Rising rapidly in the rankings
Friend: Please, you seek out [rich and successful] people.
Me: That’s not exactly true.
It’s been a strange few weeks.
Some important people in my life left, some came back, and some seem to have just arrived.
Still trying to make sense of it all.
Saw some college friends – along with their kids – this past weekend.
Never told you this but the head surgeon at one of the major hospitals is a buddy of mine.
When Alison had one of her billion surgeries, she was super weak and couldn’t make the return trip to remove the staples in her skull. So, he made a house call, came over, and removed them for us. No questions asked.
It was a super kind gesture for a dude that is ridonk high-ranking in NYC. He never saw her again.
It hurt me to write that.
Dunno why I feel compelled to tell you that.
We met again at the party in NJ from a few years back. And this past weekend, I brought the boy to his (ginormous!) apartment in Chelsea after the kid and I met his brother and nephew for dim sum in Chinatown.
It was bittersweet. The boy, however, had a blast.
Him: Do we have to go?
Me: ‘Fraid so, kiddo.
Him: Awwwww…
Speaking of doctors, got fixed up with one recently. Totally my type BUT just zero chemistry.
Me: If you were trapped on a desert island, what would be the one thing you’d want to have?
Her: Why would I be trapped on a desert island?
That’s how the entire evening was. It was like pulling teeth. God, I hate dating.
Although, we did discuss just that.
Her: Well, there is this one guy. He’ll never commit but it’s hard to just stop things with him.
Me: Ah, a floater. I had a floater of my own for a while, once. So, I get it. But ultimately, it’s all just a waste of everyone’s time.
While I was chatting with her, a smoking hot lawyer that I met recently hit me up.
She actually WAS a law professor while I only wished to be one.
Her: It’s been an extreeeeeeeemely [long day]. And it’s not looking like it’s wrapping up anytime soon. What are you up to?
Me: I’m writing you on a date if that means anything. I’m an awful person but I’m bored to tears at the moment.
Her: Do you need an emergency work call? Just say the word.
Me: I would but I’m trying to wrap this up naturally.
It’s funny, you kinda realize what you want more when presented with a better option.
So, I took it.
Me: (exiting) Another date-to-nowhere, over.
Her: Ugh, those are the worst. I’m at least marginally more fun.
Thought about what my friend said about my seeking out rich and successful people. There’s some truth to that but it’s along the same lines as, “I married Alison for her money.”
It’s not that I want to be friends with them because they’re wealthy and wildly successful, it’s that they made them themselves wealthy and wildly successful. That ambition and drive is what attracts me.
Told you once that you’re the average of the five people that you hang out with the most.
When you have a relationship with someone, you don’t just have a relationship with them, you have a relationship with the five people they hang out with the most, and the five people that each one of those five hang out with and so on.
And if they’re all lame with zero ambition, that rubs off on them, and – ultimately – on you.
A buddy once told me that he hung out with me so much that he became me. But, I realized that he actually became the person he was crushing on since high school because that’s who he spends the most time floating around and aspiring to be.
The thing is that I stopped hanging out with his crush – who’s, honestly, quite nice but just so…lame; she’s not particularly bad, but she’s also not particularly anything, really.
And I realized that I continued hanging out with him, the lameness of his crush would glom onto me and I couldn’t have that.
It probably sounds elitist to you, but there are 7.753 billion people in the world and you can’t hang out with all of them.
Why not have your five be wildly successful versus just meh?
Besides, now that I’ve got the kid, gotta be very careful who I let into his life. Because they’ll leave a bit of themselves with me, and I’ll – in turn – leave them with him.
Which, depending on the person, might not be a bad thing.
Her: Actually, the case I’m working on is in the papers right now. Google, [my client] and you can read up on where we are right now.
Me: (minutes later) Holy shitballs, Counselor! (later) I’m super turned on right now. You’re rising rapidly in the rankings
Her: (laughing) Does first place get a gold star?
Me: (scoffing) Please, I’m the prize! What woman wouldn’t want a neurotic and clumsy, but somewhat charming, non-practicing Ivy-League-educated lawyer that fights and cooks?
Her: (continues laughing)
Location: earlier today, showing Chad now to remove a flapper
Mood: stupidly optimistic
Music: Got some brand new wings. No, we won’t go back. (Spotify)
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