Progress? Possibly!

Sometimes I can surprise myself. Here is the main headline: I went to Freddie's and I'm not distraught as I write this! I know it's late, but I am waiting for the bathroom to air out. So with "Escape" playing and my winding down after a shower (and getting out of my clothes which reek of smoke), here is the news.

I braved rush hour traffic in the rain to get to Crystal City, making it to Freddie's at about 6:30. Some of you may remember (if not, you can read about it here) that when I went to Freddie's back in June (my first trip there since Justin tripped the light fantastic out of town), I had chatted with a guy named Rick. At the time, he said that he seldom goes out, but once in a while he does. I entered the bar and he was sitting right there. This was a person that I was more interested in seeing again than Creepy Married Guy, that's for damn sure. He seemed happy to see me, and was surprised how much I remembered about our last chat four months prior.

We talked for a while, and he left at about eight. While we were talking, a guy entered and sat down on the other side of the bar (the bar at Freddie's is rectangular). Basically, he epitomized every characteristic of a man that turns my head: a goatee, an open shirt revealing a massive carpet of chest hair, and a seemingly down-to-earth demeanor. I also noticed that he was mumbling along to the music that was playing. So when Rick left, I made eye contact with him, and noticed that his eyes were following me to the piano where I signed up for a song.

Here is where I surprised myself. He was also the only person in the bar who clapped when I was finished singing. I went up to him and thanked him for cheering me on. I then asked if I could join him, and he said yes. His name was either Kirk or Curt; I couldn't hear too well.

We chatted for the next two hours; he sat there and tossed back beers, and I found out that he calls Minnesota home, and was traveling on business (he works for Target, as an auditor in Store Planning). But he was extremely nice, and he didn't run away (except for several trips to the bathroom, and my leaving to sing my three songs). And I guess he must have trusted me because when he went to the bathroom, he left cash sitting on the bar, alongside his cell phone.

Although he demurred when I asked him to split a dessert, he seemed nice enough. And although we didn't have any "dot dot dot" moments (if you don't get that reference, rent Mamma Mia!), I think this is progress. Basically, I saw a guy I liked and I approached him, and didn't shy away. He apparently didn't find me repulsive, or else he wouldn't have stuck around (he was still there when I left), and when I thanked him for hanging with me and told him that I hoped to see him again, he said that he might be back during the course of the week.

This is happening just as Justin decided to send me an email pointing to his and Ronnie's new "we're engaged" website. Good God; he and Ronnie have been dating all of four months. All I can say is that Ronnie had better be careful; this will all come crashing down eventually.

Eric Out.