Sunday, January 21, 2007
This Only Happens to Me
OK, it doesn't ONLY happen to me, but in any case I'm glad it DOES happen to me. My entry for the 20th was about a meet-up I planned in Dallas. This entry is about the other kind.
Saturday night in Dallas I was hoping to meet up with Steve, whom I know from Fridae.com but whom I've never met. Unfortunately, as I got to the dance club I learned he was sick and wouldn't be coming out...he had planned to go to a friend's party first then meet up with me, but he didn't make it to either. A shame, as we've been chatting off and on for a couple years, but I can always have fun dancing in a big city, so it's not like the night was totally ruined (and I'm sure we'll meet up at some point).
So anyway, I'm dancing and having a good time. I see a cute boy and he looks like he wants to dance with me, but then some friends join him on the dance floor and he's over with them, so OK, that's cool. I'm dancing by myself, another guy joins me and we dance until 1:30. Then he heads home but one of his friends comes over and takes his place, and we dance until 2:30. Then HE takes off for home, and I'm off the dance floor, about to go get my coat and head back to the hotel, when suddenly the original cute guy walks past me toward the bar, minus his shirt.
As he comes back I stop him and say, "no fair, you already looked cute with your shirt on and now you look even better without." he smiled and said, "hey, live with it." Then he got an odd look on his face and said...
"Is your name Will?"
Um, yeah.
"I know you," he says, "from Fridae."
OK, I'm thinking this is one of Steve's friends who has seen my photo on his profile and he recognizes me. But how does he remember my name?
"What are you doing here," he asks, "you're supposed to be in Washington DC."
OK, he REALLY knows me, but I'm looking at him, and it's not clicking. I ask him his screen name. He tells me. As he gets halfway through it I suddenly know who this is. It's Ken.
From Bangkok.
Who lives in Miami.
With whom I've been talking since October 2005 without having met before.
Our last e-mail exchange was last Sunday.
And he's standing next to me on a dance floor in Dallas.
WHAT????
Turns out he and his boyfriend came to town for his boyfriend's job interview. Boyfriend went home Saturday morning, Ken stayed until Sunday to visit friends. That's who I saw him dancing with earlier.
And out of nowhere, after a couple times where we've talked about meeting up in Bangkok or Florida, but nothing's worked, here he is, standing next to me on a dance floor in Dallas 30 seconds before I walked out the door.
I didn't walk out the door, of course, we ended up hanging out for a few hours, and yes, I still managed to get back to the hotel and get some sleep before flying home to the snow in DC.
Oh, and as for me not recognizing him...I felt bad, because he told me that he thought earlier that he recognized me but was too shy to say something. In my defense, he's cut his hair, colored and highlighted it, oh, and did I mention we were in Dallas and I wasn't exactly expecting to see him? Yeah, there's that.
When life gets weird, it gets really weird. But it makes for cool stories.
Yay for meeting Kai and Ken this weekend!!!!
Saturday night in Dallas I was hoping to meet up with Steve, whom I know from Fridae.com but whom I've never met. Unfortunately, as I got to the dance club I learned he was sick and wouldn't be coming out...he had planned to go to a friend's party first then meet up with me, but he didn't make it to either. A shame, as we've been chatting off and on for a couple years, but I can always have fun dancing in a big city, so it's not like the night was totally ruined (and I'm sure we'll meet up at some point).
So anyway, I'm dancing and having a good time. I see a cute boy and he looks like he wants to dance with me, but then some friends join him on the dance floor and he's over with them, so OK, that's cool. I'm dancing by myself, another guy joins me and we dance until 1:30. Then he heads home but one of his friends comes over and takes his place, and we dance until 2:30. Then HE takes off for home, and I'm off the dance floor, about to go get my coat and head back to the hotel, when suddenly the original cute guy walks past me toward the bar, minus his shirt.
As he comes back I stop him and say, "no fair, you already looked cute with your shirt on and now you look even better without." he smiled and said, "hey, live with it." Then he got an odd look on his face and said...
"Is your name Will?"
Um, yeah.
"I know you," he says, "from Fridae."
OK, I'm thinking this is one of Steve's friends who has seen my photo on his profile and he recognizes me. But how does he remember my name?
"What are you doing here," he asks, "you're supposed to be in Washington DC."
OK, he REALLY knows me, but I'm looking at him, and it's not clicking. I ask him his screen name. He tells me. As he gets halfway through it I suddenly know who this is. It's Ken.
From Bangkok.
Who lives in Miami.
With whom I've been talking since October 2005 without having met before.
Our last e-mail exchange was last Sunday.
And he's standing next to me on a dance floor in Dallas.
WHAT????
Turns out he and his boyfriend came to town for his boyfriend's job interview. Boyfriend went home Saturday morning, Ken stayed until Sunday to visit friends. That's who I saw him dancing with earlier.
And out of nowhere, after a couple times where we've talked about meeting up in Bangkok or Florida, but nothing's worked, here he is, standing next to me on a dance floor in Dallas 30 seconds before I walked out the door.
I didn't walk out the door, of course, we ended up hanging out for a few hours, and yes, I still managed to get back to the hotel and get some sleep before flying home to the snow in DC.
Oh, and as for me not recognizing him...I felt bad, because he told me that he thought earlier that he recognized me but was too shy to say something. In my defense, he's cut his hair, colored and highlighted it, oh, and did I mention we were in Dallas and I wasn't exactly expecting to see him? Yeah, there's that.
When life gets weird, it gets really weird. But it makes for cool stories.
Yay for meeting Kai and Ken this weekend!!!!
