A whole new set of cells

They say your body replaces all its cells every seven years...

Really interesting lunch with this guy today--let's call him Paul.

I had dinner with Paul in 2005 or 2006, not sure which.  And he was one of the first men I ever met on CollarMe.  I still remember what I was wearing that night.  I had lost enough weight that my cutest skirt was no long so cute, and I'd put a safety pin in the side to keep it from falling to my hips.  We went to a neighborhood restaurant, half a block from where I lived back then.  He had just moved back to Seattle, after spending 10 years in Boston, and the connection with my home town made him feel far more in my world.  I love Seattle, but in many ways, I still have Boston edges that never rubbed off.  He and I had a lot of similar cultural reference points.  And then he never asked me out again.  According to my e-mail, we corresponded in 2010, 2011, and then he e-mailed me about a month ago, and I said "seeing someone" but this morning (before Philip called me), I e-mailed him and said "back on the West Coast and unattached" and he called me half an hour later and we met for lunch.

It was fun.  I can't read him, which probably means he isn't that interested. But he did grab my hair 3 times (and my CM profile makes it very clear that that is one of my favorite things in the world, and then he confirmed with me, probably more to watch me blush than anything else). 

I have to say, I'm a far better date now than I was 7 years ago.  My new cells don't carry all the shame that my old ones did.  I have a confidence that isn't faked.  He actually asked what I remembered about our last date and I told him about what I was wearing.  He was surprised, and then I told him he was one of the very first people I met from CM, and I had been SO nervous.  It was really nice to just be honest and open, rather than all the game playing I used to do.  I guess that's where the confidence comes from.  It was kind of like seeing my ex boyfriend last month, to see how much more comfortable I am in their presence and how much more fun it is to date from confidence.

So, who knows?  If he calls, I'll go out with him again.  And if Philip can communicate more openly about what is going on with him, I really do like Philip.  And if someone else appears, well I have to say, this week has been productive.  And I need to date.  I'm much happier when I'm dating!  Much, much, much happier!