The day before yesterday had a super great lunch with a super great guy, who paid for lunch. A man I have not seen in many a month- he was surprisingly funny, playful and affectionate. But he did call me to task – describing me as disgruntled at various times during our email correspondence. So of course I had to look up disgruntled: dissatisfied, discontented, aggrieved, resentful, fed up, displeased, unhappy, disappointed, disaffected, malcontent; angry, irate, annoyed, cross, exasperated, indignant, vexed, irritated, piqued, irked, put out, out of temper; sulky, sullen, petulant, peevish, grumpy, churlish, testy; informal peeved, miffed, aggravated, hacked off, riled, peed off, hot under the collar, in a huff; British informal cheesed off, browned off, narked, eggy, not best pleased; North American informal sore, teed off, ticked off; West Indian informal vex; vulgar slang pissed off; North American vulgar slang pissed; archaic snuffy. ANTONYMS pleased, contented.
Not a good way to be, that is for sure. I suppose being vexed, piqued or petulant could be OK but unhappy, aggrieved, irate, cross or indignant is not fun. So the two of us attempted to reach a solution to the problem that leaves me vexed and we shall see. In the clear light of day it does seem rather hopeless. He is darling but terribly busy and we do not live in the same city. Long distance relationships are fraught with difficulty.but so are close up ones. I became a hermit, a recluse during my early days in London and there is a part of me that rather yearns for those days of freedom. Life is a bit complicated these days and some aspects seem rather daunting. Serenity does not seem to be my fate; instead conditions are often formidable, disconcerting, unnerving, unsettling, dismaying; discouraging, disheartening, dispiriting, demoralizing; forbidding, ominous, awesome, frightening, fearsome, mean-looking; challenging, taxing, exacting.
Life at the moment is different than it has been. I am spoiled but in a different way – luxuriating in the attention of Tracey and her husband in their Burnaby home. My luggage has been collected and there are plans to become tourists today, travelling to a place on the water that I cannot spell. The world seems far away. Some man on the other side of the world insists that he is in love with me but it is improbable and unlikely.
He: More than a billion people in the world. I have chosen one person to love, treasure and protect. I will always be there for you in happiness or sorrow. I love you.
Me: I cannot exactly see how this is gong to work as you are on the other side of the world from me.
I guess I am a realist not a romanticist – well as far as he is concerned anyway. I am getting pretty realistic about the lunch buying gentleman as well. I am supposed to be asking myself what benefit a relationship brings me. Neither of these men are offering companionship – one on the other side of the world, the other with a horrendously busy schedule that allows no space for anything. Men are known for wanting what they cannot have – maybe I am a man. I do laugh.
But enough of my narcissistic ramblings. Uber, my pet peeve, is in the news again. “But the company isn’t exactly swimming in a pool of profits—since 2016, Uber has lost $10 billion from its operations. And drivers, many of whom are scraping by on meagre salaries, went on strike earlier this week demanding better treatment and higher wages. Uber is pitching a vision to Wall Street as much as an operation, one in which all kinds of work opportunities and services—not just rides—flow from the platform. But its prediction is far-reaching and risky.”
Uber does not exist in Vancouver, which is strange as everything else bad seems to. I do admit that I had a pleasant Uber experience in Marin County. A very charming Chinese man gave me a ride and it was thoroughly enjoyable. A strange experience found me in dangerous straits but saved by a generous woman who called Uber for me so that I could make it to my hotel and then to the train station for my trip to Vancouver. Nothing is ever all good – nor all bad. Best to keep that in mind.
Things are a bit chaotic at this moment. The arm fell off my red glasses and I cannot find the other eleven pair. My room is utterly a mess. I shall now take a picture of a funny card that was given to me by the folks at Time Framers in Vancouver. I figure that it is a test – if a guy laughs he is probably good at it. (if you know what I mean). I laughed so loud when I saw the card that the owner gave it to me. I did not use it as intended however.
