At the end of my (red) string

Chinese Proverb:

An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, or circumstances. The thread may stretch or tangle but will never break.

 

This morning, while I was in the shower, which is where I do my best thinking, my mind wandered over to contemplations of the red thread theory – the Asian legend that the gods tie an invisible red string around the pinky (or ankles) of those that are destined to meet each.

Such a beautiful concept and imagery – two bodies, gently bound by a red thread, knotted and tangled as they weave their way through the world.

Last week, within a matter of days, I received three confessions from men who admitted to some form of attraction towards me.  The first, who is unavailable, has discovered some unresolved sentimentalities from a long-crumbled relationship. The second man, a customer of mine, admitted that he’s been attracted to me since 2008 and just now got the courage to tell me so.  Attracted to me physically, mind you; he knows nothing of me as a person.  The third, a co-worker going through a divorce (and substantially lubricated), admitted that he’s desired me since the very beginning – nine years ago.  I like and respect this man, though we have nothing in common, and am not entirely opposed to what he was suggesting.  However, by morning and with a clearer head, he could only sheepishly look me in the eye as he remembered what he professed the hazy night before.

Last week, they were coming out of the woodwork.  It’s not a dearth of men that fetters my romance, it’s my challenge of finding the man at the end of my string.

Want – in a bowl

As soon as I hear, “no,” all I can think is “want!” Put me on a diet and all I dream about are carbs and candy.  Send me out on a so-so date and watch the date become perfect in my eyes when he doesn’t call again.  Love the ones who love you – I know that, but, sadly, it seems a man’s disinterest is proportionate to how much I think we should date. You’ve heard the maxim, “we want what we cannot have.” Well, I want it in a candy-coated nut shell.

I had a date the other night.  It wasn’t perfect, but it was the best of any I’ve had in the past nine months.  No, he wasn’t “the one,” but I liked him and I could see us having fun for a while.  I received a big hug at the end of the date – promising. That was last Wednesday.  I didn’t hear from him on Thursday…or Friday…or Saturday.  Today is Sunday and still not a word.  Sigh.  He’s not interested and, of course, I’ve deluded myself into believing how “perfect” we were for each other. Want!

To get my mind off of my desires, I decided to put all of this pent-up frustration into something that I could have.  Of course, my mind went directly to something sweet.  At first, with Halloween just around the corner, concoctions arose with the flavors of traditional candy bars – Snickers, Milky Way, Almond Joy.  Oh yes,  I thought, Almond “he’s not gonna give me any” Joy.  In gelato form, of course, with moist coconut, crunchy almonds and dark chocolate.  Slowly, as I gilded my lily, the recipe morphed.  I prefer toasted coconut to moist – and the almonds begged to be enrobed in a candy-brittle coating.  Finally, although I know dark is the high-brow gourmet’s choice, I’ve always preferred creamy milk chocolate. Since this was all about Me and satiating my…um… “sweet tooth,” I went for it:

Toasted Coconut Gelato with Almond Brittle and Chocolate Shavings – all I can say is “What Date?”