Marry Me!

 

Last night, I saw a nice piece of fluff on the big screen.  "Marry Me" is a typical Rom-Com with an interesting twist on the Cinderella story - the woman is already a princess, and the man is reluctantly dragged into being a prince.  If you watch it for the story, you'll enjoy the movie.  But, if you watch it for the music, you'll be sorely disappointed.  For me, going into Manhattan to see this film was an exercise in sticker shock - 2 senior tickets cost us a little more than $40.00!  I've gotten spoiled by suburban prices, and I would look to see movies in suburbia the next time I'm out to see a new flick.

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RQS and I have discussed the "elephant in the room" several times: How she will reacct when she sees me as Marian for the first time?  And I think that she's getting a little more comfortable with the idea. But I'm not going to rush her into this.

Getting to RQS's place is not the easiest thing to do.  Often there is a traffic jam on the Jackie Robinson (formerly: Interboro) Parkway.  So I have to bail out and travel on local streets.  Yesterday, there was a snow squall that threatened to reduce visibility to zero on the most troublesome part of my trip - getting into her neighborhood and finding a parking spot.  Luckily, after 1 trip around the block, I found a spot in front of her front door.

Shortly after I arrived, we went into the city to watch the aforementioned movie. Afterwards, we went to several stores looking for the MTA's new OMNY card - without success.  Neither of us are happy with the MTA's old Metrocard payment system, and we would have bought the cards if they were available at the stores indicated by the MTA website.

When I eventually left RQS's place, I found that I needed to fill my tire with air again.  (I can't wait until I can get the car to Mavis and get a resolution to my issue.)  Although I drove 20 miles or so on an underinflated tire, I felt more comfortable looking for an air pump in suburbia than inside NYC limits. In Westchester, it's hard to find an area without several competing gas stations within a 5 minute drive.  In Central Queens, it can take longer, depending on the route one takes.  And I didn't want to risk time hunting for a station in an area I don't know that well anymore.

It's too bad that when I was on Long Island proper, that I wasn't able to take time to say hello to my brother.  Hopefully, I'll be able to do so the next time I'm out there....

I am getting tired of all of this.

 

Who'd have thought 2 years ago that we'd still be feeling the effects of the pandemic on society?  Over the past few months, most of us have been living "normal" lives.  Yet, there have been sporadic shortages which have affected our lives in ways we'd have never expected - such as the lack of computer chips creating a shortage of cars on dealer lots.  Although most people I work with don't fear catching the virus (we're all vaccinated, and the Omicron wave hasn't been as painful as expected), we still cringe if we see people who aren't wearing masks.

In 2020, I felt energized to go to work as Marian.  This year, it's normal - but the work exhausts me.  I still enjoy wearing a dress, and I'm much more comfortable wearing women's trouser like garments than I was in the past.  Yet, I'm likely going to call it an end of a career soon, as I'm simply tired of feeling tired most of the time.  I'll likely be in trousers more often, as I have reasons to spend more time as Mario these days.

Does this mean I'll be giving up my dresses?  Absolutely not!  It means that I again have a life that calls for the presence of Mario.  I have not changed.  My circumstances have changed.  And this will mean that my scheduling of Marian and Mario time will get more complicated, as I will be doing more switching back and forth between the genders, as I did years ago.

So what am I tired of?  It's not of being Marian.  I'm much more comfortable as Marian than I am as Mario.  But that doesn't mean I'm uncomfortable as Mario.  I'm simply tired of all the other energy sucking factors in my life that make it hard to enjoy the place in life I've worked hard to achieve.

I never thought I'd be feeling this way many years ago.  Is this what being old is all about?

Pussycat, Pussycat, where have you been?

 

Pussy cat, pussy cat, where have you been?

I've been to London to visit the Queen.

Pussy cat, pussy cat, what did you there?

I frightened a little mouse under her chair.

 

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I may not have mentioned this before, at my place of work we will hire almost anyone capable of doing a very boring job.  Many of the positions would be perfect for functioning people on the autistic spectrum.  Today, one of these people made me think of the above nursery rhyme.

Years ago, my IQ was measured, and I scored high on two different tests.  Each put me into the top percentile.  (This explains many of the social problems I've had, as people like me tend to have a common set of issues that often go unaddressed well into adulthood.  But I digress.)  Yet, because of problems I had during my youth, I had to go to school for several years on the "Short Bus", meeting several youngsters on the spectrum along the way.

There is a person at my workplace who does not understand why people in London are eating dinner at the same time people in New York are having lunch. Compare that with me, a person who can explain why the clocks on GPS satellites run slightly faster than those on earth, and you'll find that I have a very hard time code switching to talk with this person.  So I'm polite, and leave the conversations with him to others.

 

Today, this fellow decided to try to have a conversation with me about the meaningless issue of the recycle bin exchanging places with the regular garbage bin - and I politely shut it down.  I didn't want a 10 minute chat with a person about this topic.  Later on, he made some comments to invite a conversation about a new corporate logo being applied to the break room walls.  Although I will agree with him that this change applies needed color to the room, it is a meaningless topic for me.  Once you get past saying that it looks nice, there is not much to talk about.  Yet, he wanted to say that it is unusual (it usually is on the first day), and have a 10 minute chat about the logo.  So, again, I shut him down politely, saying that it will become the new usual.  And then, I left the lunch area.

We all see different things in life.  To me, I saw a corporate logo writ large, while he focused on the colors.  I'm glad that someone has found a productive use for someone like him.  But I also wish that he wouldn't announce his every move so loud that you could hear it across the room.  Who needs to hear in a break room that he is eating lunch, when that is what people normally do around 12-1 pm?  He loudly announces that he is starting work, going on/off break, going to/from lunch, and going home.  About the only thing he doesn't do is shout that he is going to the loo to take a bio-break.  It's easy to understand why I try not to associate with him.  If someone gets on your nerves, you stay out of his/her way.  Yet, I have to say that he's lucky to never be able to understand how cruel this world can be.....

 

I may have dodged a bullet, but what type?

 

Today's post will be a short one.  And it involves transportation, travel, and a possible travel companion.

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At one time, FH wanted to have us spend a weekend away in Amish Country.  I'm glad we didn't do this, as we never got past first base with each other.  Any trip we would have taken would effectively have me being her chauffeur. And that's not something I want to be after seeing her for her real self.  If things had progressed far enough with FL, I'd have been glad to travel with her, as we get along well with each other, and enjoy each other's company.  Too bad she couldn't deal with Marian being part of my whole.

Recently, I met RQS, and she's already interested in taking a trip to Washington with me.  At least, I wouldn't be serving as her chauffeur - we'd be taking the train and splitting the cost.  She wants to do special things with me.  But is it too soon?  It's similar to the experience I had with FL, but yet, it's different.  So when I found ways of putting off a trip to DC, I felt good for now as if I dodged a bullet.  Yet, she will eventually want to do more things together, while I'm still trying to figure things out.  

My big question is: Am I trying to avoid the wrong kind of projectile?

Not having much to say at times....

 

One shouldn't talk much when watching a movie at the local theater.  Maybe that's why sell so much popcorn - it keeps you from talking and it carries a hefty profit margin. However, things are very different when two people are on the phone....

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When I met my late wife, it was after two marathon late night phone conversations.  We ate our fair share of popcorn at the movies, and it showed on our waist lines.  Although she is long gone, I remember the nature of these conversations well, as she rented the strangest combination of movies for the first date. If she were here today, I'd bet that she'd recall all the movies she rented and in which order they were played. However, none of those are traditional "Date Movies", and I will not mention any of the titles in this post (largely because my memory is shot).

Lately, RQS and I have been having conversations that can easily go on for hours.  And if I didn't have to get up so early in the morning, we'd probably talk through the night and into the morning.  Yet, we wouldn't have any substantive to say to each other.  Instead, we simply like the other's company.  It's way too early to say anything. CWS is still in the picture for now..  And I think that she will be in the picture until RQS is sure of her feelings about me in my female presentation....

A slow leak that has yet to be fixed

 

This morning, I found that the air pressure in my tire was dangerously low.  It may not have been this bad, but I knew I had to inflate the tire before driving to work.  So, off to the local gas station I went....  Arriving at the gas station, someone else was using the air pump, and he handed me the hose with about 30 seconds to spare on the vend.  The tire needed more air, so I dropped another 4 quarters into the machine, and filled my tire with 3 minutes of air.  Yet, this still may not have been enough.  You can bet that this car will be paying a visit to Mavis in the near future....

Now that I was late, it was a leisurely drive to the office.  I arrived 20 minutes late, but no one made mention of it.  If anyone complained, I'd say that I planned to make the time up at day end - which I did.  And it was another 8 hours of mind numbing work.  As usual, the first half of the day went slowly, but things went faster in the afternoon.  If I could only have the second half of the day, I'd be comfortable staying at this job for another 2 years.  But, with the agonizing mornings, I want to be out of there soon.  AARGH!

- - - - - -

And that leads me to thoughts on dating....

The other day, I told RQS about Marian and it is still something she has yet to experience before she can make any forward moves.  But things look good right now.  CWS may fall by the wayside, as she hasn't been available as much as I would like, given the time I have known her. Yet, I'm not closing any doors until I know how RQS reacts to Marian when she meets her in person.  (In this case, it pays for me to use the 3rd person for clarity.)  For me, it's a race to find the first decent catch that accepts me as Marian and Mario.  The one thing I will say - I will not "roach" either of these women.

Right now, I made a decision to suspend my OK Cupid account, as it would be way too tempting to swipe right and keep making superficial contacts with new women..  The way things go, I can get a refreshed list of women at any time if I need to go back into the dating pool.  No matter what happens with RQS and CWS, I think I'm going to take a break from meeting new women for dating.

 

 

PS: The tire is leaking air at a faster rate than in the past, probably due to the recent cold spell.  So it'll be off to Mavis on Thursday to see what they can do for me.

PPS: Mavis screwed up the appointment.  I'll have to put up with the leak for another week, or take off a day from work.

Here's a cruise similar to what I took in December.

I just saw the pricing of the above cruise, and figured I should mention it.  Given that we're less than a month out from the cruise, NCL has priced it to look like another "Unicorn" is out there for hunting. The key differences between this cruise and the cruise I took in December are: (1) the replacement of the port of Charleston, SC with Nassau and (2) my cruise took place on the Gem, while this cruise takes place on the Getaway.

If I were to take this cruise, I'd go for the mini-suite again, and possibly sail as Mario.  Why Mario, you might ask?  Well, I might want to get off in the Bahamas, and don't want any hassles with Bahamian customs.  At $749, plus taxes, port fees, and gratuities for a mini suite, this is a bargain!  But I am not interested in this cruise, as I was bored when I was in Nassau with XGFJ, and that there is nothing worth doing in Port Canaveral.

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My brother looks at auctions to occupy his time.  I look at cruise deals.  In this age of the pandemic, good deals keep coming around.  Although ship capacity is often limited to 50% these days, it is possible that added capacity will only serve to raise prices.  Recently, one video blogger prognosticated that when cruise lines start creeping back to sailing at 100% capacity, that pandemic suppressed demand will cause cruise prices to go up instead of down.  A cruise group he organizes had cabin prices double since he organized that group.

 

Right now, I expect that there will be a lot of last minute price drops until people get wise to the fact that cruise ships are no longer floating Petri Dishes. It's too bad that I couldn't take advantage of last minute discounts for the Hawaii cruise I'll be taking later this year. I simply love the idea of a good bargain.

On the topic of my Hawaiian cruise, I wonder if I will have a traveling companion by then.  If so, will she be comfortable with me sailing as Marian?  Who knows?  But it will be a very interesting situation of this were to come to pass.  And if it comes to pass, will I be able to get her a cruise ticket without putting the deal I have at risk?

- - - - - -

 

Originally, I was planning on taking my Hawaii cruise in Marian mode.  I am hoping that I will be able to do so later this year.  Keep your fingers crossed for me....