(NB: If you haven't seen the film Garden State starring an earnest Zach Braff and a weirdly child-like Natalie Portman, the gist of this post will be entirely lost on you).
I have recently had occasion to coin a new dating phrase/phenomenon:
To be Garden Stated.
As in, "Oh man, I totally got Garden Stated on my last date with so-and-so."
Let me explain: in the movie Garden State, Zach Braff's character returns home because his mother has died and/or because he has not confronted any of the issues of his youth that continue to plague him as a hypochondriac/neurotic adult. While home he re-connects with old friends and family and meets the winsome Natalie Portman, for whom he instantly falls head over heels in love with. They have a series of surreal adventures and interactions that are both charming and heartbreaking.
Dear readers, imagine my surprise when on a second date with So-and-So, I casually ask how his week was. He says he's had better, and that it was kind of a hard week, because his father passed away. THIS ACTUALLY HAPPENED. It turns out that there exists ABSOLUTELY NO set of guidelines for this type of date; the date where you don't actually know someone, but you're kind of into them, and then they share something so personal and heartbreaking that you are instantly connected to them in a way that is hard to blog about flippantly. So while I am going about the usual process of vetting a guy, I am now also considering that this guy's father passed away less than a week ago.
Date one with this guy was a motorcycle ride, a walk along the ocean, dinner and music and ping pong (read: winning).
Date two was preparing food for a barbecue at his father's house where family and friends would gather to celebrate and be with one another in their sadness.
You can't make this shit up.
