That's so cold

"Shoe Boy" was quite a character.  He took me to dinner for our first date and followed that with a trip to a wine bar and then to listen to live music.  That's the way to win me over.  We had a great time.  However, the fabled "sparks" weren't there on that first date.  I hoped that the next meeting would produce sparks, and it did just that.  We had another dinner out followed with lots of deep conversation and movie watching, two of my favorites.  Date three was sure to be even better.  It was the same type of date, but we still enjoyed each other's company.  He seemed to be really into me, and I was feeling really comfortable with him.  I texted him that I missed him and looked forward to our next meeting.  Later, I realized that I had left a pair of shoes at his apartment.  So, I let him know that.  He did not respond to either of these messages.  However, he had an iPhone and had read receipts turned on. I knew he read my messages and chose not to respond.  It took days of waiting before I finally got a response from him.  By this time, I was mad that he kept reading messages without responding but I wanted my damn shoes back.  He proceeded to tell me that I was moving too fast for him and he just wasn't ready for a serious relationship.  Really? Because I said I missed him? I miss lots of people...my students, my friends, my co-workers.  What an ass.  I gave up on the shoes and cut my losses, assuming I was done with him.

He had different ideas.  Weeks later, he messaged me and started telling me that he missed me and wanted to see me.  He even suggested moving in together and me being his sugar mama. This just made me laugh.  A sugar mama on a teacher's salary.  This guy was severely unbalanced.  We did not see each other again, but he kept messaging me every few weeks.  When I didn't respond via text message, he tried the dating site.  He would send a message and wait a few days or week before trying again.  I didn't hear from him for a while.  About a month ago, I got a text message from a number I didn't recognize.  The area code was from Philadelphia.  I didn't know anyone from Pennsylvania. I was with my best friend, and she goaded me to ask who it was.

Before continuing, I must say that in the last few months, I started using iPhone read receipts.  So, when I sent, "Hi. Who is this?" and he responded back with his name and a frowny face, it showed me as having read the message.  Obviously, I wasn't going to respond.  He tried to move in with me.  After a few minutes, I received another message that said, "That's cold."  I found this beyond comical as he had done the same thing to me six months earlier.

He did not message me again for a week.  It came on the dating site and said, "You don't even want to hear what I have to say?"  I have come across some pretty persistent people in my experiences.  I happened to delete my dating profile a few days later and haven't heard from him. I'm hoping that it stays that way.

XOXO,
Leia