where to start?

Where do I even begin with the stories? I've decided that this will mainly be my dating blog. Is that weird? To have a blog dedicated to men I date and my over-analysis of situations? Actually, I think I've gotten better about not over-analyzing things, and in general not being all that needy, at least initiatlly anyways.

I guess I'll start with the recent no-go's:

1) Guy who can't take a hint

This is a friend of a friend whom I've actually known for about a year now. We went camping together at the end of July with some mutual friends, and I sensed an interest on his part. Recently he asked me, through email, "maybe we can grab a bite to eat sometime?" I wasn't sure if that was his way of asking me out on a date or just a friend wanting to catch up ... either way, maybe against my better judgement, I agreed.

Throughout dinner, I tried hard to play everything very casually. I even brought up dating as a conversation topic, thinking that to usually be a taboo topic for a date, hoping to show him that I really didn't see this dinner as a date for the two of us. When the bill arrived, I picked up the majority of it because neither one of us had change. I thought all of those hints, especially the bill, were pretty clear that I was not interested in anything more than friendship.

Maybe he talked to a friend who clued him into the fact that he probably should have paid for dinner because he sent me an email a couple of days later, "blah blah blah, blah blah blah. Let me know if you're free this coming week; I'd like to take you out to dinner." Hey, at least he's clear and assertive this time. Too bad it's still email, and too bad I'm still not interested. I shoot an email back "Sorry, I'm busy this week" with no suggestion of an alternative time or activity, thinking that surely this would be hint enough.

A day later, he emails back, "How about next week?" Ugh, I had no choice but to respond "Sorry, I'm busy next week, too." I felt so awkward doing that, and when the hints get to that point, they're not really even hints anymore, they're just euphemisms and my avoiding actually saying the dreadful "let's just be friends." I think he finally got the hint because I haven't heard back from him since that last email.

2) Guy who thinks he's a good cook

This guy was pretty smooth. I've known him for maybe a couple of months, and we ran into each other at the campus pub a couple of weeks ago. He kept telling how great of a cook he is as we talked, and I was trying not to engage him, so I just kept saying "oh, that's cool" and just leaving the conversation at that. Somewhere during our convo, he asked me for my number (this is the smooth part). As copied from my other blog:

him: You’ve been text messaging all night.
me: yeah, I know. It’s fun.
him: I feel like I should pull out my phone and text you
me: haha
him: but I don’t have your number
me: …

I didn't give him my number, but because we knew each other from stuff around campus, he knew my email and emailed me the next day: "I don't think you believed me last night when I said I was a good cook, so I'd like to invite you over for dinner sometime and try it out first hand. I'm free THIS day and THIS day, let me know what works for you."

I emailed back and said "Don't worry, I believed you when you said you're a good cook. I won't make you prove it :) I'll see you around campus!"

He got the hint.

3) Guy 2 degrees removed

I have a childhood friend in town who is a bit of a princess who calls me a lot to hang out. I don't do it often because she's very high maintenance, but finally some friends and I were going out to a club a Friday night three weeks ago, so I called her to invite her along. She brings her boyfriend, and also 3 of her boyfriend's friends. I kinda hit it off with one of the bf's friends, who asks me for my number by the end of the night.

He waited until mid-week to call, and asked me to do drinks/dinner on Friday night. I already had plans, so I suggested Sunday brunch instead, and he agreed. He picks me up (in his beamer), and we go get brunch. At the end, we split the bill. Maybe it's my southern upbringing, but a guy who doesn't foot the bill on a first date doesn't make a great impression with me. It wasn't even expensive ($10 a person for food, tax, tip, everything), AND he works. Anyways, I wasn't really feeling any chemistry anyways, so I wasn't expecting any more meetings.

He left town for a family vacation the day after our brunch date and just got back early this week. He called on Wednesday; I screened his call, and he left a voice mail saying that he's back in the US and was wondering what my plans for the weekend are, and maybe we can get together sometime. I never called him back, which I feel pretty terrible about. (I hate being a flake, and not calling back is being a flake ... but what else could I have done?)