G-ddamn.

I love October.

If I had my way, October would be its own season, and each of the three months would end in a facet of Halloween. Somehow all the costumes and spookiness and candy and hayrides and solemn remembrances of the Departed seem almost like too much to have in just one holiday. Fortunately this year, we kind of get three night's worth, since Halloween's on a Sunday. Times like these, my weird schedule that lets me party on school-nights really pays off. So much to do...

January 14, 1954, San Francisco. Marilyn Monroe married Joe DiMaggio in what should, by most contemporary expectations, have been the most perfect union America could muster. The bride had, in a few short years, transformed herself from Norma Jeane Mortenson into the timeless avatar of Aphrodite known to billions worldwide. The groom was a man, a man's man, a man's man's man, a paragon of athleticism and performance, and a decorated sergeant in the air force. Here we had the two most iconic embodiments of their genders, joined in holy wedlock.

The marriage didn't last a year.

The events of their married life have been documented and exploited sufficiently that this journal entry won't attempt to butcher others' findings with a summary. Suffice it to say, though, it bears mentioning that the symbolism behind the divorce carries a great deal of significance. That the marriage failed seemed to write in large print for the world to see, "the 1950's models for what men and women should be, respectively, don't actually function particularly well together." Somewhere we'd created two archetypes that, it turns out, given full embodiment, can't stand one another. I dare say it was the first shot fired in what would later be called the sexual revolution. That's not to discount the work done prior or before, but this event in history seems to have made it uncomfortably clear to any paying the least bit of attention that something absolutely had to change.

Now here's an interesting development... Over the last couple of months, I've been getting visits from a fair number of guys. Nothing too off there, I'd assume. Only, the thing is that they've been predominantly straight. I suppose they might be looking for new friends, (and given that they and I are hetero- I don't know what else they'd be interested in), though to date, none have written to me, and only one wrote anything back (briefly) when I asked if I could help hem with something... How very odd... Thoughts, anyone?

Bachelor, huh? I guess I could do worse. Here's how I see it:

Deliberate vs. Random: Life throws a you a lot of curve-balls. No harm in having something of a plan, right?

Gentle vs. Brutal: Why be cruel? Seriously, I'd never want to be remembered a "that guy."

Sex vs. Love: I'll paraphrase Seattle's own Dan Savage: Most long-term relationships are one-night stands that stuck. I think it was Woody Allen who said that Love is the answer, but along the way, Sex raises a lot of really good questions...

Master vs. Dreamer: Well... Yeah... It's good to be good at what you do...

I do like his site. Its tests are fun and I've met some interesting people. There's no doubt of that. That's probably why these two stories stick out: that they're both such weird cases of social discord, completely uncharacteristic of my other interactions on here. ::Shrug::

These are two stories about using this site as a filtering mechanism, as well as a way to meet new people. (Names are left out, of course).

First, a couple of months ago, I got a wink from a nice girl, but didn't get around to responding for a little bit. When I did write her, I offered a YouTube video about kittens doing cute things in lieu of an apology for being so late in responding. After all, most everyone likes kittens and online apologies amongst strangers can feel kind of flat. They generally get a conversation off on the wrong foot anyway.

Her response was less than ideal, something about me being "immature" or the like. (Ahem. This is OkCupid for heaven's sakes...) Following a short apology on my part, our correspondence ended.

Lesson learned: I do not have time for people who take themselves too seriously, especially on an online dating site like this one. Dating and meeting people should be fun. Treating it like some deathly-serious chore doesn't work for anyone. I do hope she meets some nice boy on here, one who doesn't like kittens, and that they're very happy together.

Second, fairly recently, I bumped into someone who attends the same clubs I do, mentioning an event that was happening. It turned out we were both going. I said hey when I saw her, we chatted lightly for a bit, then went off and did our own things for the rest of the night. Nothing too involved, just a casual hello and brief chat. Seriously.

This morning, I got a message from her saying I creeped her out, just by saying hi, and asking that I not talk to her again. Right... Because that's what we're all here for: we're here to not meet people with whom to interact in real-time.

Lesson learned: There are quite a few creepy people out there. Then there are those who get creeped-out far, far too easily. I haven't been called creepy in some time now, especially within the context of this little episode, but if this girl doesn't dig my vibe, I've got no time for her. No sense mourning the social missteps when they do happen.