Fahrenheit Thursday

I was surprised to receive a call from Tan on Monday. It was a brief call as it was getting late and I had plenty of house stuff to take care of. He called to see if I wanted to meet up for a movie during the week. He suggested seeing "Fahrenheit 9/11." I said my Thursday would be the only available day. Turns out for him that Tues. and Thurs. are the two days he'll be working in the neighborhood. So the plan is to pick up some burritos and go to the movies.

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He was waiting for me by the fountain. I was on the phone coordinating plans for Friday night when I walked up to him. We hugged and then hopped into his car to go pick up burritos from La Costena. He told me had watched "Amazing Race" the night before to see what it was about. It sounded like he found it interesting although I guess he hadn't heard of it until I mentioned it. As we got out of the car he said, "As a way to get to know you, how would you act in this situation?" He was asking how I would approach being a contestant on the show. I said I would pretty much take charge. But I buffered my response reminding him that it really depends on the situation because obviously if my teammate was familiar with that city, I would delegate decisions to them.

He also commented about my positive attitude. He asked if I am generally an optimistic and upbeat person. I hesistated to answer that. I suppose it's a good thing that these days everyone notices my positive attitude but I know all too well that my mood can change. I told him that generally it was true but that everyone has their bad days. It's interesting how attractive a positive attitude can be to men.

On our way back to the theatre we talked about music. He recently cancelled his satellite radio subscription but swears by it. I mentioned that I'm going to see Sarah Mclachlan. He has a few of her albums and recalled seeing her at the Bridge concert several years ago.

We ate our burritos on a bench by the fountain rather than inside the theatre. It was such a tasty meal. I felt stuffed after getting through about 3/5 of mine. Somehow I ate faster than him, maybe it's an indication of how much more he was talking. He told me about setting priorities in his life. His cousin just got engaged and it will likely force him to reschedule his planned Hawaii golf outing in October. She got engaged after 8 months of dating and plans to get married in three. What's the rush?

Related to setting priorities, he told me story about being in b-school back in 1994 when he lost a high school friend to drugs. Instead of being a pallbearer at the funeral, however, he showed up at his summer Motorola internship. At the time he was more concerned about making a good impression during his first few work days than saying goodbye to an old friend. He regrets it now and says he would not do it again for a job.

He also briefly talked about cars. He seems fixated on the idea of buying a Subaru Outback as he mentioned it during our last date too. Nothing wrong with that, believe me, I love those cars. When he asked a friend if he could picture him in the car, his friend poo-pooed it as a family car that he didn't need. He likes the car because of the cargo room and the stability of all-wheel drive. When I asked him how often he travels to places such as Tahoe, he said he only made it up there once last winter. I thought it didn't make much sense to get the AWD if you don't use it. It appeals to him purely from a stability and safety standpoint. It has nothing to do with needing it. While I can see him point, I don't necessarily think is adds that much.

Maybe I'm looking for problems, but sometime I feel like he's just saying things to make himself sound good. Mentioning the car, how he is responsible with money, just other little things that get emphasized that seem out of the ordinary. I probably am just imagining things. You know how hard I'm trying not to commit to any of the men I'm dating. This is a big hang up I need to get past.

The movie theatre was decently full when we finally went in. We waited until 15 minutes before the start because he didn't think it'd be that busy. He did remember my preference for 2/3 back in the center. We ended up a little further back, but the seats were still good. We ended up in this couple-like seat. I have to admit I was a little concerned about him potentially making a move on me. But as fate would have it, a pair of people walked in late and asked us to move over one seat so they could sit. By shifting over one seat we ended up separated by a spacing between the seating segments. Two permanent arm rests separated us.

Occasionally during the movie we'd turn and look at each other during a funny moment. Once or twice I leaned over to make a comment or ask a question. The movie was good thought obviously slanted. It made me wonder what the other side has to say in terms of rebuttals. It makes me question the truth and how you can trust anyone in government when it comes to money and power.

As we walked to the car, Tan kept running into me. I was walking a straight line towards where the car was parked. He tended to walk with a slight veer to the left which cause him to bump me a couple times. It turns out that he must hop onto a plane on Saturday to Singapore for work. He will also stay there a couple days to catch up with family.

Overall, it felt about the same as last time. I can't say my affection has grown. I enjoy talking with him, but something still seems out of place and I can't describe it. It may simply be that I'm too involved already with someone else to make room in my heart.