Thursday, March 13, 2008

Doing my part to recycle

I’m on one of those online dating services where you can check out other people’s profiles, write to any fellows that catch your eye without divulging your real email address, and browse through men by location, age, eye color, political affiliation, income level and about a hundred other qualifications. It’s kind of like ordering from a menu, which, I’ll admit, feels a little silly. (I’ll take a brunette who makes six figures and has blue eyes, please.) But, one thing I do like about this site is that I can see who is viewing my profile. Kind of like having a girlfriend with you when you go out to let you know which guys are checking you out behind your back.

The other day I was going through the list of guys who had viewed me, and I came across one that looked interesting. A little younger than I am, but that can be fun. Dark hair, kinda angsty looking in a very Johnny Depp way. I clicked on his profile. Hello. Nice pics. Looked like party boy for sure – lots of them taken at bars and restaurants – but definitely built. But the one pic that got me was of him in a kilt, holding a baby. Is there anything hotter than a cute guy holding a baby? Yes! Put him in a kilt! (Okay, my family’s Scottish, so I may be a little biased on this one. But seriously, Braveheart – tell me that wasn’t hot!)

So, even though I’m trying to steer clear of the young party boys at this point in my life, somehow my fingers acted all on their own, typing out a friendly hello message to him. (Fine, I’m not trying that hard.) Half an hour later I see he’s replied. Wow, that was quick. I open the message.

And freeze.

Not only did he write back, but he addressed me by my last name. I have a moment of shear gut wrenching panic wondering how on earth he found out my last name. This is supposed to be a secure dating site. Is he some sort of hacker? Does the site have a glitch? What other sort of personal information can these guys see about me? So, with my heart doing it’s imitation of a jackhammer, I read the rest of the note. Where he goes on to say how great it is to *see* his old L.A. roomie again. Roomie? What the…? I click on his picture again, cocking my head to the side as I study it.

When I was in my early twenties I lived in L.A. working as an actress. Money was tight, so lived in this big house with a bunch of other actor slash somethings. Actor slash waiters, actor slash security guards, actor slash tattoo artists… you get the point. And, since acting isn’t the most stable profession, roommates were always coming and going. At any given point there were anywhere from 4 to 8 of us living under the same roof. Think Friends but without the fancy loft and we're all Joey. (And, yes, for anyone who’s read my books, the Actor’s Duplex where Dana lives is totally modeled after this experience.)

So, as I stare at this guy’s picture it all comes flooding back, and in a total forehead smacking moment I realize I know him. He’s Actor Slash Personal Trainer! How could I forget? Not only do I know him, but I lived with the man for six months. I’ve seen in him in nothing but his boxers, making morning coffee.

It’s official. I’ve gone through all the men and am now recycling the old ones.


~Trigger Happy Halliday


P.S. Today is the one year anniversary of another fabulous blog – Beyond Her Book by Barabra Vey. Barbara Vey works as a blogger for Publisher's Weekly, a book industry magazine that's pretty much the "gold standard" of the business. (It’s the Vogue of our world.) Barbara is unique in that she LOVES romance novels and frequently talks about them on her blog, not only giving us great tips about new authors to pick up, but also adding validity to our genre. Her blog is currently up for review by the Publisher’s Weekly big wigs, so she’s asking that anyone who can, please visit her blog today so she can wow them with record numbers of readers and keep blogging about the genre we all love.
To help her out, just go to http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288.html

12 comments:

Beth said...

But recycled goods can be made into something better the second time around... No. Ok. But was he interested in you as more than a roommate or was he just saying howdy?
I'm trying to talk my sister into trying an online dating service. Her roommate met a great guy and now they're talking the M word. Hang in there, you never know.

Gemma Halliday said...

Well... let's just say it there was chemistry, we'd have acted on it way back when. I'm thinking I'm in a howdy mood with this one. :)

I've met some very interesting people on the online site and some very scary ones (like Pirate boy!). I think the key is not to have these huge expectations for romance right away. It's hard to get to know someone online, you really have to meet in person before you can get to know each other on a romantic level. And I think there are a lot of people on these sites that don't realize that and end up getting disappointed. One reason why I'm very quick on the draw with the coffee date. ;)

~Gemma

Kathy Bacus said...

Gee, talk about your coincidences, Gemma! Small world, huh? Can't wait to see who you discover online next!

I'm a frequent visitor to Barbara Vey's PW blog so I dropped by to wish her happy anniversary. She's a fabulous supporter of the romance genre!

~Bullet Hole~

Estella said...

Recycling is very popular now.

catslady said...

That is hysterical. But what I find interesting is he knew you right off the bat so this may turn into something you'll want to pursue :)

Anonymous said...

Well, I was going to ask if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but it appears that question has already been answered. :)

But then there's still that kilt thing....

Terri Osburn said...

Sounds like we are using the same service. LOL! I've met a few through these sites, but nothing has stuck so far. Met one recently who seems nice and he's actually meeting my daughter this weekend. We'll see how that goes. He's quite short and since her dad is well over 6', I'm preparing to climb under something when she informs him he's short. LOL!

And I'll add my 2 cents that you need to give this recycle a go. You never know. I've heard of HS sweethearts getting together 40 years after graduation. Could be *the* one. *g*

Off to visit the PW blog.

Hellie Sinclair said...

Looks like Johnny Depp and wears a kilt--holding a baby? Can *we* have his number? If you're going to recycle you should white elephant him to one of us. I myself could use a kilted Johnny Depp who likes to hold babies...just in case you couldn't think of anyone to pass him along to.

Gemma Halliday said...

Mshellion, if I don't want him, he's all yours, girl!

Yeah, the kilt pic was hot. But, from what I remember, our personalities just didn't hit off in a romantic way. More like a brother/sister thing. But, we'll see. I think we're going to meet for lunch or something next week to catch up.

~Gemma

Gemma Halliday said...

Terrio - good luck with the daughter meet! I'm waiting for the day we both meet the same online guy and compare stories. Lol!

~Gemma

danetteb said...

Nothing wrong with recycled goods, you two didn't date while you lived in the same house. Enjoy the moment :)

Hugs, Danette

Jenyfer Matthews said...

Going with the Friends example, four of the six of them ended up together :)

And if nothing else, maybe he can introduce you to some other hot kilt wearing friends!