I used to think that the ability to meet interesting and different people had to do with my openness to embrace all types of people and to be accepting of everyone. I thought it was a good thing that people of all sorts, even those with social or emotional difficulties, found me easy to talk to. But in the world of dating, a person with an emotional difficulty, especially a certifiable one, is not always interesting or different. They are just difficult and just plain crazy. Why I have met so many men who have a glitch, a twitch, a split personality or other disorders, I do not know. It could go back to my ability to embrace and accept everyone, though I have tried to squelch this ability. I asked a friend once, "Why do I seem to find all the crazy ones?" His response was, "You don't find them, they find you." This made me think about the signals I send out. Do I send out the vibe that I too hear voices, have severe OCD, create relationships with celebrities in my head, am delusional or believe in extra terrestrials? Because I have been approached by these people , and those with even more disturbing issues , I truly have had to question my own sanity. Interestingly, these men, and occasionally women, find me lovely, desirable and want to date me or at least be my new best friend. This is frightening in itself. So what does being approached by and pursued by persons with real mental illnesses say about me? The stories are endless and sometimes unbelievable even to me. I have been at friends' homes, sales events, Christmas parties, restaurants, class reunions, bars, and even in my own home where crazy repair men or wacky female friends have appeared. They do seem to find me.
People who have gone crazy in front of me are some of my least favorites yet some of the most mysterious types. I have seen the car salesmen tell me that I should leave the table if I wasn't attracted to him, this while I was on a date with his coworker. He was fired the next day and went into a psychiatric facility. I had three dinner dates with a man who was engaging and attentive each time. The conversations consisted of him while telling me his ex wife was crazy and that he hated her, mixed in with comments about how wonderful I was. At the end of the third date during which he laughed and then cried over his ex, he looked at me and said , "I am going to work things out with my ex wife". I left the table and never saw him again. I watched in horror as a former classmate read me a secret message from the crossword puzzle he had just completed. It was directed at him and was a direct message from God, mixed in with a message from the band of thieves who had just stolen his house key from him. I also witnessed a woman loose her mind, or part of it, with a crowd of onlookers just watching in dismay. She exchanged numbers with a younger man who was celebrating his birthday and told him she wanted to be his birthday present. When he thanked her and returned the compliment to her, she tossed her drink at him and said. "how dare you! get your hands off me!" He shrugged his shoulders and walked away. A few seconds later she asked me, "Where did the cute birthday boy go?" I too walked away.
There are more stories, but in re-hashing them, I am overwhelmed with the content and the bizarre details !! There are too many to repeat. The bottom line is, the men who need straightjackets and the women who need mood stabilizers find me. I don't invite them in, but I don't run away quickly enough either. Different and interesting is good. Wacky and eclectic are great characteristics to have too. But crazy and single, not so much. If only there was a place for these men and women to gather together. Now that I think about it, there is. It is usually wherever I am on any given weekend night.
People who have gone crazy in front of me are some of my least favorites yet some of the most mysterious types. I have seen the car salesmen tell me that I should leave the table if I wasn't attracted to him, this while I was on a date with his coworker. He was fired the next day and went into a psychiatric facility. I had three dinner dates with a man who was engaging and attentive each time. The conversations consisted of him while telling me his ex wife was crazy and that he hated her, mixed in with comments about how wonderful I was. At the end of the third date during which he laughed and then cried over his ex, he looked at me and said , "I am going to work things out with my ex wife". I left the table and never saw him again. I watched in horror as a former classmate read me a secret message from the crossword puzzle he had just completed. It was directed at him and was a direct message from God, mixed in with a message from the band of thieves who had just stolen his house key from him. I also witnessed a woman loose her mind, or part of it, with a crowd of onlookers just watching in dismay. She exchanged numbers with a younger man who was celebrating his birthday and told him she wanted to be his birthday present. When he thanked her and returned the compliment to her, she tossed her drink at him and said. "how dare you! get your hands off me!" He shrugged his shoulders and walked away. A few seconds later she asked me, "Where did the cute birthday boy go?" I too walked away.
There are more stories, but in re-hashing them, I am overwhelmed with the content and the bizarre details !! There are too many to repeat. The bottom line is, the men who need straightjackets and the women who need mood stabilizers find me. I don't invite them in, but I don't run away quickly enough either. Different and interesting is good. Wacky and eclectic are great characteristics to have too. But crazy and single, not so much. If only there was a place for these men and women to gather together. Now that I think about it, there is. It is usually wherever I am on any given weekend night.