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The kind of girl who sets her expectations based on romance novels and nonsense.
And I’m the kind of guy who’ll only let her down.
Chapter Twenty
Emmy
Cream cheese frosting. Works every time.
The conversation I had with Owen after Mack went off on Lindsay almost felt normal.
Back in the day, talking to him was easy, in spite of my feelings. And if I could keep him in the friend box in my mind, I’d be just fine.
But doing that is proving to be more difficult than I want it to be.
Like I thought it would be easy.
Real life romance is never easy, no matter what The Hopeful Romantic tells you.
I’ve stated very plainly (albeit anonymously) what kind of guy I’m holding out for, and Owen Larrabee doesn’t meet any of my criteria.
The following night, after we close, I go home and escape into my room with my laptop to check in with the responses to the Hopeful in Hoboken episode. Ripper put it together in record time, and I didn’t even have to announce a delay because of the fire.
I post the transcript for each episode on my website, and listeners can respond and engage with other listeners and with me. My VA Lily also sifts through a lot of these, but I like to keep myself in the loop as to how people are responding. Helps me know what’s hitting and what to do more of. Or not.
I open the site and click on the comments as a new notification pops up.
Practical in Poughkeepsie has left a comment.
I scroll to the bottom of the comments section and find the following waiting for me:
Heard this episode by accident and had to write in. I watched as my buddies ate this up, taking notes as if your list is what every woman wants.
You call yourself The Hopeful Romantic, but these ideas aren’t hopeful, they’re unrealistic. Would you really choose a guy who dances with you in the street or kisses you in the rain over a guy who takes out the garbage or helps you clean up the house? What about a guy who’s working on getting on his feet but who would do anything for you? Or maybe just someone who’ll listen when you’ve had a bad day?
Thoughtfulness in a relationship doesn’t always have to look like a romantic gesture, and don’t you think it’s more important in the long run?
Let’s normalize practical romance instead of holding guys to an impossible, unrealistic standard. Nobody is going to check all those boxes, no matter what your romance novels say.
Signed,
Practical in Poughkeepsie.
I re-read the comment as another notification pops up.
Practical in Poughkeepsie has left a comment.
This guy is on the site right now. The second comment is on Episode 115. Lonely in Larkspur.
Don’t confuse a choice to stay single with loneliness. There are a lot of reasons someone would choose not to waste time in a relationship. Maybe ‘Lonely in Larkspur’ is onto something. Maybe living a life without having to get someone else’s OK on everything is a good thing.
Wow, this guy sounds miserable.
I start to respond when I get another notification.
Practical in Poughkeepsie has left a comment.
Whoever this person is, he’s been listening to a lot of episodes, and apparently had some extra time on his hands tonight to comment on every single one.
