7:42 PM, Oct 3, 2004
First Friday
Nathan and I met at about 7PM on Friday, and managed a missed connection with Geoff(gasp!), before heading to Bulldog for a couple drinks and an eyefull. The actual First Friday event was a good deal bigger than I remember it. I haven't been able to attend since April, and a lot seems to have changed since then. For one, the place was crawling with beautiful women.
After walking from gallery to gallery for about an hour and a half, we walked over to Jilly's, and beat the rush. Indeed, we wondered if there would even be a rush, when we walked in. There were probably about ten people in there, altogether. As we walked in, we experienced the elusive Kansas City ID check, along with being adorned with nametags that said, "I'm Alicia."
Alicia, it turns out, was one of the bartenders at Jilly's. We both recognized her from when we were on there on Wednesday. She kept bringing me glasses of their all-day, every-day special: $2 Leinie's Red draws. What the reasoning was for the nametags, I will perhaps never know. Maybe I'll just have to go back again.
People started to filter in, and then they started pouring in, as, presumably, galleries closed. By 10PM, the place was packed, but we had good seats at the bar, talking to a number of the uncharacteristically abundant attractive women, and digging the 80s music being played by the DJ. Geoff finally showed up, just in time for us to start to get tired of the music getting steadily louder.
I mentioned the numerous women to people in phone and forum conversations since then, and and every time, I was met with the same response: "Did you get any phone numbers?" No, I didn't get any phone numbers, but I never tried either. I wanted to try on one girl that I was getting along with nicely, and who seemed receptive, but Geoff stuck his face in the way, inadvertently, dashing my hopes, at least, for that night.
But this recurring question has revealed to me something about people that aren't me, I think I've discovered. Many people go out, for the sole purpose of meeting people and hooking up. No such thoughts are in my head at all as I sit, enjoying a beer. My thought is usually, "this is a good beer," or my mind is in the conversation. It never occurs to me to ask a girl for her number, until it occurs to me that I like her. Maybe I should ask more women for their numbers, but I think focusing on something like that would get in the way of the good time that I set out to have when I go out.
But, at the same time, maybe I go out for a different reason than most people. I go out for draught beer and conversation. The eye candy is nice, but it's not my big motivator. Maybe it should be, but I think I'd become a big asshole if it was.
mean cut in with:
To my knowledge, I've never met anyone who created a long-lasting, deep, meaningful relationship by getting numbers at a bar (or other similar "hook ups"). Not saying it can't be done, but it is definitely the exception to the rule.
Then again, creating such relationships seems to be the exception to the rule anyway, regardless of how the parties meet...
5:04 PM, Oct 12, 2004