Not A Morning Cat

First make the coffee. Then we can talk.

Home and the Homestretch

I'm back in town and just checked in on the fiasco that is Match.com. With less than a week to go until the month-long experiment ends, here's where we stand:

Guys who've read my profile: 1564
Emails received: 110
Winks received: 88
Guys I've agreed to meet in person: 1
Guys I've actually met in person: 0

If the scheduled drink/coffee comes through, I will have tied my record from last go-around. It's safe to say we are well on our way to declaring - with absolute conviction - that online dating is just not my thing.

Speaking of dating...

It's been about 25 years since I stopped thinking boys were icky, and I've had my fair share of interaction with the opposite sex. Little catches me off-guard anymore.

But once in a while - when I least expect it - I find myself struggling to make sense of the male mind, and it can be infuriating.

Time to send away for a new decoder ring. I think mine's broken.

UPDATE: Mystery solved. It wasn't the ring that was broken. It was the guy.

On The Road Again

Not that posting's been overabundant lately, but just a heads up that I'm going to be traveling for the next few days and most likely offline.

Have a great weekend. Try not to melt.

Catch you back here early next week unless something pressing pops up, and I can't resist the urge to have an opinion.

Male Fraud

It's all starting to smell a little sexist.

I'm not one to drop the words gender discrimination liberally, but it's tough to ignore the obvious. Turn up in Central Park with drugs, a sex toy, and a rope tied around your neck and your genitals, and we'll pretend it never happened. Transport a prostitute across state lines and humiliate your wife, and we'll give you your own show (with a female co-host who's got a history of putting down women). But be a woman with years of experience and an opinion and get fired instantaneously.

On first blush, what Octavia wrote was definitely controversial and inflammatory. I don't support or excuse her words. But take a minute to read her follow-up apology and explanation, and it makes sense she said what she did. In fact, reading her post makes me think that she has more knowledge of Middle Eastern history and affairs in her pinky than most - if not all - of the rest of the CNN staff put together.

In the interest of full disclosure, I did have some interaction with Octavia during my tenure at CNN. Because we covered the Internet, we often turned to Octavia for help clarifying and often verifying online content related to the war on terrorism and for help navigating some of the more prolific extremist websites. She was always generous with her knowledge and time, and like other seasoned correspondents let go in the last couple of years - Kelli Arena, Miles O'Brien, Jamie McIntyre - I have no idea how CNN plans to replace her. I would not, however, be the least bit surprised if Jon Klein's got a younger, generically prettier, less-seasoned female reporter waiting in the wings to take Octavia's spot.

Twitter's dangerous because of its constraints, and I'm surprised that the network that fired Chez for blogging (even though he was never a public face of CNN and never revealed his affiliation with the network) would give its on-air personalities free rein to spout unchecked in 140 characters or less. But I am even more shocked at the blatant double and triple standards that keep emanating from this former bastion of trusted and respected news. Be a guy who breaks the law, no problem. Be a woman with an opinion, buh-bye. If you're going to defend hiring Spitzer by saying he apologized so that makes him a-ok, how can you fire Octavia after she not only apologized but also eloquently and thoughtfully explained the meaning behind her remark?

And you know what's even more pathetic? As a fellow former CNNer pointed out this morning as she sent along the news of Octavia's dismissal, the senior editor of Middle East affairs gets canned, but this crap gets branded news. I could not be more proud to no longer be affiliated with CNN.

UPDATE: I just had the fleeting thought of googling CNN and controversial comments simply to see if anything turned up that might jog my memory as to how CNN has handled possibly problematic opinions in the past. I didn't have to dig deep. I'd forgotten that this is the same network that was more than thrilled to give Erick Erickson a platform on national TV less than four months ago. He had a whole collection of incendiary and offensive online opinion in the can before he was even hired. One tweet with an apology and explanation and Octavia's toast? You do the math. Something's off. It doesn't add up.

Eye Spy y Espana

Today's adventure took me to the opthamologist to see about the intermittent headaches that keep turning up above my right eye. The good news is nothing's askew. My eyes are just really dry, and the doctor thinks that along with general dehydration is what's causing me discomfort. I don't know if there's ever such a thing as drinking enough water when it's so brutally hot outside, but I'm going to make a point of trying.

In more exciting news, how about Spain? I was out and about and missed watching the 1-0 win over Germany to advance to the World Cup Final, but I can only imagine how the country is celebrating right now. Via Facebook, I know my Madrid friends are ecstatic. Sunday's going to be epic. I wish I were there with them to watch.

No Deal

I realize content's been ultra light around here the past few days, but truth be told, there hasn't been much to share. I had a good long weekend. Spent the first half of Saturday at the pool and the second half at the Nats game. Sunday was mellow in prep for a big night out which turned out to be a lot of fun. Friends. Fireworks. The full 4th experience.

Today I kicked back into pro mode and went to meet with some PR folks about a possible gig. The spot that caught my eye would have had me working on some of the new eHealth initiatives you'll start hearing about as health care reform implementation starts picking up steam. But the people I met with saw something else they liked in my experience and wanted to take me down an alternate route. Problem was that route involves working with a large health insurance company.

As you can imagine, that's a cut and dry deal breaker for me.

Everyone I met with was extremely cool, but after we sussed out the chasm between my wants and their needs, we cut the scheduled itinerary short. It was unquestionably the appropriate move.

I suspect this may be an issue with other PR firms in DC as many take on a large scope of varied clients, and I suppose for some, that variety is acceptable. However, having dedicated the past couple of years to fighting big insurance with everything I had, I don't have any room to negotiate or compromise.

Just a few months ago, I created "Big Insurance: Sick of It." Something like that sticks. It's an open and shut case. No deal.

Online upDating

I did play with the profile again yesterday - prior to Mister Softee's correspondence - just to tidy and consolidate a touch. In the interest of keeping you in the loop, here's how it stands at the moment:

I tried this for a month about 6 months ago, but after the guy who emailed me daily for 2 weeks and disappeared when I asked if he had a phone (If I had to guess? Prison. Or married), the guy who complained about paying for dinner on the first date (He's the only one I actually agreed to meet in person), and the countless "not even remotely appropriate"s, I said I was done. Then I went abroad for a month and came back with the crazy thought that I might be willing to try one more time. A couple of my best friends moved away recently - one for love and one for work - so I figured why not attempt to broaden out the social circle a touch.

Here's what's important to me: I take really good care of myself physically, and I'd like you to do the same. I'm ambitious and driven so I'm looking for a guy who appreciates that in me and has the same propensity to take initiative and get things done. I love to laugh, but I don't get into Adam Sandler so much as Jon Stewart. We won't need to be attached at the hip to know we're together. I've had several good relationships but haven't met the one. I'm willing to keep going until I do. I don't like unnecessary drama. Other than that, let's see what happens.

UPDATE: After 24 hours, I recognized the need to add a few things.

1. I think the income question is awkward so I'm not answering it, but I can comfortably share that I've worked very hard over the years to be able to support myself, and it is important to me that you've done the same.

2. I like a guy who can spell. I'll leave it there.

3. If any of your photographs show you straddling something as if it's part of your anatomy, assume I'm not interested.

4. All of my photos were taken in the last 2 months. If you don't have more than one or the ones you have are blurry, assume I'm not interested. If you don't have any photos, don't bother. I won't even consider furniture on Craigslist that doesn't have a photo.

5. I'll go a little younger or a touch older than my specifications, but if you're old enough to be my Dad, you're too old to be my date. I know lots of girls are working out their issues. I'm good.

6. If you're in my favorites, it's probably because I'm figuring out the least ridiculous thing to write to say hello. Plus, a little part of me still likes the guy to make the first move.

7. If you don't have kids but have posted photos of yourself with kids, it doesn't make me think you're sensitive. It makes me think you have kids.

8. Athletic and toned doesn't mean you want to be athletic and toned. Or that you were athletic and toned in high school. As a rule, if you're overweight in your pictures, I'm not going to believe you are athletic and toned.

9. If you're under 30, I'm flattered. Not interested. But flattered. Thank you.

(This is fun. There may be more soon.)