Any blind date advice from previous blind date havers?

Just chill and be yourself.

How's that for the Worst Advice Ever? You're meeting someone you've never met before, who has the added psychic weight of being a potential wife, and you know you're being evaluated as a potential husband and...just BE YOURSELF?!?

Yeah, blind dates are awkward even when marriage ISN'T a possibly planned-for outcome. ("So...uh...I like cheese! How do YOU feel about cheese?" "I collect wasps for a living." "My appendix! It just burst!")

(None of that really happened; I was just trying to think of awkward shit.)

And for all that, the best thing to do is to just be yourself. I'm not so sure you can't bring up comics; just don't spend an hour explaining how there have been 5 Robins (6 if you count Dark Knight Returns), and one of the Robins was Robin twice, and oh, did you mention Superboy-Prime PUNCHING A HOLE IN REALITY?!?

When I go on and on about that, even my friends, who I don't have to worry are evaluating me as a potential spouse, start to edge away and make excuses about going home to shampoo the carpet.

Is there any way you can separate yourself from the high expectations/stress of it being A Date To Meet A Potential Future Wife? Like, just tell yourself that your mom can view it however *she* wants, but to you it's just a chance to hang out with someone, nothing more? Because if you can mentally remove some of the high expectations, maybe you'll be more relaxed and things will go smoothly.

I know when I've been in a situation when I haven't given a shit, haven't been "looking" for a guy (and really, for 95% of the time that I was single, I was always looking for a guy), I was more relaxed and could just hang out in a non-pressured way, which led to a more natural interaction, which then often led to sparkage. But sparkage was never the goal from the outset.

So maybe try to think of it as just hanging out. You hang out with women a lot, and while it may feel easy because you share interests and can geek out togther, I'd bet that some of the ease comes from it being a no-pressure situation.

Now, forcing yourself to think of meeting the potential future wide as "just hanging out," with no pressure, is WAY easier said than done. I get that. And maybe it won't work very well *this* time. But if you try it, and keep trying it in the future, it'll get easier to be laissez-faire about it, and the relaxed attitude will be good for everyone involved.

Especially for you.

(I hope that some of that made sense. I'm a little loopy on flexiril, due to over-zealousness on the elliptical machine 2 days ago.)

I got a note home from Owen's special ed teacher today. Apparently, he's having trouble with "transitions." Which is to say that he's taken to wandering the halls when he's supposed to be changing rooms. He asked to use the bathroom today and decided to start looking in other classrooms for his friend. She says they will be giving him more adult supervision when he's going to therapy, etc. but she asked me to drive this point across at home as well.

Do I acknowledge this note with a return note? Or do I just keep reminding O that he needs to listen to the teachers and go right to class?

Mmmm...flexeril...mmmmm....

Mmmm...flexeril...mmmmm....

I know! It's hard to think that back when my back was so badly injured prior to surgery that I was taking 2 at a time, 4 times a day (maybe only 3, but that's still a lot), and it didn't feel like it was doing ANYTHING, both for the pain and to make me fuzzy-headed.

Now, *1* flexiril makes me all silly and "I love you, man!"

I'm not so sure you can't bring up comics; just don't spend an hour explaining how there have been 5 Robins (6 if you count Dark Knight Returns), and one of the Robins was Robin twice, and oh, did you mention Superboy-Prime PUNCHING A HOLE IN REALITY?!?

Hee. Yeah, I think that's generally what my dad means.

Is there any way you can separate yourself from the high expectations/stress of it being A Date To Meet A Potential Future Wife? Like, just tell yourself that your mom can view it however *she* wants, but to you it's just a chance to hang out with someone, nothing more? Because if you can mentally remove some of the high expectations, maybe you'll be more relaxed and things will go smoothly.

It's sort of good that I'm at a conference and already in Meeting People I Don't Know mode, so I can try to just think of her as a fellow medical writer, someone to Get to Know rather than someone to Potentially Marry.

I hope that some of that made sense.

It totally made sense! Except for the 5 Robins part. Dick, Jason, Tim...? I think Dick's apparently Batman now, but I don't know who Robin is.

Cash, Owen takes a bus to school, doesn't he? I was going to say I'd just mention it next time you drop him off, but since you don't drop him off, that doesn't really work. I don't think you HAVE to reply to the note, only if you want to let her know something about his behavior at home or whatever.

Also? Couldn't help but be reminded of Isaac and his transition issues, which mostly involve screaming "NOOOO! I don't want to go! NOOOOOO!!!" for about 10 minutes. So annoying. I sure hope he doesn't do that in kindergarten.

Except for the 5 Robins part. Dick, Jason, Tim...?

Spoiler and...wait you don't mean Carrie from Dark Knight Returns do you, Steph? Does the new Batman have a Robin? I'm out of touch.

Spoiler

Oh, right, I would have guessed Steph was Robin at some point.

wait you don't mean Carrie from Dark Knight Returns do you, Steph?

No, she said it was 6 with Carrie.

Does the new Batman have a Robin?

Maybe Tim again? She said one of them was Robin twice. Dick can't be Batman and Robin at the same time, Jason is evil or something, and Steph is Batgirl. So...it has to be Tim again. Right?

I agree with what everyone else said about blind dates, PC -- just treat it like getting to know someone.

Dick can't be Batman and Robin at the same time

DUDE, THAT WOULD BE COMEDY *GOLD*.

He'd be all swapping back and forth between the pixie boots and the cowl, and he'd never get out of the cave, and crime would run RAMPANT, and I WOULD LAUGH SO HARD.