Sloe Times

The wife has been gone for a couple of days to help her mother redecorate her kitchen as a birthday present. This also means that the boy is gone leaving me with the cat and the dog. Honestly, I could do without the dog, and the cat... well he can take care of himself and generally ignores me until he needs some attention or food. So as I'm getting ready for work this morning in my way to quiet house the question occured to me, what would I do if I were single?

Things sort of break down into catagories of priority of which only the 'neccessities' are important. My neccessities would break down to the following:

1. Companionship (of the human female variety)
2. An income stream (to pay for toys, entertainment, bills)
3. Food (A mans gotta eat)
4. Transportation (Walking will only take you so far)

Funny that being 'with' someone is still a pretty high priority. I guess it's hard to let go of the idea of having someone to share your time with, not to mention the physical and psychological well being benefits being in a relationship grants you. That being the case, there is this gorgeous red head that works in a retail branch of the same bank I work for that would probably be filing a restraining order against me after the first attempt to ask her on a date. It is odd being old (relatively speaking). If I had the self confidence around women that I have now, 10 years ago, the world would be a different place. However, that still rules out the clubbing and bar scene since that is the hunting grounds of the twenty something crowd.

I would most likely maintain the type of job I have now, however with no responsibilites other than myself, I might be a little more willing to take risks in terms of exploring career options. What I do for a living is not hard, in fact some days I fantasize about getting a mindless clone to replace me in most meetings. I was also at the right place, at the right time, during the Internet boom and bust so I have no real complaints about anything. However, if my lifestyle wasn't so engrained and I didn't have any dependants, I probably would make a stab at becoming a pro poker player. I have credible skills that may (or may not) be dy-no-mite! with significant time and effort invested in playing. I would probably also become a teacher. Elementry or Middle School I think. I enjoy enteracting with children, and the opportunity to warp fragile little minds shouldn't be missed if you can help it. Maybe adult education wouldn't be so bad. I'm a soft skills kind of guy so I like to think that public speaking is something I'm good at. I'm not sure if I'm a good motivator though. I can see when things need to be done, plan to accomplish it successfully, and I have been able to coordinate others in achieving specific objectives. However, I am not certain that I have what it takes to really motivate people. When I think of people who have successfully motivated me to do things, I like to think that I've learned something from them and would apply the same principles and drive to motivating others. It is just one of those gray areas for me.

On the food front, that's a tough one. Being single has some other hassles associated with it. Especially when you reference need #1. That means I would probably have to eat better than I do now, and add more exercise to the mix. I should be exercising more now, but that is really not the point. Back in the before I was married time, I took care of myself well enough. I cooked and at reasonably healthy for a poor college student. Anyway I guess I would have to start cooking for myself again and that's not really all bad, I'm good at it. I'm probably not Boy Genius good, but I can hold my own.

On the transportation front, I probably would not change much. I have a Mazda 6 that is a nice warm yellow in color. Being single I would have probably gotten the stick instead of the automatic and also the black leather instead of the scotch guarded fabric, but it is a great car that is fun to drive. Because it is bright yellow and also has the sports package with some additional cosmetic upgrades, it turns heads and gets lots of positive comments. My ultimate dream machine is a BMW M5, but I'm not that rich yet.