Okay, it's been awhile. When I last posted, I said that my topic would be "Pop-up Pete." Maybe, my topic has lost some of it's thunder, but at the time I was really perturbed. Pop-up Pete is the name of a dude that I went out with once...five years ago! Maybe not five. Let's see...It was 2006...So it's been six years ago!
We went out. Had a great time. Actually, it was a double date. He called before we met and said that he had a friend with him and asked was it okay if I brought him along. Against my better judgement, I agreed. I called my friend "Yolanda" and asked her to join me. We all met at a sports bar. The conversation was great. He was a gentleman and we had a good time even though Yolanda and I suspected that his friend was in a twelve-step program and Pop-Up Pete was his sponsor.
After about two hours, he asked us if we wanted to go to a comedy show. We agreed. I even thought I was going to pay for myself since this was an impromptu date. Again, he was complete gentleman. He paid for both Yolanda and myself. Again, we had a great time. When the evening was over, he walked me to my car. We talked for a few minutes and then he asked the dreaded question, "What are you doing tonight?" It was after midnight and this was a man I just met. In my mind I was thinking, "Going home!" So, that's exactly what I said. "Nothing. I'm going home. What about you?" Now when I asked the question, I didn't realize that the last question could have been interpreted as an invitation. Thank God his response was, "Oh, I'm going to go home and watch TV." That left an easy out for me. "Okay. Well, thanks. I had a great time. Call me tomorrow." We hugged and that was it. Literally. That was it! I didn't hear from him again. He didn't call. I called and left a message. No response.
My feelings could have been hurt, but they weren't. I was like, "Hey, it didn't work out. He wasn't interested. I'm moving on." I was cool until he called me about three months later. I answered. We had a casual conversation like we had just talked the week before. "I wanted to say, "Dude, I haven't heard from you." Again against my better judgement, I didn't say anything. I enjoyed the conversation. We hung up. I didn't hear from him again. I let it go. Until he called me again about a year after that. That was his pattern. He'd give pop-up calls about once a year for five years! They were so infrequent I stopped recognizing the number and I almost forgot about him.
He called this year around Thanksgiving and I honestly didn't know who he was so I said so, at least I sent a text message tha said so. Somehow when you forget people you tend to hear from them more frequently. He texted or called at least three times in one day. He even sent me a picture of himself but I was no longer readily available or free to talk. Why waste my time on someone who only wanted to talk to me once a year?
At this stage in my life, I don't have time for games. This guy was someone that I thought was attractive at one point in my life. He was smart, he owned a construction business, and he was well connected. I met him at a party where he gave me his card. I called him first and set up the date. As I thought about all of that, I realized God was no where in that plan. So, I prayed about him. "God, if this man is not meant to be a part of my life please remove him. I don't need an explanation. I don't even care why he ever became a part of it. I don't want to waste anymore time on people that have no purpose in my life. So God, if you hear me please remove him so I won't ever hear from him again. Amen."
He hasn't called backed.
Thank you, Jesus!
