Last night was awesome!
My coworker is visiting from out of town, so I took him to the best steak place in our area. We were there late in the evening, because I was weightlifting before going out. Walking in, I ask the junior hostess if there is still seating available for two. The expression on her face told me that what she heard was more like, "I'm here for the pet Tyrannosaurs you posted on Craigslist."
The senior hostess returned to the podium, and was very bubbly in telling me that she could still get me a table in 15-20 minutes, while gesturing emphatically. I'm not kidding: two Italians having a heated political debate would have looked like statues standing next to this.
"Hey, my watch has hands, too, but they don't move like that."
"Oh good, because then your watch would be broken."
"Now you're breaking my watch, too? I don't know if I can handle this place." She cracked up after that.
My colleague and I go sit in the bar, and I ask the bartender for a drink, and I stand there waiting for it. Junior hostess comes over and tells me that if we sit, the cocktailer will come take our order. Once seated, the lovely cocktailer comes, and I let her know that I placed my order at the bar. Seeing it waiting where the bartender left it, she begins scurrying to go get it. I stop her, and say, "My friend would like to order his drink, too."
After ordering, I ask him, "Did you turn invisible?"
"I think so: the hostess was all over you and the cocktail waitress didn't even know I was here."
When we were to be seated, the hostess said my name, and I glanced her direction, whereupon she started gesticulating like earlier. I smiled, and we walked over. I gave her more teasing about breaking my watch, and she kept looking over her shoulder just-a-bit-too-long every time she replied.
My colleague is married, but that didn't stop him from being quite obviously envious of my charming the ladies at the restaurant. I was just having a good time with it.
Following the good news, I have my conundrum: when I'm not thinking about it, I am a natural flirt; this is not new. If I think to myself that I should get her number, it all falls apart. It's much like "thinking" about a golf swing, or thinking while sparring: if I just let my body (or mind) perform the task without micromanaging, I am far more successful.
Abandoning the pattern of staying "in my head" when I would rather go with the flow is one of my goals. Things always go better for me when I stay present and let it flow, rather than thinking ahead and trying to plan my next witty comment. Much of this is based in self-confidence, in that I must be confident in my ability to say something naturally and without conscious thought: my brain is not a scumbag and will provide me with the right things to say.
My coworker is visiting from out of town, so I took him to the best steak place in our area. We were there late in the evening, because I was weightlifting before going out. Walking in, I ask the junior hostess if there is still seating available for two. The expression on her face told me that what she heard was more like, "I'm here for the pet Tyrannosaurs you posted on Craigslist."
The senior hostess returned to the podium, and was very bubbly in telling me that she could still get me a table in 15-20 minutes, while gesturing emphatically. I'm not kidding: two Italians having a heated political debate would have looked like statues standing next to this.
"Hey, my watch has hands, too, but they don't move like that."
"Oh good, because then your watch would be broken."
"Now you're breaking my watch, too? I don't know if I can handle this place." She cracked up after that.
My colleague and I go sit in the bar, and I ask the bartender for a drink, and I stand there waiting for it. Junior hostess comes over and tells me that if we sit, the cocktailer will come take our order. Once seated, the lovely cocktailer comes, and I let her know that I placed my order at the bar. Seeing it waiting where the bartender left it, she begins scurrying to go get it. I stop her, and say, "My friend would like to order his drink, too."
After ordering, I ask him, "Did you turn invisible?"
"I think so: the hostess was all over you and the cocktail waitress didn't even know I was here."
When we were to be seated, the hostess said my name, and I glanced her direction, whereupon she started gesticulating like earlier. I smiled, and we walked over. I gave her more teasing about breaking my watch, and she kept looking over her shoulder just-a-bit-too-long every time she replied.
My colleague is married, but that didn't stop him from being quite obviously envious of my charming the ladies at the restaurant. I was just having a good time with it.
Following the good news, I have my conundrum: when I'm not thinking about it, I am a natural flirt; this is not new. If I think to myself that I should get her number, it all falls apart. It's much like "thinking" about a golf swing, or thinking while sparring: if I just let my body (or mind) perform the task without micromanaging, I am far more successful.
Abandoning the pattern of staying "in my head" when I would rather go with the flow is one of my goals. Things always go better for me when I stay present and let it flow, rather than thinking ahead and trying to plan my next witty comment. Much of this is based in self-confidence, in that I must be confident in my ability to say something naturally and without conscious thought: my brain is not a scumbag and will provide me with the right things to say.
Fear is a liar.
There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. -- Ernest Hemingway
There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. -- Ernest Hemingway
