Monday, May 01, 2006

Date Like You're Not Still In 8th Grade

Today, while sitting in the bookstore, I was eavesdropping on two women sitting across from me; both in their late thirties or early forties, one of them reading to the other, an excerpt from the book in her hand.

At first, I thought they were reading from The Rules and I was so embarrassed for them, that I couldn't bring myself to look over for fear of meeting their eyes. I didn't want them to know that anyone was witnessing their pathetic research project.

As the one read, the other nodded in agreement, peppering her responses with "oh, that's so true" or "that doesn't work" and was so intently listening that I don't think they realized what they sounded like.

I briefly thought back to the days when I did that with my girlfriends; talked about guys, what to do or say, how to make them notice us while staying seductively aloof. But the difference with that was, I was nineteen talking about the guy I worked with, and my excerpts came from the Cosmo quiz or an article on 10 Ways To Look Sexy Without Trying. I wasn't forty and reading Date Like A Man, written by a self-professed serial dater.

I couldn't take another minute; I actually had to get up and sit somewhere else. If I stayed any longer, I would have had to rip Date Like A Man out of her hands and replace it with How To Not Act Like A Pathetic Woman.

2 comments:

Katie McKenna said...

lol... as always ~ it is a pleasure catching up with your latest rants!
Have a wondrous day!

Elevensest said...

just a note... i'm thoroughly enjoying your blog entries, and love the butterfly clips in that photo. I'm linking you so that I'm sure to come back to read your adventures.