“I can't be bothered resisting things I want.” Gloria Gilbert pointedly breathes in “The Beautiful and Damned”. It's an alluring, implacable sentiment if, ultimately, tragic. And I adhered to its artifice for too long.
There are many things I still cannot resist. A good Scotch. Still life. Art. Music. Movies, comic books, comedy and tragedy; great storytelling in any form. The turn of a brilliant phrase. A lazy Sunday morning in bed or a great meal. I love banter, sarcasm and debate as much as inclement weather, games of skill and the smile of a beautiful woman.
I love my family, especially the tiny hurricanes that are my nieces and nephews. I'll always turn back for a friend but will never forget a slight or grudge. My home is a fortress of solitude; stylish and orderly unless I'm entertaining. I like wearing a suit and tie as much as shorts and sneakers. Dinner out comes second behind showing off in the kitchen.
I also love my city. Buffalo is a great, beautiful place undeserving of its maligned reputation. I love to explore its environs, show it off and discover new places. I also live and die with the Sabres. By no means am I done traveling, but Buffalo's where I want to live and where I'm working to start a business (a nanobrewery, in fact!).
But I want someone with whom I can share all of life's heartaches, milestones and effervescent pleasures.
Funny, confident and a lot sarcastic. A woman who can think on her own. Who's not there to just agree with me but to challenge me. And when we talk I should want to pay attention because the response may not always be the one I want, but it'll be one worth hearing. Is that you?
Are you quick-witted? Literate? Acerbic, with a presence that'll stop me in my tracks? Will I laugh at your jokes and get dizzy when you walk into the room?
I'm after a woman who's an equal, a challenge, dangerous, a little nerdy (even if it's just on the inside) and occasionally likes being the best dressed person in the room, if only for the hell of it.
This is the person who I'd most want to build a life and a relationship with. An adventurous, open-minded woman who might also be interested in a home and maybe a family. Someone to share successes, console failures, scheme and plot and when it's done someday we can be sitting on a porch, holding hands and telling those damn kids to get the hell off our lawn.
I know it's a tall order, but never finding her is a hell of a lot less depressing than giving up searching.
So, are you looking to turn life upside-down by the ankles and shake it until all the change spills out?
Me too.
