We’re celebrating 8 big years of GGT this year with a look back at some of the favourite stories we’ve published.
DATE-AND-DASH
(From the former GGT column, ‘Dating With Scissors’ by Jesse Trautmann)
My friend Matt met Chris at a bar one night. After some chatting, they discovered that they had quite a bit in common. They both used to work for Chrysler, and both now make a living navigating through the cubicle labyrinths of RBC’s banking offices in west Toronto. Matt got Chris’s number. A date was planned, but by the next week, neither boy had called the other. Instead, ‘we text messaged each other, like 1,800 times,’ Matt said, ‘and finally set a date for Friday.’
Little did Matt know that this incessant texting behaviour was foreshadowing the outcome of a soon-to-be-ill-fated date.
After eating at The Artful Dodger, a bar at Sherbourne and Bloor, they moved their date to an apartment party, but soon after midnight they left when Matt sensed that Chris was bored. Chris suggested another party, saying he’d score a big joint there and it would help him relax. They headed out. During their walk, they reached an intersection where the light had just turned red. Matt stopped; an approaching car was too close to risk a quick crossing. Chris, however, made a run for it – literally – and when he got to the other side, kept running.
‘I thought it was his way of telling me to hurry up,’ Matt told me later, ‘but when Chris got to the next block, he turned the corner and kept going!’ Matt ran after Chris but all he could see was Chris in the distance, still running, getting smaller and smaller. Matt just stood there, dumbfounded.
Minutes later, he got a text message from Chris: ‘I don’t think this is going to work out.’
We’ve all heard of people running a cab or a bill at a restaurant. Hell, even I’ve pulled a dine-and-dash before. But now, are we seriously date-and-dashing?
| ‘ … in a city like Toronto,
with its six degrees of faggotry,
you can run from a date,
but you can’t hide.’
|
Our culture is obsessed with any communication that doesn’t involve direct contact. Whether it is emails, MSN or text messaging, we love not having to deal with the commitments that come with face-to-face interaction. On MSN, I can leave a boring conversation mid-way and blame it on my wireless connection. Or type ‘brb’ – be right back – but flee, virtually guilt-free. But when you meet an acquaintance on the street who just won’t shut-up, there’s no way to easily get out of it.
The same goes for a bad date. Someone should tell Chris that there are better ways to end them. Fleeing the scene like a wanted criminal in order to selfishly spare yourself the guilt of hurting his feelings is not the way to go. Awkward situations work hand-in-hand with dating. Learning how to comfortably and honestly tell a guy that he’s not working for you is essential. If you don’t have the balls to do that, then at least have the decency to finish the date and then ignore his calls…or texts…or IM’s…or emails…or Facebook messages.
One month after this date-and-dash, Matt got his revenge. He went out and met up with a group of friends and was introduced to Chris. ‘We’ve met before,’ Matt said. ‘This is the Chris who ran away in the middle of our date.’ Chris was mortified. Shortly afterwards, he left.
What Chris will have to learn is that in a city like Toronto, with its six degrees of faggotry, you can run from a date, but you can’t hide.
- Jesse Trautmann
