Blind Date with a Gay Man

I believe enough time has passed so that I may recount an experience which recently befell me.

A short while ago, I was approached by a coworker who, without the courtesy of giving me a hello, blurted out that her friend Joey would be perfect for me. I am not usually a proponent of blind dates, but I figured, what the hell, let's have some fun. Joey's a cute name for a girl, probably a lot cuter than whatever name it happens to be abbreviating. That's why you hear it so often. I prepared myself for a wonderful night.

At this point, I find it useful to interject that I am a straight man. I have always been a straight man. Even through the turbulent high school years, when experimentation is rampant, and the urge to get laid is so powerful that trivialities like gender seem meaningless, I remained unwaveringly straight. There can be no doubt as to the magnitude of my preference for women when it comes to romantic partners. Having said this, let’s get back to the story.

I, as any man would be, was reasonably excited about the possibilities the approaching date held for me. Keep in mind, at this point I am still under the impression that I am meeting Joey, as in Heatherton. As in Katie Holmes from Dawson’s Creek. To put it bluntly, I am expecting a girl named Joey.

On the agreed upon night, I approached the agreed upon restaurant, one of these places only identifiable by the oppressively bright awning outside, in this case a shade of yellow that would have blinded the sun. This color was not merely loud, it was dictatorial. It was, dare I say, flamboyantly yellow.

I entered the establishment and looked around. Katie Holmes was not in. In fact, there were no females in at all. Needless to say, I was somewhat perplexed. I inquired at the front of the restaurant to see if any messages had been left for me. Perhaps Joey was late. Perhaps Joey couldn’t make it. Perhaps Joey had met someone else and left.

But no. The host pointed to a table in the middle of the restaurant. Joey was there.

If there ever was a moment deserving of a Southwest Airlines, “Wanna Get Away,” special low airfare plane ticket rate, this was it. For this moment, I want to be able to charter a private plane to Mali for three dollars, tax included. And there better be alcohol on that plane, because the amount of liquid happy that it’s going to take to anesthetize me from this situation would kill the entire Russian parliament and still leave enough left over to give an elephant a pretty decent buzz. But I digress.

I approached Joey, after ordering a drink, and explained the rather awkward situation. He said he was sorry, that his friend (my coworker) could be a little overzealous. Overzealous!!! How about f*cking insane!!! Who just assumes that someone else is gay? I know advancements have been made, but isn’t it still customary to assume, barring some incredibly clear signs, and I mean twelve foot tall flashing neon clear, that a majority of the population is straight? Again, I digress.

I talked with Joey for awhile. He’s a fantastic individual. I took my leave about half an hour later, after assuring him that although I had no plans to become a homosexual in the near future, his would be the first number I would call if women suddenly ceased to be appealing to me.
9,792 views 8 replies
Reply #1 Top
I loved this!! I can imagine being in a similar situation except not as umm...awkward!!

*fan*
Reply #2 Top
Thanks for the love...although i don't think there could be a similar situation that isn't as awkward.

And as much as I love fan mail, I truly hope I never have the opportunity to write about something like this again. Although undoubtedly I will.
Reply #3 Top
Heh. Well, look at it this way...at least he was a good sport about it, and you were man enough to at least have a drink with him and chat for a while rather than running off. I'd say, for a disappointing night for the both of you, it could have turned out much worse.

-- B
Reply #4 Top
hehehe!! I hope you don't get this chance again either!! Otherwise that could then be construed as a sign of some sort!! mmmm *ponders*.

Looking forward to your other articles!
Reply #5 Top
As a safeguard, I have decided to abstain from blind dates of all kinds for a while.
Reply #6 Top
hehehe this is a funny article~!~ I remember when I first met my boyfriend online he sent me a picture from his sister's wedding he was standing next to another man in a tux (I should mention I was unaware this was his sister's wedding) so I say oh you are very attractive and so is your partner~!~ He said Whaaaaaaaaaat???? I said well I wasn't sure and seeing 2 men in Tuxes together I made the assumption.

Needless to say I was quite happy to hear he was not gay because he is a knock~out ^_^~!~

Have a good one~!~

~Peace,Love,Health & HAppiness~Extended to you
Reply #7 Top
Philomedy, great article. I can't believe your co-worker was so irresponsible. First, it was deceptive not to clearly tell you that their "friend" was a gay male. Secondly, your co-worker's actions are not demontrative that they are Joey's "friend" at all. Putting him and you in such an awkward stituation could have led to Joey's getting the shit kicked out him or worse. I am not suggesting that you would ever do this and I am thrilled to hear that you were so gracious about being put in such a terrible position. Too often, gay males are set up like this by their so-called "friends" and too often the gay male is subjected to violence and even death because the unsuspecting straight male is so furious and paranoid that someone saw them together and hence deduced that the straight male must be gay, they feel they have to beat the crap out of the gay male in order to prove their "straightness."

I realize that you probably just want to put this whole situation behind you and forget that it ever happened but since you stated that Joey is "a fantastic individual," perhaps you could approach your co-worker and tell them just how reckless their behavior was and that they are putting Joey's life at great risk if they continue to pull stunts like that in the future. I would also suggest pointing out that not too many people would have been as gracious towards Joey as you had been. Just a thought...
Reply #8 Top
My coworker and I certainly had a conversation about how she is to never do that sort of thing again. Although I had not thought about it from the point of view of it being a danger to him, I will mention it the next time I see her.