billytea, is this Dino Girl, or Riddle Girl, or who? We need something to call her.

This is Riddle Girl. She loves art, and will be studying psychology next year.

Excellent. Did the riddle involve Picasso, by any chance? And what was the answer to it, anyhow? Was it anything to do with the internet? Did you figure it out, yet? Ah, I should really read on, as you've probably explained it by now.

(edited to unsplit the next part)

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Yup, Dave doesn't really like that we still call him Teacup Guy; I think his problem with it is that it is not a very manly nickname. But, I like it so I am going to still use it, unless I can actually get him to join the board. Besides, every time I think of that teacup gift, I smile. I think that was the moment I started to fall in love with him. It was such a thoughtful gift and proved he was truly paying attenion.

Dear Dave,

Nice name. No, really. I would have been quite happy to name a son David, as it has been a favorite of mine for as long as I can remember, but not only did I have a terrible crush on a David, in my youth which (since he did not end up marrying me and therefore he had no role in fathering my children) made using the name for my sons with my non-Dave husband feel a bit unseemly. The name was already out of commission in his family anyhow though, because we have a nephew named David.

Anyhow, it has come to our attention that you are not particularly fond of your not-chosen-by-you Buffista name: Teacup Guy.

Lemme 'splain. No. There is too much. Lemme sum up. We, the Buffista Bitches (well, some of us, you can't actually ever make any statement that holds true for all Buffistas and or any sub-group; even this disclaimer is likely to invoke protest)...

Let me start again. Many/some/at least a few of us/but I believe more so I'm sticking with...

Many of us were terrifically touched, and impressed by your thoughtful, original, and well, frankly darling gift to sj, which you gave to her, so early on in your courtship. I mean, look how it affects sj, even today. When we use your name, we remind ourselves of your lovely, generous, attentive gesture. Our women want you and our men want to be you (and then there's the cross-over population), but what it comes down to is this: Damn, baby. That was cute.

Also sj, I'm fairly certain, did not want to use your actual name here, so early on. And really, her reticence to use it was in deference to your feelings and privacy, as for all she (and we) knew, maybe you wouldn't be particularly fond of a 1,000 or so people you don't know, reading your very name, in connection to stories about you, particularly prior to you being informed of their existence and sj's connection to same. She's considerate like that.

And yet? We needed some way in which to refer to you. Now, you happened into our lives sj's life, around the time that another of our number was striking up a flirtation with a guy at a music shop. And we needed to be able to distinguish you, from him, as the stories were told to us, somewhat concurrently.

Finally, we have a thousand other Davids already. Okay, we already had at least more than one long before we knew about you, and then there's always DB floating around in the back of (and sometimes the front of) our minds. I know, I know. The name David is no Michael, but still, for years upon end, it was a particularly popular name. Just see our FAQ.

So, how about a compromise: We get to call you Teacup Guy, and you get to learn to appreciate it. What do you mean, that's no compromise? Huh. Okay, how about this, how about, when we are with you in person, we will try to keep our use of Teacup Guy to a minimum, and call you Dave. Meanwhile, here on the board, we still get to call you teacup guy from time to time, but you are free to assume a [read: Dave] every time we use it, and sj gets to call you it whenever she likes, because it makes her all schmoopy, which--let's be frank even though you're Dave--is only going to benefit you, if you know what I mean. ::wink wink nudge nudge::

Love, and Kisses,

[At least some of the] Bitches

Damn, I am being schmoopy. Feel free to smack me.

See what I mean, Dave? ::wink wink nudge nudge::

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Excellent. Did the riddle involve Picasso, by any chance? And what was the answer to it, anyhow? Was it anything to do with the internet? Did you figure it out, yet? Ah, I should really read on, as you've probably explained it by now.

Yeah, a bit. :-) I gave her the guess, and told her if that was it, it was clever for the way it showed more of her personality and interests in an engaging way. And if it wasn't it, then it was even more clever because I hadn't worked it out yet.

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This is the real reason I don't date; I'm afraid of what the Buffistas will call him.

Mr. LuckyPants.

Cindy is now my favorite!

SCORE!

Who wants to see a picture of a tan Teppy, with long curly hair, in full bridesmaid-fu?

Oh. I'm not the only person who needs to prove I have had a tan on occasion? Beautiful, by the way, and your hair is fabu.

I admit, I miss having that hair. But not in weather like this, hell no. But -- lookit the curls! I can't get it to do that when it's this (overly) short.

My hair is like that. It's not as curly as your hair to begin with. It's somewhere between curl and a wave. But it's just weird. When it's too long, it's just wave. When it's too short (like now), it's just wave. Curls come, when it's somewhere in the middle.

I'm not sure how I feel about this interview. It's a great job, but I'm not entirely sure I'm qualified for it, and it's the kind of thing that really needs to be done by someone who knows what they're doing. And I'm not sure that's me.

Hil, I read about it in your lj. If it still seems right at the interview, I hope you get it.

When are you going to write about your trip (or did I miss it)?

Raquel, I hope the doctor is sensible and gives you something to help you through your PPD.

(Yep, got to say the billyteacrush? Still very much alive and kicking. You're adorability on a stick, mate.)

Fay, please stop feeding my 'shipping tendencies. These long distance 'ships never work out, and I don't have time to make all the fan art.

Re: second date. It was another nice evening - this time we just went out for coffee, and sat and talked and talked and talked for three or four hours. I enjoyed it, and he made me laugh, and he's well travelled and rather geeky and knows about stuff I don't know about, which is cool, but I'm finding myself off put by (a) the expattishness and (b) a sort of scaredness.

Fay, I've been meaning to ask, but I don't know, guess I came over either shy or lazy. When you talk about the boy's expattishness, does that mean he's still strongly identifies as a Brit (or whatever his country of origin) or that he's bitter against his country of origin?

And I find, in my old age (ha!) that I'm very comfortable in my own skin, at least in that respect. I don't dress fashionably - I dress the way I want to dress, which involves big hats, a wide array of scarves, long skirts and interesting handbags, and I really don't mind being stared at for it. I don't use textspeak when texting, I use standard spellings and punctuation. I have quite decided opinions on things. I get excited about silly things, and take unironic delight in other things which most people my age wouldn't enjoy. (Genuinely enjoy cutting out snowflakes//making Tudor Houses out of cereal boxes/discussing World War II with 7 year olds/watching 'Samurai Jack', etc etc.) Which is all good. I like where I'm at with this.

You should. It is part of your appeal. And don't sell yourself short. I think your un-need of a date is particularly healthy, and you know, it probably makes you even more attractive, generally.

So I looked around for another possibility, and discovered that Deborah Conway (an Australian singer with a career going back to the early 80s) is performing on Saturday night two suburbs away. A quick call to ensure tickets were still available, and the invitation has gone out

Fun date, billytea! Make sure you leave some time before or after for talking to one another, so she gets to know you.

It was what you thought it was, an allegory for the whole online dating site experience.

[blah blah me-cakes]

Yeah, a bit. :-) I gave her the guess, and told her if that was it, it was clever for the way it showed more of her personality and interests in an engaging way. And if it wasn't it, then it was even more clever because I hadn't worked it out yet.

Did you just say, "It's an allegory for the whole online dating site experience," or did you go deeper?

Man, (continued...)

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( continues...) I'm talkypants this morning. I should go make myself useful.

edited to marvel at the irony of having to have my post auto-continued, because I was remarking on how overly talkative I am.

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Did you just say, "It's an allegory for the whole online dating site experience," or did you go deeper?

Oh, deeper. I have depth, you see. I noted that the sky opening reminded me of introducing light into darkness, of change, and (of course) of breaking out from the box.

Fun date, billytea! Make sure you leave some time before or after for talking to one another, so she gets to know you.

I think that'll all be good. We're having dinner first, which will allow some time far talking. And afterwards, it'll be rather later, but it's a Saturday night, there's nowhere I'll need to be in a hurry. If she still wants to talk or go somewhere, no problem. But I don't want to overload her. I figure, introduce her to one personality at a time.

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Sounds like an awesome date plan, bt.

Doctor was a bit upset, as his daughter was flying out of London today. Her plane should've been in the air by the time the bombs went off, but he hasn't heard anything. In any case, he gave me a prescription for Zoloft, no problem. It was kinda cool; he had all the drug info on his PDA.

Turns out I don't actually need a prescription to buy Zoloft here though...so, anybody want any meds?

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Cindy, I'm glad your mantra worked. I had a similar situation over the weekend, and it turned out to be as nice a visit I've had with my folks for years.

Also, we should scheme together to get JZ up to the North Shore. I am crafting a plan. But I need to consult Tom first.

Congrats, Susan! And way to conquest, BT!

Finally, I am freaking OUT about the explosions in London. Don't need hugs, but big huge vibes for Tim, Paul, and Sheila.

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Finally, I am freaking OUT about the explosions in London. Don't need hugs, but big huge vibes for Tim, Paul, and Sheila.

Yeah. I hope everyone's ok.

Congrats, Susan! And way to conquest, BT!

Y'know, I once got a mention in the Melbourne Age (courtesy of an interview with my brother) noting that all my favourite video games seemed to involve world domination. I keep having to remind myself that the goal here is not to cut off all avenues of retreat and launch an offensive with overwhelming force. (I keep getting an image of me addressing my various generals, who just happen to be modelled on the characters from Herman's Head.)

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Cindy, I loved your big, long morning post. So much so, actually, that I'm just gonna say, "What she said" and write a quickie so I can get in the shower.

Raquel, I'm glad you saw the doctor about the PPD, and I hope the meds work for you. I was on Zoloft for a long time. The side effects are minimal and it works for lots and lots of people. Good luck, you.

There are explosions in London? I must go check this out. Vibes for all loved ones in the area.

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