I'd rather be Single In Sin City.

Airplane therapy: My view of Sin City as I wrote this post.

Have you ever been on a date that just went horribly wrong from the second it started? See, I pretty much knew I wasn't into it from the beginning but I reluctantly said yes to this second outing because I have the hardest time saying no, which is a terrible habit and an even worse quality that I possess (I’m trying to work on it, I swear). But I'm pretty positive he will never read this, so I’m leveraging the experience as inspiration for a little soul-searching, like all good writers do.

He started out by asking me about my job and what exactly I do. He asked what I WANT to do and what my end game is. I started telling him about my work in Social Media and that eventually I want to be a published author that pens a book of short, funny, and heartfelt memoirs á la Mindy Kaling's "Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)." This somehow segued into telling him about my blog, which segued into how I would post about my blog on Twitter, which segued into a general conversation about Social Media, which ended up turning into a one-sided discussion about how Social Media is a joke. Now, I want to be a writer, but that doesn't mean I don't love working in Social Media. It's my career choice. It's what I'm passionate about and I'm good at it. I spent tens of thousands of dollars going to school for it and I now have almost 2 years of experience under my belt which is a really long time in social years, considering the field is less than 10 years old. Most importantly, I'm happy and proud of where I'm at.

So when you try to have a conversation with me about how you think Social Media is stupid, I start to tune you out. My eyes glaze over. I can no longer respect your opinion or care what you have to say on the subject. Is that harsh? Maybe, but in this situation you're showing me that you clearly don't understand what I've dedicated my professional life to, and more importantly you don't have enough common decency to shut your mouth about a topic that is very obviously near and dear to me. I don't start spewing off about how I think YOUR job is bullshit, or how I think YOUR career choice is stupid. If I even HAVE any opinions about your life choices at all I would keep them to myself or at least act interested in learning more. So if you’re on a date with someone, why would you EVEN go there? At this point all I can do is look at him with a fake smile and count down the seconds until he takes me home because we are CLEARLY incompatible. 

My future significant other will LOVE what I do, because I love what I do. He will respect the 60+ hour work-weeks I sometimes have to put in to get everything done. He will be proud of me for getting a degree in a field I'm passionate about and using that degree in my every day life. He will try to understand what I do without passing judgments or disagreeing with me before knowing anything about it. He will not talk to me as if he's the one enlightening me about my own career field. He will ask me questions about work like, “How do you come up with such amazing and innovative ideas for this brand you know inside and out?" He will be impressed by things like the fact that I know how to create a Facebook App or analyze social data for a global brand.

He will ask if he can read my blog because he wants to know what kind of a writer I am, my style, my tone, my voice. He will think I have just the sexiest mind. He won't tell me I should really consider having two Twitter accounts, one for personal and one for business so that business associates don't have access to my writing, no matter how proud I am of the honest and heartfelt words I've allowed to pour out of my soul. He won't tell me that I was born in a generation where everyone, including me, feels entitled to a voice online, when in reality, no one (least of all, him) cares what I have to say. He will respect my mind and my voice and encourage me to never stop writing or sharing it with the world. He will ask to read everything I write before anyone else does because he wants to be the first to experience what's been building up in my soul. He'll want to know me inside and out, and he'll know that the quickest way to get there is through my writing.

And on that note, I will LOVE what he does, because he loves it. And if he doesn't love what he does, I will support him while he finds out what makes him happy. I will try to understand what makes him tick and I will encourage him to follow that spark until he finds the right fit for him. I will stay up late with him reading his work, brainstorming ideas, offering advice or words of support - even if I don't know what I'm talking about - just to try and help him. I will never put down what he loves, make him feel like his job is inadequate, or pretend I have an expert opinion on his field. I will spend hours listening to him vent about the things he hates, or praise the things he loves. I will celebrate with him when he has a great day at work, and I will comfort him when he has a terrible day. But I will never act like what he does isn't important, because I know that it is to him.

Unfortunately it looks like I'm still investing my time in the wrong people. But truthfully? I'd rather be Single in Sin City.