What I Do When I'm Not Being Slutty

Not that I think anybody is losing sleep over the fact that I have put the kibosh on manic dating, but I would like to clarify something. Just because I am no longer casually hooking up or going on three dates a week with different guys, doesn't mean I am staying home in a bathrobe and fuzzy slippers, eating ice cream, watching Meg Ryan movie marathons and waiting for my Tom Hanks to knock on my door.

[Hang on, I just made myself a little sick picturing that scenario. *shudder*]

While I may be showing far more discretion when it comes to who I swap spit with, I am still living the "say yes" dream. In fact, I am engaging with the world in a broader way than I did when I went bar hopping all the time (not that I don't still love bars). In no particular order, here is a smattering of some of the things I've been up to:

~ Dancing. I went to a club night where my friend's fiance was DJing and spent hours getting nostalgic over old favorites. A couple of creepy guys tried to hit on me, but I made it clear not to mess with me on the dance floor-- or off it, for that matter. Nobody interrupts me while I'm dancing.

~ Reading. Polly and I joined a book club. In fact, we're thinking of starting our own. I'm a hundred pages into the book and I love it. I am trying to set aside a chunk of time to go to one of my local coffee shops and read and read and read for hours.

~ Walking. Now that the weather is getting warmer, I can take endless walks around the city. I live close to the park and have been taking advantage of that as well. On Saturday, I trekked in and around the park for over an hour. I listened to music to keep my energy up, got caught in the rain, and felt unbelievably alive.

~ Satisfying my curiosity. I met Film Felix last week. For various reasons I won't say anything beyond that.

~ Gambling. My former coworkers are trying to start a recurring poker night. I attended the last one on Friday and didn't win the pot, but had the best time playing some Texas Hold 'Em. Next time, we're going to wear hats or visors and have cigars (chocolate ones, since none of us smoke).

~ Singing. Karaoke makes the world a better place. I like to think my rendition of 'Til Tuesday's "Voices Carry" was heartfelt and haunting... or at the very least, not drunkenly warbly and off-key.

~ Talking. I've been having all these amazing conversations about Big Life Things. After spending so much time fulfilling my physical needs, it's refreshing to give my intellectual needs more attention.

~ Indulging my semi-guilty pleasures. Over the weekend, Coworker Chris and I cracked open a bottle of white wine, had some Thai food delivered, and watched a marathon of a certain endearing WB show that I dare not name. There was sighing, wardrobe commentary, and vocal agitation at characters' behaviors. It was awesome.

That's just part of it. All in all, I'd say I've been keeping pretty busy. No ice cream or Meg Ryan movies in sight...