Prologue for the guy I traveled the world with.When I created dates and cakes, I was a solid year and a half into my full-blown serial dating binge. After breaking off a relationship of 4 years, not only did I not know how to be single, but for the first time oh, I discovered I was cute. Wait, what Stephanie? You were a 26 year old that reached an epiphany that you were physically appealing to the opposite sex (and some girls)? To answer plainly: yes. I've always attracted very beautiful friends and those girls receive the attention, teddy bears, concert ticket, invitations to meet his parents - you name it! And me? I was almost the GateKeeper; the approachable one that was the friends. Quite frankly, I didn't mind, usually. I had less pressure, less heartbreak, less attachment opportunities, and less external influence on my path for college. My friends with Highschool sweethearts faced resistance, distance, and all but one severing from their love permanently. Sure, I had a couple guys that showed interest, but it never seemed to last long, not to mention, some of my pretty friends at the time, we're so attention-starved, that they would actually snake some of the guys that showed interest in me. Kissing my crush in front of my face after sneaking out of my friends window, calling me to report that the guy that asked me to the dance is now her boyfriend, and feeding a potential guy lies and then "falling asleep in his bed," are just a few of the fouls from my own teammates. Guys are not always to blame. It takes two sweetheart. A couple seasons were played with best friends, but eventually, they changed their jerseys for another. * * * * * My long-distance relationship came to a fork in the road and with God's guidance, I took the prong Less Traveled. While most people in my Facebook feed were celebrating engagements and weddings, I was picking up the pieces of my relationship and that of my two best friends' relationships that also ended after long-term mutual infatuation. One positive of such a wild fate of three relationships that were certain to last forever, was that we weren't alone. As we rewired our new lives, dancing and clubbing became a frequent necessity. Free drinks, collecting phone numbers for sport, and pocketing compliments from not just boys, but men of all flavors became our purpose for existence... Or so it seemed. Fun in the freedom, I began my dating spree of juggling several guys at one time, bouncing from downtown Fort Worth to Uptown Dallas, and even met some guys on weekend trips. There are many stories falling off my lips to my friends about hilarious or outrageous dates never made it to print. I'm on a quest now to unearth that lost time and I'm sure as hell going to try to capture it and bring it to life on dates and cakes. The most pertinent story to serve as the prologue for my finale for my Euro trip, is that of Mr. Butterwall. Yes, like Wonderwall but smoother and not serenaded by Oasis. One of the many (hey at least honesty is valued by yours truly) drunken nights at our favorite Speakeasy in Deep Ellum, Dallas. My best friend and I danced under the vintage chandeliers, no different from any other Saturday night spent in "T&A." A tan, medium-height guy with a finely trimmed beard approached my bestie, while a lighter hair gentleman approached me. After several dances and drinks, the tan , bearded man and found himself on my hips and the paler one was on my best friend's lips. Nothing like an ol Switcheroo. Well, not embarrassed to say, I don't remember much after that. We stumbled our way out of the underground bar and apparently, I pushed him against the brick wall adjacent to the club (particularly in front of an insomnia donut stand) and started making out, hardcore, with him. Ah, the name is starting to make a little sense. So, Mr. Butterwall and I exchanged contact information and set up a date at On the Border. We both were surprised to clearly see each other's facial features in the light. After exchanging banter over chips and queso and margaritas, it was clear he was looking for no commitment. I was having fun gallivanting the field, so.... we lost touch after that date. I moved to Charleston four months later or so, and about a year after that, he went to Japan by himself for two weeks. I ogled at his traveling pictures and then the conversation faded. When I went to Ireland for 8 days, he ogled at my abroad venture. Travel was another commonality, aside from kissing strangers. Six months later, now to the current day (not even three weeks ago actually), he saw my location change on Facebook displaying I was residing in Madrid, Spain. "You live there? O-Kay." Here comes the sarcasm that probably provoked the kissing outside the Donut Shop in Deep Ellum. His dessert, obviously. No recipe needed since I know nothing about him except how to push him against a wall.After learning of my three month journey and the rapidly approaching and date, he took a plunge and decided to join me for the last 8 days while I was still in Europe. Coincidentally, he had a flight voucher about to expire and vacation time burning a hole in his pocket.
That kids, is How I Met Your Mother. Just kidding. Definitely not trying to have no babies. But that's how I accrued a travel buddy at the end of my three-month self-discovery on another continent. Stay tuned for more Adventures...
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorChef Steph cooking up trouble. If she can't find anything real, she bakes real good sweets. Chocolate really may mend a broken heart... Archives
April 2022
Categories
All
|