Quick Digest

I did call KfW2 at lunch and we spent 20 mins or so, chatting. I think that's the the first time we've spoken since I was at her house about 2 months ago. Our calls and texts are getting more infrequent, and she doesn't really interact on social media any more (not that I am massively active on Facebook). I should follow up over the weekend see about getting her out properly for food and drinks.

I also did get the gardening done. Well, about 80% of it. I have some tidying up to do, but the equipment I need to do it is at my Dad's house. I'm meant to be heading over there tomorrow, so I could get the work done by the end of the weekend.

FBS has already replied to D's text message saying she's unavailable on the day that D's suggested for drinks, but she's not offered up any alternatives.

And finally, thanks to some guy in work who's been a massive PITA over the past few weeks, I have a work call to attend tomorrow morning at 4AM. FFS. These use to be fairly regular when I was in the same team as Stalky Guy, but in my current team, these are almost unheard of. 

Let's go!

D's just sent a message. Do we want to meet for drinks at the end of next month? I've checked my diary and I've got nothing on, so I've replied that I'd be interested.

Blast from the past.

Years ago, when I was an active participant in online dating, I got a message from a woman on OK Cupid. That was unusual. Women, in my experience, never open a conversation or make the first move. It was a "proper" website, too. Not an app. So there was no "match" to indicate a message was incoming.

Anyway, she seemed pretty, had decent curves and great, colourful hair. When I shared her pictures with USHW, she admitted to some hair envy. We messaged for a bit. She seemed fun, had a decent sense of humour but there wasn't that level of attraction that wanted me to take it further. The conversation fizzled out after a couple of days, IIRC.

Another point worth mentioning that is pertinent is that pretty much every bar in my hometown these days has some kind of music act on: guitarists or DJs. And they're loud.

So when one of my favourite bars in Belfast (the one where I had my actual date with Recruitment Bird) posted on Facebook about a new all-female DJ collective, I nearly passed it by. The "music" scene in my hometown is a scourge if all you want to do is meet friends and chat. But one of those women looks familiar. It has been ten years, but is it?

Yes, it is! The girl from OK Cupid with the hair! 

Whoops.

Bugger. I told KfW2 that I'd call her last night and I completely forgot. We've played phone tennis over the past week. She texted me, for the first time in ages, last Friday around this time. So that started the phone tennis. I've got another half day off work today, so I'll give her a call at lunchtime before I start the gardening. 

Chillax.

It's been a long week, so I've taken an afternoon off. It's not costing me any time because, as I said, it's been a long week - literally. I could have pocketed the time and used it later, but it's a dry day. I'm waiting on a package being delivered - some of those clothes I mentioned a few posts back then I'll head to the local shopping centre to do some shopping (more of those clothes I mentioned a while back).

I have another half day tomorrow, but that's been earmarked for the gardening work that I want to complete when it's still meant to be nice, but a little bit warmer and more conducive to being outside because it's a bit chilly today despite the sunshine.

Not quite right...

I can't remember if I've posted about this before, but I had a random memory earlier today about a Saturday afternoon spent with FBS and a few others in the pub. The night before, I had been at D's house, having beers and playing video games.

I seem to recall D making a point about FBS being out with BW and a few others and why I wasn't with them. D was one of the few people who knew that FBS and I had been fucking. I knew he knew. He knew that I knew he knew, but still, I never really admitted it to anyone.

So, the next day, I arrived at FBS's house, which we'd preplanned. We were meeting D and others in town. Why I was at FBS's and not D's, who only lived two streets over, and closer to my house is lost in the mists of time.

I knocked on the door and BW answered. I can't say I was surprised. I would say that 90% of the time BW went to a bar, he went with a plan to meet a girl. He didn't know about FBS and I, so to the best of his knowledge, FBS was available. I'm willing to bet that he'd tried it on. 

He had kipped on the sofa. FBS was nowhere to be seen. It was silent. I couldn't even tell if she was still asleep. But it was rapidly approaching lunchtime and I wanted to get into town, grab a bite somewhere and hit the pub.

While BW made himself presentable and tidied the sofa, I went upstairs and knocked on FBS's bedroom door.

"Are you awake?"

"Yes. C'mon in."

FBS was lying in bed.

"Get your arse out of bed. It's time to meet the rest."

It wasn't really. We had about an hour or so, but that allowed time for FBS to get ready, perhaps shower and get a bus into town.

"Yes, well, not with you watching. Turn around."

I'd forgotten that FBS had made two surprising claims about her sleeping habits. The first was that she didn't have a "side" of the bed. She just went to bed on whatever side was closest when she was ready. The other was that she slept naked. 

I'd already seen her naked at this point, but this was months after we'd last spent the night together. She wrapped herself in a dressing gown and opened her wardrobe.

"Is BW still downstairs?"

"Yeah."

"OK, I'll get ready. Go downstairs, I'll be 20 minutes."

The thing is, while I am 100% that this happened, some of the details of my memory feel off... not quite right. Like the night with D, playing video games, feels like it was the middle of winter, while the next day arriving at FBS's house feels like today: not quite spring, but dry, bright and just a little cold. Given our recent history and how it ended - I wouldn't say I ghosted FBS, but we didn't spend a lot of time alone once she admitted she wanted more than just casual sex - so me turning up at her house months after we last fucked and being cheeky enough to walk into her bedroom and demand she got out of bed also feels off.

Ah well, it's a pleasant memory nonetheless. 

Confused.

A few months ago, I pondered on the blog about the attractive blonde woman that I knew from primary school selling a car due to moving to Australia and her subsequent (and ongoing) presence in my online dating feeds.

And today, on Facebook, she pops up again, this time with a link to an estate agent, selling a house. A very nice house, too. Is it hers or is she doing someone a favour?

The ongoing online dating presence doesn't seem to align with a move to Australia, and her online dating presence doesn't give off "casual" vibes either which is the only way I could see emigration tie into online dating.

Long time...

I was pinged by a girl from work. It was the girl from this post. We've not spoken for ages, so she was asking if I still attended our monthly work nights out. I replied that I went to most of them. The last one she was at was the one mentioned in the above post. but she said she was interested in going out to the next one.

I'm hoping that's the end of next week. We didn't have one in March for some reason, which was annoying because I really wanted to be social (i.e. go out, have a few drinks and a bit of banter). 

Suits you sir.

It's unlike me, but I've gone on a bit of a clothes buying spree this week. I bought a waterproof jacket last week in a clearance sale, and when it arrived and fit perfectly, I then bought a heavier one for next winter. I've also bought a couple of t-shirts and a couple of pairs of jeans.

I think that's my clothes buying over for the time being apart from one thing: short sleeved casual shirts: my summer clothing preference. Once (if) the weather turns nice, that's what I tend to wear. I've not bought a short sleeved shirt in years - since before Covid, actually. Carrying the extra weight always put me off buying clothes unless I absolutely had to, and now that I've shifted a lot of the extra, I could do with something new.

Twiddling my thumbs.

Off the back of yesterday's post about my Dad's house and my sister, I'm torn between calling her and letting her call me. I'm also toying with finishing off the work in the garden, maybe 90 minutes worth of effort, though the weather forecast is for regular showers. The weather forecast also says that next week is meant to be consistently good from Monday, so maybe I just wait until then? I think that's the best thing to do - I'll pencil it in for Monday evening.

I'm also waiting for a parcel that's due to arrive between now and 4PM. I can't really afford to miss it - it's already being redelivered as I missed the knock on the door yesterday, thanks to a demanding co-worker.

So I'm not going anywhere until that's been delivered. 

Grrr.

As part of the ongoing family stuff, my sister hinted that she was going to hire a skip to help my Dad do a complete clean of his house and get rid of all the worthless, useless rubbish.

"If you're not busy, come over and help!" 

I say "hinted" because she told me this yesterday. To the best of my knowledge, getting a skip with 24 hours notice is almost impossible.

So do I go over to my Dad's place tomorrow on the off-chance that my sister managed to order a skip and get it delivered? Should I call my sister to confirm that everything's going according to her plan? Should I wait for my sister to tell me that a skip will be delivered on a specific date?

You'd think the latter, right? Except my sister (and brother-in-law) are fucking awful at communication. They're inconsistent (they'll say one thing then contradict themselves the next time the subject is discussed) and half the time they don't bother because they forgot or they assume the other has been in touch.

I've been accused in the past of not communicating well (in work, mostly, and somewhat unfairly I think), but I think that when it comes to logistics: organising, arranging etc. that I am very good, no excellent, at it. 

So it always frustrates me when this kind of thing is half-arsed.