The Studio

Wow, Can you tell May has been an incredibly busy month? In the blink of an eye, it's almost June. Incredible.

There's so much I want to talk about, but it's getting late, so I'll just have to pick one topic. Tonight's blog will be in response to an interesting article I read today:
Single Men With Good Jobs

It's a pretty depressing read if you're a single guy in the bay area, but truth be told, it's even more depressing if you're a single woman in the bay area. (which, in case you haven't noticed, I am)

Guys, from where I'm standing, I see and know of many intelligent, caring, and SINGLE women. Here's the catch, we live in the Bay Area, just like you do. What does that mean? That means that we have also done pretty well for ourselves, we have good jobs, we're good at what we do, and importantly, we're independent. We've had to compete just as hard, if not harder, to make it in a male dominated industry.

So, if you're out there pining away for that sweet and somewhat meek girl to come along and giggle at your jokes like a school girl, sorry buster, you're out of luck. Or, if you're looking for an arm accessory who is going to make you look like a rocket scientist (assuming you're not one) in comparison, someone who's not going to challenge you intellectually and emotionally, again, you're looking in the wrong place.

If you're looking for a bay area catch, leave the passive and shy engineer at home, and don't bring along the smooth talking and overly confident management consultant. Treat us like your peers, someone worthy of your respect and a little bit of awe -- but please don't ogle.

In case you haven't noticed, much of my ranting has been to convince myself that there are plenty of good single women out there, despite the apparent abundance of great eligible men who are actively seeking significant others. How else would I explain my solitary state? Sad indeed.

Upcoming blog topics:
Top 20 things I wish I could tell people
On Graciously taking criticism (it's annual review time)

I have climbed the highest mountain
I have sailed across the sea
I have wrestled with my demons
And woke up with only me
I have been around the block
Three times maybe four
And I think I deserve just a little more

In front of total strangers won’t you kiss me
Flowers for no reason but you miss me
Oh I want to be in love
You’re standing on the doorstep in the rain
Cause you couldn’t wait to see me once again
Oh I want to be in love

I have made some big mistakes
And I’ve paid a heavy price
I found a little peace between will and sacrifice
I have watched as all my dreams
Went walking out the door
And I think I deserve just a little more

I’m looking for a heart of gold
I’m looking for a hand to hold
A happy end
Strong and kind
Somewhere to rest my troubled mind

In front of total strangers won’t you kiss me
Flowers for no reason but you miss me
Oh I want to be in love
On tuesday light the candles bring me wine
Wednesday morning I won’t get to work on time
Oh I want to be in love
Surprise me as I’m stepping off the plane
Take my hand as they play our song again
Oh I want to be in love

I have never in my life been the recipient or victim of any random act of anything -- kindness, violence, vandalism. Unless of course you count the times in the grocery store where some dude let's me go in front of him in the check-out line, then proceeds to chat me up, making me wish I had just stood behind him.

At any rate, that all changed last weekend. On Friday night, after catching dinner with Andrea, we decided to make it a blockbuster night. So we went back to her place and rented "Last Samurai". When I left at a little past midnight, I could hardly believe what I saw!! My car had been vandalized!! Out of all the cars in the parking lot, it was the only one that had been hit!! Ok, so vandalized is a bit of a strong word. In actuality, a can of silly string had been emptied on my car, and the canister had been shoved up my exhaust. I don't dare wonder what would have happened had I not looked at my car carefully enough to see that.

Needless to say, I was angry and offended that someone would do such a thing. In the end, it provided the extra motivation to get my car washed, so all was not lost. Still though, I could not fathom why this had happened.

I really don't understand why people engage in random acts of violence or any of the other negative-flavored ones. Random acts of kindness, ok, fine, you feel relatively good about yourself after, but what is the satisfaction that you derive from acting out maliciously towards someone you don't know?? Not that I condone it, but at least when you're malicious towards someone you know and dislike, there's some satisfaction from channeling your anger towards them and causing them some great or small inconvenience. But, when you're acting out against someone random, you don't even know whether or not you'll get a rouse from the stranger. Are there really people out there who are so angry at everyone else, who harbor such hatred, that acting out against anyone is a satisfying target?

I just don't get it, clearly.

People are people so why should it be
You and I should get along so awfully
So we're different colours
And we're different creeds
And different people have different needs
It's obvious you hate me
Though I've done nothing wrong
I never even met you
So what could I have done
I can't understand
What makes a man
Hate another man
Help me understand
People are people so why should it be
You and I should get along so awfully
Help me understand
Now you're punching and you're kicking
And you're shouting at me
I'm relying on your common decency
So far it hasn't surfaced
But I'm sure it exists
It just takes a while to travel
From your head to your fist
I can't understand
What makes a man
Hate another man
Help me understand