Dating Tip #10: Let Your Freak Flag Fly

Welcome.

It's ten to midnight, and I'm doing something new

(isn't that how this always goes?)

Whenever I feel like it, I'm going to post a dating tip.

We're doing a countdown, and we're starting at #10

[Oh, these can be random

or they can be sparked by personal experience

stories

friends' stories,

whatever.

Just shhhh

and enjoy]

[10]

Let Your Freak Flag Fly

It's taken me years to realize how incredibly weird I am, and I don't mean in the socially awkward sense of the word (even though I am that too a little bit, I suppose). I am weird in the totally absurd, totally random, totally abnormal sense of the word. I even think differently than the average person (no, I'm not brushing my shoulders off). I look at situations introspectively, and from the oddest angles, but that's about the extent to which I'm going into detail regarding exactly how strange I am. My point, is that when I meet new people (especially prospective love interests), I kind of let my freak flag fly, even just a little.

When I wrote about spotting a first date at Starbucks, I mentioned that we are all on our best behavior when meeting new people. We should be. After all, who is really attracted to an out-and-out slob kabob? We love our slob kabobs because we've grown to love them; it took time to get there. We didn't meet them at Starbucks and instantaneously connect with them (that's just not how it works, unless of course, you both happen to be the most outward of freaks). However, I also mentioned that we can't keep the act going forever. Remember that whole shpiel? At the end of the day, we have to take our makeup off, and be the people we really are. What I'm trying to get at, is that revealing little oddities and quirks here and there at the beginning, can help make the face washing process a little less scary. We can't just rip off our lemon-mint face peel over here and scream "Boo!" at the top of our lungs. We have to clean off the peel little by little. That's how dating works. You want to reveal little bits of yourself, piece by piece, so they have a better handle of everything that makes you, you. He should like you not only because you're blonde and giggle at what he says, but because you listen to Mozart sometimes, and make weird faces. Trust me, acting like Little Miss Alabama will only get you through the first date (two if you're good). Be comfortable revealing who you are, even if that means whipping out your best impersonation of Elmo over sirloin and Chardonnay. At the end of the day(t), he'll know who he's dealing with, as will you, and you're one face rinse closer to the clear picture.

Pssssst! Have you thought about your Afternoon Frosting apparel yet?
. . . Let that freak flag fly high, bro.