The OTHER circuit

My lifestyle change has been great, and there have been lots of positive changes… too many to articulate, really.

Something I haven’t really mentioned before was the break-up with my ex boyfriend back in September/October(ish?—I say ‘ish’ because, really, our relationship was some sort of rollercoaster which slowed down long ago but is hard to pinpoint exactly when it stopped). We had been together off-and-on for almost four years, but ultimately both of us knew that we weren’t right for one another.

Ending our relationship allowed me time to re-focus on myself again, which then contributed to my realization that I needed to go on a lifestyle journey.

Blah, blah, blah, that’s all the boring background stuff that needs to be said for understanding of what I will be saying next…

Enough time has passed, I’m officially over my ‘relationship hangover’ and over the last couple of months I have realized that I’m ready to start dating again. So, I’ve gone on a handful of dates.

Holy shit.

Fitness is one type of circuit that is difficult to adjust to, but dating on PEI is a WHOLE OTHER KIND OF CIRCUIT (aka: the crazy circuit) that I am completely unfamiliar with!

Dating is weird… I am definitely more picky now than I was before: I don’t want to date a smoker, I don’t want to date someone who thinks that Ringolos and Rootbeer is a healthy lunch, I don’t want to date someone whose only exercise through the week is walking from the house to the car, from the car to the office. I need to date someone who makes healthy lifestyle choices on a (mostly) daily basis: good food, good exercise, good sleep.

Things I have learned over the last couple of months:

• Some men really need to take time to get over their own ‘relationship hangovers’… baggage should never be brought on a date--  if you must, it should be small enough to fit into a credit card space in a wallet, in no way should it ever be the size of a hockey bag
• Some men need to realize that when a woman agrees to go out on a date, this does not mean that she wants to have sex that night
• Some men need to realize that because a woman says she had a good time and would like to do it again, it does not mean that she wants to be ‘boyfriend & girlfriend’
• Some men need to realize that if a woman goes to shake your hand at the end of a date, it probably wasn’t a good time for her
• Alternatively, if a woman doesn’t try to shake a man’s hand at the end of a date, perhaps she’s waiting for him to lean in for a kiss

So as I venture out into the ‘crazy circuit’… I realize that it is an interesting venture, and much more difficult than getting up at 5:45 to go for some stationary cycling! (OH! So THAT’S why women wear make-up to the gym at 6:00 in the morning!)

Fun? Sometimes it is… I’ll keep you posted!