It doesn't hurt like a needle.

After sending off the lovely EllenS, who come over for a sleepover after a day yesterday wandering the streets of Salem, going to the Peabody Essex Museum, and then watching Veronica Mars, today was spent doing reading for tomorrow night's class (which I finished) and listening to my mom's cousin's 2 20-something sons clean out our asphalt and tar clogged gutters who REFUSED TO TAKE ANY MONEY FOR IT.

I am scheming to figure out a nice gift for them.

Tom is cooking and doing laundry (vw-we're doing the beef skewers with the peanut sauce!)

vw-we're doing the beef skewers with the peanut sauce!)

YUM!

That reminds me, I need to schedule our Phase 2 dinner! Must chat with Emily and find a good date.

Oh, also, I finished my reading for class while on the train today. So, I was all multi-purpose and stuff!

It doesn't hurt like a needle.

I'm too spooked by it to ever find this out. (I do have 2 holes in each ear, but in the soft lobe part) No tattoos.

Three tats, and the last one hurt the most, cause of the going over already inked skin to fill in. (All of my tats are blackwork.)

Still, bearable.

If I got anything pierced, it'd be my navel. But with my current curvetted belly, I'm afraid looking for it might turn into another King Solomon's Mines expitdition: "I SWEAR there are gems here! We must fight our way to them!! FORWARD, men!!"

Anyone need a solar-powered skull? [link]

Nora: 20-something sons? Get 'em a gift cert for the best pizza place in town. And/or a couple of sixers of a good microbrew, if they're of-age.

Fun weekend. I went to a Chinese New Year party, had a blast. It was held by ex-GF (i.e. AS), with whom I have stayed friends. For the last month she's been going out with this guy that basically causes her great upset, but that she can't stop thinking about. I appear to have become her sounding board/therapist, which is funny since said guy is an actual therapist. Anyway, they broke up about a week ago, but she still invited him to the CNY party. I actually liked having him there, it provided just that extra impetus to make me relaxed enough to do the life of the party thing. (He seems a nice enough guy if you're not actually dating him.)

But of course, AS is discovering that a bit of space just after an emotionally charged break-up is a Good Thing if you don't want your feelings all a-tangle. Ah well. Meanwhile, my nephew and his girlfriend are staying with us for a couple of nights. They attended a big concert yesterday; impressive line-up, included Franz Ferdinand, the White Stripes, and Iggy Pop and the Stooges.

Other news, I spent the weekend helping out at a gaming convention. I got time to play a couple of games too, they were lots of fun. Running the games wasn't as enjoyable, there was one player who didn't cope with failure too well, you could say. But it's still good.

And in addition, of the two women I have been corresponding with, the one who's never met anyone over the internet before has not replied to my email of last Tuesday. Bad interneophyte! No biscuit! But the other one has sent me her phone number. Huzzah! (She wants to know why guys always like Doctor Who. Apparently the monsters are too ugly for her.)

Unless, like the woman who married a dolphin, you have a tendresse for the marine life.

See, with seal salt and this, I start thinking about selkies...

Is there a standard gauge for cartilage piercings?

No, but unless she's specifically stretched them, it's probably a pretty small (er, high number) gauge. (I have five--I think mine are all 18?)

It doesn't hurt like a needle.

Heh. Wellllll....

Though I actually thought they hurt less than the lobe piercings, when happening, they just hurt for longer, cause they take longer to heal.

Note, though I have enjoyed experiencing other (lip, tongue, nipple) piercings on other people, I only have piercings in my ears.

My ears are pierced twice, but the second holes, higher up on the ear just never healed right...on two different tries years apart...so they are now closed.

I have a full-blown needle phobia so all my peeps were astonished when I got my ankle tat. I was more than anxious but it turned out to be nothing at all to fret about. The first 5 minutes were stingy but after that I was all bent over watching the process. neat.

In post date news. I've been caught up in a wind that whirls. It has been a wonderful experience on a number of levels. AND, one of those life lessons that I am sometimes wearied of. Aren't I fully baked in the emotional maturity department yet.

Fella is very, very interesting and so like me in some ways that it is startling yet soo comfortable and familiar.

• Uber geek--check
• wildly over educated (at the same U for one of our degrees each)
• similar food, lifestyle preferences
• similar interests (no surprise since we met at a meetup
• and most astonishing of all, we have made the same choices where faith is concerned

He is a bit fussy, as I suspected. Got a road rage thing I find unattractive, but in general, I've never really felt this comfortable with someone...physicaly or emotionally.

We even dance well together.

We had three dates in three days...the first one I already reported. The second was a lovely restaurant followed by endless talk a a little bit of salvation from my exhile in the nga corner. Yay. The third was a neighborhood party thrown by myself and a friend...he waded into a group of 50 people he didn't know...many of whom were leering to get a glimpse of 'the new guy'...very brave. Made himself quite useful and swept me off my feet on the dance floor. We dance pretty well together...which is rare in my geeky circles.

Then. Then we hit the iceberg that we may or may not get past.

Turns out he was not entirely truthful about a relationship he hasn't quite ended.

I'd have been okay knowing that...not sure if my behavior would have been any different to by frank...but the choice should have been mine. And the other person's.

He's as contrite as possible and I sincerely believe his explanation and his intent to make it right. But I have what some might consider an inflated sense of honor and this is a rough one for me.

We had a poignantly beautiful, thoughtful, caring discussion about it and the end result was basically, to quote the Barenaked Ladies...'get that together and come back and see me."

Not sure if I'll be in the same space, but I'm open to it.

But regardless, I've had a wonderful time and am infinitely grateful for the experience. I feel like my pilot light is relit after much too long a time in the cold and dark.