Between Girlfriends

One reason why I need a girlfriend is so that I can buy her an "I Love My Geek" babydoll t-shirt from thinkgeek.com. I thought about buying A one. She was a jeans and t-shirt girl. But the thing is I didn't think she would necessarily like the slogan. Difficulties with the l-word or even heart symol. The thing is that I think V would have liked the slogan. And she also had the physique to take advantage of a babydoll tee. I bought A a Massachusetts Bay Colony Institute of Technologickal Arts t-shirt instead (and one for myself - heh, they do a The Confusion t-shirt too). Check out the customer action shots. Pictures of hot geek chicks! (Well, most of them are pretty hot.) Now, why can't I find myself a hot geek chick? Well, I'm 36 and most geek chicks are probably in their mid-20s or younger. Now, I'd be happy to go out with a 26 year old, but would a 26 year old go out with me? There not that easy to meet. Furthemore, there aren't that many geek girls. And UK geek girls are probably less glamorous than US geek girls because of differences in the dating cultures. But still you never know. And yes, I do want an All-Purpose V Replacement rather than an All-Purpose A Replacement.

Fiona Bruce was looking pretty damned hot on Crimewatch UK tonight. Longer hair definitely suits her (true for most women). I never really fancied Jill Dando, I have to admit. She was good-looking, but she just didn't do it for me. Unlike Mary Rhodes. Who does do it for me. Now, why I can't meet women like that at Single Solution events?

My date with S went about as well as could be reasonably expected, I think. I'll get to see her again on Tuesday at the Single Solution event. After that, I hope to get abother one-on-one date with her. We'll see.

Do feel rather depressed at the moment. Perhaps a visit to the gym will cheer me up. I need something. One thing that struck me at Sainsbury's today was just how hard it is to get a relationship going. All that uncertainty and faffing around at the start. Not good (maybe necessary, but neither good nor fun).

Well, S is definitely still a prospect (I've given up on F) and there's always a chance of meeting someone who looks like the Yakult advert woman at the SS event. I can hope. But I need to cheer myself up.

Off on my hot, hot, HOT!!! date with S this evening at the Yo! in Poland Street. I always hope to find a Yo! that has the robot drinks waiter. The Poland Street one is supposed to have a robot, but there was no sign of it the only time I've been there before.

Off to The Refinery beforehand for my usual. I'm also going to pick up my Margaret Howell shirt that I ordered and I hope that Paul Smith tie I liked at Selfridge's, but I fear it may have been a figment of my imagination.

Felt very depresed for the last couple of days at work, not too bad this morning, which is good. The feelings of depression might be a combination of reducing my medication and the fact that work at the moment is almost indescribable dull. I learnt on Thursday that another of my colleagues has resigned. It's like a ghost town. At this rate, I'll be the last person left when I leavee to do my MBA. Talkng of which, my formal offer came yesterday. Must sent my £1000 cheque back this weekend. Gulp! What the heck am I letting myself in for?

I should write something about my date with C. She was a traveller and I'm not. She's also come out of a five year relationship fairly recently. She was attractive, probably too attractive for me, I fear. She was the kind of person who has friends, whereas I am not. I just don't think we'd be likely to be cpmpatible, so I don't think I'll bother calling her when she gets back from Iceland. She's probably a skier too.

Still no response from F after Tuesday, so I think that's a dead cause. Pity. I've got to learn to flirtier and sexier. I fear I will let myself down tonight with S as so often.

Finally, got back to London on Monday after an enforced extended stay in the North because of a nasty stomach/kidney bowel infection. This forced the postponement of my hot date with S, but it's rearranged for next Saturday. Pleasant date with F yesterday. Definitely like to see her again. Texted her last night. Over-eager? Possibly. It's so difficult to know what to do. You can never be certain that some action you take that you think is perfectly harmless won't be interpreted by the other person in way that rules you with them as dating material.

Off to Clapham Junction, now for a date with C. Her picture reminds a lot of S, which is not a bad thing at all. Nightmare drive home tonight (80+ minutes; rubberneckers). I am actually in a fairly foul mood. Wjich is not good. So, we'll see.

Went on a date last night with T. I had suggested we go to The Archduke, but when I got there I discovered (as I had feared) that it was closing early (at 19:00), it being Good Friday, so went to All Bar One, which was reasonably quiet, although we managed to miss the kitchen. Never mind, I had sausages and wedges in beans when I got home, which did the trick. It was an enjoyable date, but more of a friendship date than a romantic date I'd say. By a strange coincidence, we bumped into one of her friends, who is a TV presenter for Angia TV. I've had a look on Google and think I know which one she is, although she has short hair now. Certainly, she wasn't a challenge for Kate Sanderson, who I saw in the Anglesea Arms once. I can't believe she's getting married to PY Gerbeau. He's a bit of a lardarse, isn't he? And I'd always assumed he was gay. Perhaps he is and the marriage is a sham and KS is a sapphist. Better go and lie down. But she could have me! Me, me, I tell you, me! She was drinking wine and not smoking. And she went to Cambridge. My perfect woman. I also saw Sophie Raworth in the AA once, althoughI was with A and had by back to the table she was sitting at. All the celebs go there, dahling (it's handy for the BBC). Definitely, more exciting than Tony Howard. Not that I don't admire his cogent political analysis.

Anyway... bought a pair of Diesel jeans and a classic white T from Gap. Changed my shirt at Paul Smith to one that will fit me. I need a new jacket. As they say, if yo want to be something, dress the part. Bought a copy of Reading Sexand the City to discover when I got home that one of my L&F prospectives is reading it at the moment! What a coincidence. I hope she isn't put off. In fact, I hope the opposite, but women's (and men's!) minds move in strange ways at times. Also bought a copy of How to Pull Girls. (By another amazing coincidence, the random Amazon page on the IE drop down page list I clicked on was the right one. OK, not really amazing.) I need all the tips I can get. Also bought Snapshots from Hell: Making of an MBA . I need all the tips I can get on b-school. And, yes, I have thought about writing a book about it. If I was going to LBS maybe. But I'm too old, my story neither left field enough to be interesting or mainstream enough to be easily related to and Imperial too fatr down the b-school pecking order. But I can and will blog and intend to apply to a b-school journal writer for Business Week. But the above caveats apply.

Got to dash back to the wilds of the North now. Normal service will be resumed in a week.

Went to a The Single Solution event last night at Monte's in Knightsbridge. I hadn't been to an SS event since last year as I was going out with A. This event was for 30s-40s professional. Some of the men, it has to be said, where, in my estimation, the wrong side of 60. It goes to show that people do lie about their ages. I'd never do that myself. Nevertheless, there were quite a few catractive women there, a number of whom definitely could be classified as Classy Older Women (one particularly nice one, a blonde bank manager). The problem with these kinds of things for me is that I have no idea how to flirt, no idea whether or not someone is attracted to me and feel terribly inhibited in general. I've got to learn these things and this is the environment to do it in, I suppose. I've already signed up for another two SS events. Maybe I'll meet someone like S at the next one. Now, she was definitely a Classy Older Woman. Mustn't forget my business cards. Or drink as much. Bit of a hangover this morning. Did I have fun? I'm not sure fun is the right word. But next time, I've got to try and get at least one date out of the event. I shall set that as my goal. At least, I'm having more luck with L&F at the moment and also got a profile from DDM from someone who reminds of one of my exs, S. And that's not a bad thing to be reminded of.

Went for my interview at Imperial College for the full-time MBA. I thought it went fairly positively and my interviewer made positive noises. Wjen I got home, I found an email from the MBA recruitment officer telling me "unofficially and informally" that they were going to recommend that I be offered a place. Which was nice. I hadn't met the admissions officer before thoughI had spoken to her on the phone. Mid-20s, shoulder length auburn hair. Definitely my type. Of course, if I was American I would have asked her out (leaving aside ethical concerns). Of course, I'm not and she probably has a boyfriend. My interviewer would probably scrub up alright. She could be a Classy Older Woman (sorry about the inevitable acronym; I promise not to use it). But again ethics come into it. She wasn't wearing a wedding ring and I do wonder from the title of one of her papers if her bread is buttered on the other side.

The new Tanaka Business School building is interesting. The lecture room are inside a metal cylinder. Unfortunately, the corrugations in the cylinder create an unfortunate vertiguous effect when you look at them. I suspect that they will have to cover them up with tapestries or something. Still, by the time, I start my MBA on 2 October (yes, I am counting the days), they will have sorted out the teething problems associated with the building. After all, they only moved in last week.

Ordered a shirt from Margaret Howell. Bought a shirt from Paul Smith to wear tomorrow. They didn't have the tie in the PS shop in Covent Garden that I had liked in the PS concession in Selfridge's. Never mind. I'll have to go back and get it. I did get some socks and underwear and a pair of cufflinks as well from the PS shop.

It seems that fishnet tights are in vogue this spring. I'm not saying I'm complaining.

Saw Tony Howard on Green Park tube station. He was coming off the westbound Piccadilly Line platform.

The Refinery has just been on the Six O'Clock News. Business is up 40% on the year. Well, I don't have a bonus to look forward to at the end of the month, but I'm going to have make sure that I have enough money to carry on going through my MBA. No self-respecting metrosexual can afford to be without his footicals.

Off down the grooming bay now... I mean the gym. I've off to the Single Solution tomorrow night and I've got to look as buff as possible. I should pretty sharp in my new gear.

Better start swotting up now!