Love Wears Sunglasses

Love is famous for being blind. Look at art through the ages and you'll find little Cupids with blindfolds flying around with bows and arrows. Which sounds super dangerous, and you would think those Cupids would fly around and hit things, but I guess they must use some sort of Sonar like bats to navigate. But, I digress.

This phrase is used to comfort us. We are helpless victims to Love. It picks and chooses on whim and without reason or rhyme. We get shot in the heart with a painful arrow and when love moves on and the arrow is pulled out, you're left with a damaged, bloody heart. Not much of a comfort really....just more of a fact. And my pessimism doesn't shade that at all.

So here's a question, if Love is already blind, why do we have a tradition known as Blind Dates? Isn't that just begging for disaster with all this not seeing and not being able to see in front of you? Two blinds don't make a right. Or a match.

I know they're called Blind Dates because you don't know the other person or, at least traditionally and with no thanks to Facebook, don't know what this other person looks like. He or she is a sweet person, who is PERFECT for you. A friend of a friend, and they just KNOW you'll get along. You have so much in common! And he or she is soooo cute! So, you're going in without much knowledge. Just the over enthusiastic praise and building up from your friend who appears to be already planning your wedding for you.

But, in this case, Love was not blind enough. Or deaf enough. Because this other person is not you're type of cute and not perfect for you and just not for you at all. The conversations are strained and you just go through a horribly awkward experience.

I've only been on one Blind Date. Our mutual friend thought we were just perfect for each other. A match made in heaven. He was cute, but that was about it. Our views were polar opposites. He was rude. He turned every conversation into something about him and how totally awesome he was. At the end of the night he felt it necessary to explain that he would not be kissing me goodnight. Bleh. And to make the whole experience even better, when my friend asked him after the date who it went, he just replied that I was pretty, but too shy and weird for him. All I had to say was that we just didn't connect, but I was happy to hear that in our limited time together he was able to put me down. Definitely wish this could have been Deaf Date.

Then, there was this almost Blind Date. When I was back home after college, a high school teacher of mine knew of a single man looking for a single lady. Of all places, she asked me over Facebook if I was single and then told me she was going to set me up with this guy. I tried to think of good reasons to deflect, but honestly, she told me he had a college education and for being back home, that was enough for me to be interested. So I agreed. My high school had a play and there is a dinner before it. That was to be the magical night I met the ONE.

The night of the date came. I wasn't super excited, but I guess we (and by we I mean me but like to say we so I don't feel so desperate/pitiful all by myself) all get to a point where what we are doing isn't working out, so we might as well accept the help we are being offered. Well, I get a message (over Facebook) that "he got sick" and wouldn't be able to make it like...maybe 30 minutes before this was all to go down.

Seriously, who gets cancelled on on a blind date? It's like the ultimate slap in the face. In a normal date situation you usually meet the person, then make an educated assessment on whether or not spending time alone with that person would be worthwhile. Even if you originally agree to such an engagement, you know that if upon reflection you change your mind, you can cancel. On a Blind Date, you don't know anything about the other person. I guess what I'm saying is that I felt even more worthless as someone who had never met me felt it necessary to cancel a date on me. As if he could just sense my lack lusterness. I think maybe he peeked under the blindfold Love offered.

The reason I am dwelling on all of this currently is because this situation appears to be presenting itself again. A friend is wanting to set me up. The typical assurances of the other party's amazingness have been stated and restated with real life examples. Although he already has a hurdle to overcome as he shares the same name as my ex.

I am faced with a choice: To Blind Date or not to Blind Date.

Again.....I'm just at a point where it's almost a resignation to why the hell not? I am not making any progress as sitting in my bed on Saturday night writing in my spinster blog shows. If Love is truly Blind, who am I to scoff at it? Maybe Blind Dates, although typically awful experiences, are just part of the game. Who knows. Maybe this guy can be amazing. Just the guy for me. The odds are always against you in Love, so there's no good listing of the probabilities that show this date will not result in the one.

So, I guess I'll say yes. Just let the blind lead the blind. Give Love a chance.

Or Facebook stalk the shit out of this guy before I say yes.

Hey, Love can be blind all it wants, I just choose not to be.