"MA'AM! ARE YOU SINGLE?!" in These Foolish Things

Hey everyone.

I had Interview #FIVE with the Structure Company today. Ughhh. I am getting so weary of interviewing! This time it was with the president of the company, and he was pretty cool, but I could tell he was trying to figure out why a person with as much fashion background as I do would want to come work with a company that makes structures.

It’s a totally legit question - he wants to make sure that I’d be happy there and vice versa.

My answer back was legit as well. I simply told him about my container house dream and my interest in the whole DIY movement (HGTV addiction, etc.) and that these types of structures/tents/outdoor equipment are all a part of that “genre”, if you will.

His ears definitely perked up.

It’s absolutely true that I think working for this company would really up my knowledge on this type of building, AND there are ways to totally make this product super cool.

But…

I’ll be honest - I have always been honest here (on PB, but not necessarily with the people I’ve interviewed with, duh): this company is not my first choice. If they offer me the job, I’m going to take it and keep working on other positions. I told myself over and over again before the interview to do the best I possibly could because, damn, I’m ready for a job. But this is certainly not my dream gig.

After the interview, I took the dog out for a walk. It had just rained, so the temps were much cooler and there was a nice breeze. It was humid as hell, but it seemed like everyone wanted to get outside while it was cool. I said hello to a neighbor lady who was walking her dog too, and then I walked over to the amphitheater area.

There was a guy over there running around and navigating a drone. I watched him fly it for a bit - just out of curiosity, and then turned to keep walking the dog.

And then, I heard a faint call of, “ma’am!” coming from the direction I’d just been. I turned back to see the guy yelling at me, but I couldn’t make out what he was saying because I was close to the road at that point and couldn’t hear everything.

“MA’AM!! I NOTICED YOU FROM OVER HERE…[unintelligible yelling]”

I yelled back, “What?! I’m sorry, I can’t hear you!”

He yelled again, saying the same thing and I couldn’t make it out. But he was yelling at the top of his lungs, so I pulled the dog to get closer to hear what he was yelling. He was determined to say something to me!

So he started walking up the amphitheater, and as we got closer, he said…

“I saw you walking over here and I wanted to know if you’re single!”

Now.

Clearly he’d screamed “ARE YOU SINGLE” about five times at the top of his lungs at this point! What on earth?!

He was a super handsome kid - tall with curly, dirty blond hair pulled back into a manbun (which I don’t normally like, but it looked amazing on him) and I wondered if he could tell just how old I was from a distance. I know he knew I was older because of the “ma’am” shit, but…

I was sort of in a panic, because I could tell that the guy knew how hot he was, and I wasn’t sure how to answer that question. I finally looked at him in the eyes, probably blushing really hard, and said, “Yes, I’m single, but I’m not dating right now.”

So he came back with, “Is it the age thing? Because I actually really like to date older women because of their maturity and I can relate to that…soooooo…how about some wine?”

Hahahaah! How about some wine? Was that supposed to sound sophisticated? I’m guessing this guy was 22. I’m about to turn FIFTY-FIVE!!!!!

[Sidenote: Yes, I did have a fling with a man-bunned 22 year old in Scotland four years ago, but that was kind of a different thing, I guess? I mean, I knew it was a fling and I’d never see him again (even though we follow each other on social media and still message each other from time to time).]

We chatted for just a minute. I found out that he doesn’t even live close by. He was just taking a break from his job - I am pretty sure the drone was part of his work somehow - photography or something.

Anyway. I said no to the wine.

And he said, “I guess that means I can’t have your number?”

I answered, “I’m really flattered, but no.”

And we went our separate ways. He, rejected, but I’m sure not dejected in the least. Me, with a renewed spring in my step!

My park is much, much better than Tinder and fantastically wonderful for my ego some days! I’m still so happy I moved here. And I’ll be even happier when I snag that remote role and can keep having random afternoon run-ins like that.

Until then,
GS