Steve
I did just sneek a conventional date into the mix the other night. Went out with Steve from RSVP (singles dating website). This was date number 2 for us. Let me help you to picture Steve. He is kind of ugly, shorter than me and bald. When he met me for our first date, he was dismissive and a bit tired and over all the dating. I bought him a coffee while I had a wine. He could barely be bothered speaking to me at first because the first place I had arranged to meet was closed, and that had put his afternoon out a bit. As he said to me, "I couldn't believe you would choose to meet somewhere but not check to see if it was open." Steve's eyebrows needed trimming, he'd grown a moustache for Movember that by our second date was beginning to hang over the top of his lips with a few longer hairs dangling near the entrance to his mouth. He dealt with these annoying hairs and the newness of the mo by fingering and smoothing it down from his nose about 3 times every minute. I could tell that Steve's hair on his head was once full and curly because his mo had a bit of body to it in parts. Steve told me of his work colleagues and their constant questions regarding his dating life: "What are you looking for in a woman Steve?" His answer, "An ATTRACTIVE, intelligent lady!" For him, the mix of the two was proving very tricky to find.
Why the second date? Basically because I'm kind and I didn't know how to say no in a nice way.
Steve is a teacher and he reckons that teachers have it tough. "Go on...go and do it yourself if you think the 12 weeks holiday a year is so good." Kind of a ridiculous comeback to a throw-away comment about how good teachers have it, but I appreciate how passionate he was about the difficulties of teaching and the associated low pay...NOT! Yes, it would be nice to pay you all more, but you'd have to be better at your jobs and quite a bit more intelligent. Steve is thinking of leaving the profession (good move at the age of 44 Steve) as he feels too much is required of him for his $75,000 / year. You'd think 12 weeks of holidays per year may in some way lessen the stress associated with those 5 x 6 hour working day weeks. Oh, I forgot. The marking! Teachers are always going on about having to mark stuff at home. Well, I reckon they should just stay at school for the 8.5 hours most of us work each day, and perhaps they could mark the tests and assignments then. I'd give my right arm to be able to bring my work home and do 2 hours at home while I'm drinking a wine and watching Castle.
I asked why teachers yelled when they were at work, as I'd never met anyone else in any job who yelled at people they work for. He said it was necessary to keep the kids in line and keep them scared. He gave me a very long account of how he'd had to yell at some year 9 boys that day and talk to them about how disappointing they were and how he expected more respect. Yep, that sounds like a school teacher.
He was passionate about his hatred of wealthy people, but I wasn't able to tell if that was an issue of fairness to him or just a chip on his shoulder because he was lacking in wealth himself. He was passionate about his hatred of Tony Abbott. He was opinionated, and he liked to talk over the top of me when he had a better idea of what was going on that I did.
Our first date went for 3 hours and our second date went for 4 hours. Those 4 hours were spent drinking alcohol and neglecting my children at home. He spent a portion of the second date telling me of a 'knockout' Asian lady he'd been out with recently who was 37 and 'right into him'. He seemed to need to talk about her, and I didn't notice until the next morning how gross this was (alcohol eh? You've got to give it credit for some positives). He was pretty excited and he smiled as he told me of her kooky 40's music collection. He mentioned she had a great rack. Steve asked the usual questions every man asks on the first or second date - what did my ex-husband do for a living; who ended the marriage; have I had any long-term relationships since my marriage ended. I'm so very tired of those probing and extremely personal questions. In what situation in life does anyone else get to ask those questions 2 hours after meeting you? Disgusting.
Anyway Steve. Talk more about what I do for a living, because I earn more than you and my ex-partner always earned less than me. Talk about what I've accomplished in life, not who ended the marriage. Talk more about what I want in life rather than prying into my previous personal relationships.
Oh, did I mention our children go to the same school?
I won't be going out with Steve again. In fact the next time a man asks me on the first or second date why my marriage ended, I'm going to politely say goodbye and make my exit. It's been 4 years now, and I can't remember one of them not asking me that.
Why the second date? Basically because I'm kind and I didn't know how to say no in a nice way.
Steve is a teacher and he reckons that teachers have it tough. "Go on...go and do it yourself if you think the 12 weeks holiday a year is so good." Kind of a ridiculous comeback to a throw-away comment about how good teachers have it, but I appreciate how passionate he was about the difficulties of teaching and the associated low pay...NOT! Yes, it would be nice to pay you all more, but you'd have to be better at your jobs and quite a bit more intelligent. Steve is thinking of leaving the profession (good move at the age of 44 Steve) as he feels too much is required of him for his $75,000 / year. You'd think 12 weeks of holidays per year may in some way lessen the stress associated with those 5 x 6 hour working day weeks. Oh, I forgot. The marking! Teachers are always going on about having to mark stuff at home. Well, I reckon they should just stay at school for the 8.5 hours most of us work each day, and perhaps they could mark the tests and assignments then. I'd give my right arm to be able to bring my work home and do 2 hours at home while I'm drinking a wine and watching Castle.
I asked why teachers yelled when they were at work, as I'd never met anyone else in any job who yelled at people they work for. He said it was necessary to keep the kids in line and keep them scared. He gave me a very long account of how he'd had to yell at some year 9 boys that day and talk to them about how disappointing they were and how he expected more respect. Yep, that sounds like a school teacher.
He was passionate about his hatred of wealthy people, but I wasn't able to tell if that was an issue of fairness to him or just a chip on his shoulder because he was lacking in wealth himself. He was passionate about his hatred of Tony Abbott. He was opinionated, and he liked to talk over the top of me when he had a better idea of what was going on that I did.
Our first date went for 3 hours and our second date went for 4 hours. Those 4 hours were spent drinking alcohol and neglecting my children at home. He spent a portion of the second date telling me of a 'knockout' Asian lady he'd been out with recently who was 37 and 'right into him'. He seemed to need to talk about her, and I didn't notice until the next morning how gross this was (alcohol eh? You've got to give it credit for some positives). He was pretty excited and he smiled as he told me of her kooky 40's music collection. He mentioned she had a great rack. Steve asked the usual questions every man asks on the first or second date - what did my ex-husband do for a living; who ended the marriage; have I had any long-term relationships since my marriage ended. I'm so very tired of those probing and extremely personal questions. In what situation in life does anyone else get to ask those questions 2 hours after meeting you? Disgusting.
Anyway Steve. Talk more about what I do for a living, because I earn more than you and my ex-partner always earned less than me. Talk about what I've accomplished in life, not who ended the marriage. Talk more about what I want in life rather than prying into my previous personal relationships.
Oh, did I mention our children go to the same school?
I won't be going out with Steve again. In fact the next time a man asks me on the first or second date why my marriage ended, I'm going to politely say goodbye and make my exit. It's been 4 years now, and I can't remember one of them not asking me that.
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