco salad. Mega oops. I ended up watching one of the Red Box movies, Just Go With It, with Adam Sandler and Jennifer Anniston, another big waste of time.

This morning I was running late (have yet to look in the mirror, sorry everyone!) and thought I forgot my phone at home in my rush. It's not as hot as I thought it would be, very pleasant surprise. On my walk to work I was psyching myself up for some office coffee to avoid Dunkin again. When I got to work, I had 2 free Dunkin Dounuts giftcards from when I signed up for their mailing list, over a month ago. One was for signing up and the other was for my birthday. Happy Belated Birthday to me! Then I heard my phone ringing in my bag so apparently I didn't forget it.

That sums up why I've been a little scatterbrained the past few days but I'm hoping to screw my head on straight and have things go more according to plan this week. After I have my free morning coffee.

Popcorn for dinner

Today was tough. I couldn't fall asleep last night so I overslept today and was running late for work. I got there only a few minutes late but practically sweat through my work clothes hurrying around on the subways. Work was slightly frustrating and very busy. By the time 4pm rolled around, all I wanted to do was crawl into bed and take a nap. That wasn't an option because I wouldn't sleep that night otherwise. I had clothes to workout but I was just drained and not feeling it at all. I was just plain restless and crabby.

I couldn't stand the thought of hanging out in my room for one more night, especially since I did that all last week in Ohio too. So I took myself on a date. I spent money to take myself to a movie. I had set aside a $20 to start saving for my bff's wedding NEXT Oct so I stole that and went on my merry way. Hey, it's much cheaper than dropping $90 on a spontaneous ticket to see Amos Lee tonight like I wanted to.

I didn't know what would be playing and at what times but I walked there anyway. It was a great $20 spent. I was just in time for Horrible Bosses. I treated myself to popcorn and diet coke and laughed my butt off. The previews make it look like just another stupid comedy, and it kind of is, but I definitely had a few good laughs. I love Jason Bateman and Jennifer Aniston was a hoot.

Afterward it was still only 6:30 and I still hated the idea of spending hours in my room alone. I realized I had my gym clothes so I walked on over there. After eating a large some popcorn, it was a great decision. I did the elliptical and enjoyed some Seinfeld and worked up a good sweat. At commercials I switched to Jeopardy and actually got a lot of questions right.

So now at 8:30, after a good shower, I can finally chill out in my room without dread. My attitude has been readjusted and I feel much better. Yes, I spent money I shouldn't have but I was going to lose my mind if I had to have another meal of pasta and if I was going to do nothing for too many nights in a row.

My Utah bff explained her strategy with how she spends money and I'm going to work hard to adapt it. She spends as little as possible and then when the two weeks of her pay period is up she can do what she wants with what is left. It might be to save some and spend some, maybe save all of it or maybe splurge on something you've been really wanting. Either way, you're not scrapping by the last few days of your paycheck.

If a spending challenge is like a diet, it's true that neither of them really work. They have to become a way of life for them to stick so you don't feel deprived. I'm going to resolve to spend as little as possible and I will definitely have more days where I don't spend any money. But there will also be times when I need to spend a little bit either out of necessity or sanity and I can't beat myself up for it as long as I limit it.

Fluffy pancakes are gross

Fun fact about me: I hate fluffy pancakes. Normal people would think this stack of pancakes are wonderfully delicious:

I on the other hand thinks those are WAY too thick and it's just a mouthful of starch. Growing up, my dad always made super thin pancakes by only adding water to the mix. I'm not sure how that strategy started but that is the only way I like my pancakes to this day.

A while back when I bought a few cheap staples for my cupboards (I think cupboards is a weird word...I digress), I accidentally picked up pancake mix that required all sorts of ingredients like eggs, oil and milk. I made them when I first moved in and they weren't terrible because I still made the batter pretty thin. Tonight, however, my brain could not process how to make the mix thin. If I add more oil they will just be oily and gross. I didn't know what would happen if I added more milk or another egg and I didn't want it to be terrible so I just stuck to the recipe. Bad idea.

Look how thick that is! 

I ate it because it's my dinner and I don't want to/can't spend money, not because I liked it. I have a whole plate of them because the smallest ratio of ingredients makes 5-7 pancakes. Why don't they understand that sometimes people are cooking alone? Makes me feel like a single loser...but only kind of, don't worry. Unfortunately the leftovers are going to waste because there is no way I'm reheating those. Fortunately for me I have enough ingredients to make another batch if I need to during this spending drought so hopefully they wont be as bad.

Lesson learned, check the box before you purchase pancake mix!

The night wasn't a total waste though. I got to spend an hour and a half reading under the trees with Adele and Amos.

Almost made me forget I live in a concrete jungle :)