"Undermining my electoral viability since 2001."

Outlandish Josh

Published on Thu, 2007-06-28 01:44

Overheard Out My Window

Leaning out my window just now smoking a peta, I see a guy and a girl walking by holding hands, look like sorta-trendy sorta-"california" people, maybe the kind I don't pay much attention to, but just under my window the girl says to the guy, "you make me happy."

That's all; silence and footsteps on the bookends.

It reads as the kind of unguarded, unprompted statement you make when you're in a moment of liking someone.

Feels a bit intrusive, me spying this little interpersonal interaction, but it made me happy too.

Responses

Thu, 2007-06-28 14:52 — no one special

from him and his silence "you don't do a whole hell of a lot for me, but thanks". it's nice to be romantic about things though. i wonder if he accuses her of having insecurity issues and unrealistic expectations of his role in the relationship when she says "you upset me"...
sorry to put a damper on things, but it triggered something familiar in me.

Thu, 2007-06-28 18:43 — the truth

I want something from you. Perhaps only for you to assure me of my attractiveness. Perhaps it is to assauge the pain of abandonment by someone else. Perhaps it is something linked to status or material gains. But rest assured, it is something.

Thu, 2007-06-28 19:32 — no one special

wait a second... are you saying that some guys read into an honest comment that way? jesus! how self absorbed! get over yourself, and take it for what it's worth: something nice to say to someone else. but then again, YES, she does expect and want that kind of respectful attention back... why is that so hard, or weird? your perspective is even more jaded and paranoid than mine, i didn't think that was possible. congratulations.
anyway, i'd like to add that she may have gotten reciprication that may have been unobservable. he could have had some warm body language that apprciated the sentiment, which would have been enough to avoid the thought i posted above. it could have also been that he had just told her he loved her, or that he likes the way her lazy eye gets worse when she drinks. you never know. it's give and take, not give and get paranoid and then take without giving.

Fri, 2007-06-29 14:40 — no one special

who wouldn't want their lover to say "i think you're sexy", or be happy that their lover is able to quell past hurts with a hug or kind words? what a dillusioned sence of love you have. really, then what is the point of having a lover if not feel good around them, and return the feelings they give you by doing and saying things that you know make them happy? what on earth is your definition of happiness and love? mine is that you remember how to be a friend at the end of it all. do unto others, yadda yadda... how is being nice to someone too much to ask?

Thu, 2007-06-28 18:48 — Anonymous

well never mind mr(slash miss)(slash sirrah) negative up there (although he/she/it has a point...) this entry made me smile. but then most of your entries make me smile. yay for you. (oh that's embarrassing, i got the math problem wrong.)

Sun, 2007-07-01 18:48 — truth

That although the original comment by no one special was equally cynical and paranoid, my joking retort seemed to provoke such an angry tirade. You can see it with cynicism from either side. And as to your other comments, sometimes people want things from you, more than they actually want you. I guess the male psyche doesn't have the right to be "triggered" to the familiar. Maybe the guy was just fucking mute.

Mon, 2007-07-02 20:50 — no one special

on the trigger aspect, but you still couldn't answer any one of the questions. i see that you feel that maybe someone might want something from you more than they want you. that was apparent in the first "joke" comment. but unless she's throwing fits because fendi or prada aren't in your budget, or never does anything for you other than a hand job every once in a while, how can you see someone other than genuine? everyone does little things that disappoint or confuse the other, and it can happen quite a lot, but unless it's unbalanced to their good parts (assuming they have good parts), then why would you worry? my comments weren't angry tirades, they were honest questions of my confusion. and trust me, i live with such confusion every day of my life.

Sun, 2007-07-01 21:36 — Outlandish Josh

As I said, I read the scene positively. I couldn't see in detail, but it looked like one of those "looking each other in the eyes and smiling" moments, not an "uncomfortable silence after unprompted compliment possibly revealing underlying inequity within the relationship."

You can all sorts of bad inferences into it too, and I've been on both sides of that kind of thing (let me tell you, it's a lot worse when the same thing happens post-coitus), but I honestly felt it to be an uplifting moment as a watcher. Sort of a bummer that I didn't communicate that better.

And, in case that doesn't bring a smile to your face, here's what I overheard this afternoon at the cafe from this girl who seemed to be catching up with an old friend:

"So, he comes back to me with another idea for a tattoo. Starts out saying that he 'doesn't feel comfortable with a man tattooing a private area,' and then explains what he wants is a portrait of Hitler running up the inside of his thigh and above his junk, so when he gets an erection it looks like he's heiling... His mom ended up paying for it."

And so you can see why some people thing SF is going to hell.

Mon, 2007-07-02 20:55 — no one special

i'm glad that the reality of the couple was uplifting. it really is nice to see and be part of the good stuff. as for the tattoo story, yeah, it made me snort a little on accident. good think i wasn't drinking anything.

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