Sanitation, Expiration date, Question Everything

"or shut and be a victim of authority

Warning, live without warning
I say warning, live without warning....."

A few days ago I mentioned coming across a charming lady on AM last fall.  I was pretty sure Sunny was real. She had a photo on her profile which usually means fake but that photo, while cute, was not overwhelmingly flattering.  She also stated on her profile she was 49.  Not to say that there are no women who are 49 on the site but those that are usually have profiles that say there are anywhere between 39-42, truth in age is a rare commodity on AM.  Of course she could have been 62 I guess?

From her profile she did seem pretty cool.  "Looking for fun and adventure....,"  "need a new start, someone who challenges and invigorates me...,"  all typical types of profile needs and wants.  And yet, no statements of "I'll rock ur world..." or "you take care of me and I'll take over in the bedroom..."  Again, indications, I've come to find of reality and not internet Cat-fishing.  In fact Sunny even talked about food, wine, and travel; all things I enjoy.

Things went great once we got onto e-mail.  What often is the case when I'm in the "wtf" state of mind is that I just become myself and don't worry about writing the wrong thing on e-mails.  And, of course, that is when you are always most successful with ladies.

In Sunny's case, she seemed uber cool, a guys dream.  She loves college football, though an alum of a Big State U rival.  We had fun picking on each other's teams.  She loves food, we exchanged recipes and memories of our favorite restaurants; many of which were roadside BBQ joints throughout the Carolinas.  She loves the coast of the Carolinas and had many memories and I shared mine.

I was thinking this was looking pretty good.  Of course I'm shallow and looks count.  Something else that peeked my interest was that she grew up a "beauty queen" and was still involved in local pageants.  She looks perhaps like Sandra Locke.

She also seemed to have a pretty stable and successful career.  I've come to find that is a good thing.  I have no problem paying for lunch, gifts, hotel rooms but often wealth disparity can be an issue in theses types of  relationships.  Things (AM-wise) were actually the most comfortable with Sandra and I as she was quite independently wealthy, or rather her husband was, and looked at me somewhat as a boy-toy.  I was thinking Sunny might be an opportunity to have one of those easy-breezy unemotional "sex buddies" kind of things.  We were trying to find a time to meet for lunch and unfortunately we were both traveling a bit.  But I felt sure we would meet some time soon.

Have I mentioned that I am rather curious?  I'd like to think not "stalker'ish," just curious.  Another thing I've found out in my time on AM and Blogger, kind of like the saying all of us on Earth have just six degrees of separation, is that all of us can be found on google with less than six pieces of information, probably about four.

At this point I knew Sunny's real name (not Sunny, I'm not so stupid as to give you one piece of information on a blogging site) - point one.  I knew approximately where she lived from AM - point two and I knew her job - point three.  And of course I have a picture.  Which btw, do you know about clicking "google image" on a photo?  We'll talk about that later but for now I know what Sunny looked like.  Of course, I'm not creepy, she knew about as much about me as I did of her and she had my photo as well; mostly sun glass photos though.

Oh yeah, and I knew about that pageant stuff as well.

Sunny looks much better than this director!

So while Sunny was away, Ryan couldn't help playing curious and googling.  And yep, that was her in that Linkedin photo.  Wow, she does seem interesting and cute.  And there was a link to her pageant involvement, I bet there will be some nice photos there.

Yep, she looks nice in that gown!

Hey that place looks familiar, I think I've been to that place.  Click to next picture.....   Hey that place is just down the street, I wonder how often she makes it up here.  Click to next picture.... Hey that girl Sunny is with looks very familiar.  Yikes, she looks familiar because I know her!  Yikes, I don't know Sunny and she doesn't know me; but we sure know a lot of people and places together!

And so there is the moral of today's story:

*     If you are just on AM don't be so concerned about "local guys/girls."  Traveling 25+ miles is a pain but anonymity among AM friends is certainly less painful
*     Be careful how much you put out there ahead of the first "meet and greet."  Make sure you know the person you are considering for as your new "sex buddy."  Or more importantly make sure you don't know them or that they are not your daughter's reading teacher or your wife's hair stylist!
*     Don't give out pictures that tell who you are and what you do and don't send pictures that are already on internet sites that say who your are, such as Linkedin, Facebook, Pinterest, etc.

That's all for now.  Sorry for no sex.  I suppose I could have lied and said we had sex first and then I found out about the pageant stuff but it's all the trips and falls that make this AM stuff interesting in the end anyway.

Have a Happy Memorial Day as we reflect on those who have sacrificed so that we can do stupid things like screwing around on social dating sites and blogging about it.  I wish I could honor that sacrifice with a higher purpose.

Gen John Logan statue in DC
Btw, Memorial Day was first celebrated as Decoration Day in 1868 when veterans of the Union Army, the Grand Army of the Republic, gathered to remember the Civil War dead by decorating graves.  The group was organized by General John Logan, who served under General US Grant in the Union Army of the Potomac.  President Lydon Johnson created Memorial Day officially as a Federal Holiday in 1966.

Potomac Calls to Chesapeake

Maryland! My Maryland!.....

I have lived a good portion of my life in and around and adjacent to horse country.  I don't ride myself but my girls do.  One thing I've learned is that girls love ponies.  And girls who love ponies grow up to be ladies who love horses, and clothes, and parties, etc, etc.

I've also learned over the years that you can certainly find women who love sports but by and large many women won't LOVE sports as much as most guys.  In fact trying to get ladies to watch sports can often just get annoying!

Shannon speaking:

  "Why are they kicking the ball, geesh they only have to make 20 yards on that last down.  Why don't they just throw it to one of those big guys who just stand around trying to stop the people who want to tackle the passer-guy; nobody is paying attention to them."

I know I'm being sexist but really that is the type of thing Shannon would say when I'm trying to watch Big State U on TV.  So if you have a lady who likes the NFL, go ahead and enjoy Lambeau Field on a invigorating late November night just south of the Artic Circle.  

But if you don't, there are other options and the weather in the Mid-Atlantic is damn fine in late May!

In fact this time of year they have this thing called the Triple Crown that is horse racing.  Remember, ladies like horses!  Better yet, they love to party; and nothing is more of a "be seen" event than a horse race.

Around here we have one of those big horse races in Baltimore.  It's our big event and the ladies love it!  Which means you can enjoy sports and ladies at the same time.  It's called the Preakness or "the Run for the Black-Eyed Susans," which is the state flower of Maryland.  I know running for Black-Eyed Susan's is not a sexy as running for Roses, but you already have missed the Kentucky Derby! Anyway, you should try it.

My pick for the Preakness - Nyquist.  Triple Crowns tend to come in bunches.  The golden age of the Triple Crown was in the 30's and 40's with 7 Triple Crown winners over 18 years.  Then there was a 25 year gap until Secretariat won the Triple Crown in 1973.  Then there was a second golden age as Seattle Slew and Affirmed won Triple Crowns in 1977 and 1978.  Then there was another gap of 37 years until American Pharoah broke the drought last year.  Seems like a good reason to think this is a good time to have another golden age.  Exaggerator came on strong at the Kentucky Derby but Nyquist was solid and ran a very smooth race in Kentucky.  The Preakness is shorter so less track for Exaggerator to make up.  But the Belmont could be the tripping point!

Anyway, if you do watch and you want to cook out or have a party at your crib here is a great classic Maryland recipe to feature.

Classic Maryland Crab Cakes with Old Bay Horseradish Remoulade

Ingredients:

* 1 lb       Lump Crab Meat - cleaned

* 0.5 tsp  Salt

* 0.5 tsp  Old Bay seasoning

* 1           egg

* 2 Tbs    Miracle Whip

* 5           Saltine Crackers - crushed

* dash      Pepper

* to Taste Minced Fresh Parsley  

* As Needed - Crisco shortening 

the state spice of Maryland!

Preparation:

*     Whip egg gently until frothy
*     Combine Crab Meat, egg, and Miracle Whip together in mixing bowl gently, do not break down Crab Meat lumps
*      Add Old Bay, salt, and pepper; gently folding into mixture
*      Add Parsley to taste
*      Form Crab Cake mixture into 3 oz oval cakes.  Place in refrigerator to cool for 1 hour
*      Pre-heat iron skillet on medium heat on stove top.  Melt Crisco into skillet up to 0.5" depth.
*      Place Crab Cakes onto hot skillet.  Once bottom is crispy and brown, gently flip over
*      Cook other side for approximately 3 minutes

Old Bay Remoulade Sauce 

2 Cup      Mayonnaise

1 Tbs       Lemon Juice Fresh Squeezed

0.25 Cup Chopped Fresh Parsley

1.5 Tbs    Old Bay Seasoning

2 Tsp       Dijon Mustard or Horseradish Sauce or a little of both

Mix all ingredients together and let stand for 30 minutes

After party!

The state song of Maryland is in fact "Maryland, My Maryland" with lyrics set to the tune of "O Tannenbaum," just in case you thought you had heard the song somewhere else.  As with many state songs, it's a beautiful tune with rather creepy lyrics.  It was originally written as a rallying cry for Marylanders to rise up with the Confederacy and "spurn the Northern scum! (see last verse)"  It does beautifully capture the writers love of the state however his elegant prose are co-mingled with references to "warlike thrusts," "anointing throngs," and "crucifixion of the soul."  Come to think about it, it sounds like some scenes from the infield at the Preakness!  :)

And if you were wondering what was up with the strange state flag of Maryland it is a blend of the family crests of the Calvert and Baltimore families.