The First Four Matches and Analysis

With the NCAA Tournament well underway with the First Four games of the tournament, I thought to myself “self, we should do our own First Four analysis!” About NCAA Basketball? While I’m sure I can make a valiant attempt at it, I probably couldn’t do it justice (at least not now anyway, and certainly not in this forum!). Instead, I will do an analysis of the First Four matches that I’ve had on Tinder!

Being brand spanking new to the scene, I was curious to see what would work and what didn’t. Through these introductory conversations, you can easily tell what works and what doesn’t. Perhaps this will be a help to all you guys out there, and you can do it while watching the NCAA Tournament!

First Match

Over 30 miles away from my central destination. Meaning she probably lives in New Jersey. She’s an attractive 29 year-old woman with a Bob Marley quote in her profile. Once I get the “match” notification from Tinder, I send a message to her. The message was, “Hi, Tinder said we liked each other haha. How are you?”

Result? No response. In retrospect, that introduction comes off a little weird. While weird works for me in the “real world” while meeting people (I’m more of a conversationalist), I understand it could be taken the wrong way online.

Second Match

About 15-20 miles away from my location. This is a little more tricky, as she could be anywhere from Brooklyn, Connecticut or anywhere in between. My guess is Brooklyn judging from her pictures, she had a bit of a hipster vibe. She has a fake name and a fake age (108!) listed on her profile, the only link into who she is revolves around a quote from C.S. Lewis, one that I enjoyed. I send over, “Hey, how’s it going? Nice CS Lewis quote.”

Result? A response! “Hey” and “It’s good rite?” Upon receiving these separate messages, I responded “I think so, gets ya thinking. What’s your name? And you look good for 108 haha.” Result? No response. In retrospect, perhaps it was too early to ask serious questions like I did and I should’ve just gone more into the quote. But, it was going to come sooner or later.

Third Match

Around 10-15 miles away from me. It is certain I’ve found someone who lives on the same island as me! Very exciting to say the least. Very attractive 23 year-old with something in her profile saying “New York City is my playground.” I reach out and say “Hey, good morning! You live in the city?”

Result? A response, but a day later. But, this conversation extended way longer than the previous one (I will spare you all the details). The week long discussion ended though, once I gave her my number. In retrospect, I may have given the number too early while in conversation. Or, I may not have shown too much of a sexual attraction to her (even though she is enormously attractive) in an attempt to not come off as strange. All things come to an end!

Fourth Match

Over 35 miles away. Another New Jersey girl makes an appearance. A young girl, 19 years old and it looks like she’s a dancer of some kind. In her profile, it said something along the lines of “This is my favorite game!” She has since changed it to “I’m here to make fun of you….” I send to her “Good morning! What are you up to?”

Result? No response, and not surprisingly. As she said, she considered it more of a game. In retrospect, why did I even send a message on this one?

Overall, not much happened with these First Four matches. What they did do for me is give me some solid experience with online interaction, and that’s a good thing. Gather from this what you will gentlemen. There is a common theme between each of these interactions, to which I will address at a later time. Hopefully this helps you all in some way. What did you notice between each of these interactions?

Currently Listening To:

Weezer – Dope Nose

My Brother Ate All of the Bologna … Now He Must Die!!!

On a weekend where my mother wouldn’t be around the house because she would be going away for work, we all decided (my dad, brother and I) that we would feast on cold cuts and sandwiches the entire weekend. What’s better than sandwiches for the duration of a lazy weekend!? I LOVE SANDWICHES!!! We figured we would commence our idea on the Friday when she would leave for work.

On that Friday night, my dad and I feasted on our sandwiches loaded with meat and cheese, while watching sports. Talk about a man night. We did this without my brother in attendance, he made last-minute plans with his lady and went out to dinner. We didn’t mind, except that we were waiting for him to come home so we could all get our sandwich on together. We are a close family. I had my sandwich, an epic sandwich that must’ve weighed-in between 1.5-2 pounds, loaded with bologna, ham, turkey, and 3 cheeses (American, Muenster and Swiss). Are you not jealous!? So much meat and cheese, so glorious.

After the initial sandwiches were made, there was still a significant amount of cold cuts left for a few more sandwiches. The next day, I went to class and was looking forward to sandwich time when I returned home. Little did I know what was about to happen.

I came home to find my brother sitting on the couch, he had made himself a sandwich and accused me of making another sandwich. Allegations that I denied wholeheartedly. He recounted his experience making his sandwich and made a note that the bologna was a little light. Now, let me tell you something about my brother, he is a strange individual with food. When he makes a sandwich, there can only be one cold cut between the bread … I repeat, only one meat!! When I made this fact known, my dad started saying “so you ate all the meat” to which my brother did not deny eating a lot of bologna. In fact, he said he left 5 slices that my dad laid a claim to while I was at school. Annoyed, I said I was fine with the decision.

We were sitting around watching the hockey game on the TV, and when it concluded I decided that I would go do some sandwich-making. I took out the cheeses, the turkey and the ham. As I start to slice the Italian bread in half, my brother comes next to me and says “I think I’m gonna take some ham!” As he takes a slice, a look of joy comes over his face and continues to say “That’s good! I’m gonna grab another piece!”

As he reached over again for another slice, I said “Don’t do it man, dad’s gonna get mad.” It was at this point that dad walked into the kitchen and exclaimed loudly “you’re eating all the ham now!!?” He comes over to my station, examines the amount of ham left.

There were 2 slices left.

The temperature in the room has seemingly risen a few degrees due to my dad’s anger rising. “You did eat all the ham!!” I could tell that he was beginning to take this to heart. To this, my brother reacted in a mocking anger and said “what? You don’t want me to eat the ham!? Fine!!” He then threw down the ham back from where he picked it up, the meat making a slapping noise as it made contact with the other slices. “I won’t eat the meat then!!” Dad didn’t take to this too kindly. “First, you eat all the bologna, then you eat all the ham!! I can’t even make a sandwich now, you’re selfish!!”

This just turned into a full-blown argument. My brother began to laugh in disbelief as they went back and forth. The entire time, I was just standing and making my sandwich with a slight smile on my face. I somehow knew it would turn out like this because I have the same issues with him taking all the bologna.

You may remember that my brother is a notorious food stealer. There was a pizza incident between him and I, roughly about 6 months ago, that came to a head. If you haven’t noticed, my family is pretty serious about food!

Eventually, cooler heads prevailed (after a couple of hours of course). To smooth everything over, my brother bought my dad a Frosty and chili from Wendy’s. But, before he did so, he wanted to have a little fun with him and called me up. But his plan was foiled.

“I wanted you to be in front of dad and say ‘Oh, you’re getting me Wendy’s!’ but not ask him if he wanted some!” The whole time laughing.

At the end of the day, everything was smoothed over and we joke about it now. My dad didn’t end up eating another sandwich, he was satisfied with the Wendy’s. As for the remaining bologna, my brother finished that as well. And what about the ham you ask? I made another sandwich and finished that. But, lesson learned, don’t mess with food in my family. You won’t make it out alive.

Currently Listening To:

Social Distortion – Machine Gun Blues

A Glimpse into Spring

This paast weekend was a break form the frigid temperatures we’ve been having over this horrible winter. It’s amazing how good 50° temperatures can feel in the dead of winter. And it wasn’t just one day, it was an entire weekend that the goodness lasted!

If you can’t tell, this is one of my favorite subjects that I cover.

But, what this weekend also brought was a glimpse of what is to come. I brought this up last year, but that first warm day of spring is a joy to behold. This weekend while I was working over at the mall, it was made known that no one will miss this opportunity to shed some layers and expose some skin.

Women were wearing shorts! Damn you Polar Vortex (I hate it, but it’s the phrase of the winter, without a doubt!) for making me forget the beauty and form of the female body. Smooth skin and curves make themselves known to the entire visual landscape. What a sight to see!

But the cold has returned, snow and below freezing temperatures are back with a vengeance. Winter is powering on and making a last gasp effort to make each of us miserable and pray for the onset of spring. Basically, this past weekend was a tease. It just makes a person want spring to arrive that much faster!

I love the winter, I have a good time and enjoy the season when it’s here. But this year it has lasted just too long. As much as I love winter, I cannot wait for spring’s, and shortly thereafter summer’s, warmth. Women losing layers of clothing is a big reason why, and why shouldn’t it be?

Stop teasing me spring, you can’t come soon enough!

Currently Listening To:

Naked & Famous – Punching in a Dream

City Life: Ben and Jack’s Steakhouse

There is nothing like a juicy and tender steak that is cooked just right. The way it literally melts in your mouth once it hits the tongue, the feeling is heavenly. During a night out with the guys, we had dinner planned for Ben and Jack’s Steakhouse to not only take advantage of the yearly NYC Winter Restaurant Week, but also to try out a place that I’ve been curious about for quite some time. And I always have felt that the best bang for your buck, as far as Restaurant Week is concerned, will always be a steak place. So why not check it out?

While waiting at the bar for the rest of my party to show up, I got a chance to take in the environment with a couple of buddies of mine. The place  gave off a really old-school, classy, yet laid-back vibe. The bartenders were attentive to our group and it seemed like other people in h bar area were enjoying themselves as well. Despite it being a seemingly slow night, in terms of customers, everyone was very attentive. This service continued throughout the night with our waiters and servers, I was beyond pleased with the service.

Good service is an excellent plus, but it’s the food that is supposed to be the star of the show, and it did not disappoint! With Restaurant Week, the customer gets 3 courses (generally a starter course, the main course and then dessert) for $38 without beverages included. While Ben and Jacks’ offered this, they also offered discounted bottles of wine for Restaurant Week as well. I ordered a bottle of Malbec for a few of the guys and started with the first course, a thick slice of Canadian Bacon. I enjoy pig in all of its many forms, so given the choice, I will almost always go with  it. Thick, juicy and crispy in parts, I downed it in a matter of a couple of minutes. A great start to the meal for sure.

In between courses, our group was bantering with the waitstaff and involving them in our conversation. It was very personal and they seemed fairly genuine in everything they said. With the second course, I made a difficult decision. There were two items that caught my eye. The first being the Medallions of Filet Mignon in a Mushroom Sauce and the other being a 12 Oz. Sirloin Steak, I chose the latter (cooked medium) while having a taste of the former from another friend’s plate. Each meal was served with sides of Steamed Broccoli and Mashed Potatoes. Another item that was ordered by the table was the Lobster Macaroni and Cheese. Everything was delectable.

The steak I ordered was made appropriately (as expected since it’s a steakhouse) and was tender and delicious. The sides were tasty as well, the potatoes were creamy and the broccoli was steamed just right. The Filet was fantastic, though a little over-cooked (as per my friend’s order). Had I chosen again, I would have gone for that plate instead, but I was still satisfied with my meal. Another positive was the Lobster Mac and Cheese. While I’m not a huge fan of seafood, mix it in with a mass of gooey cheese and pasta and I’m all in for it! It was amazing! Something I was no too pleased with was their house steak sauce. It tasted more like ketchup than anything else. I had to give it a try, but I will be avoiding it next time. Overall though, I was happy with the second course of the evening.

Finally, to finish off the dinner, I got Cheesecake for dessert. Creamy, soft, and served with a side of whipped cream. Any time I see Cheesecake on the menu, I need to get it. I was definitely satisfied. The Chocolate Mousse Cake looked simply delightful as well, so it seemed like a win-win situation for dessert (when is it not!?). A great ending to a wonderful meal.

Dinner at Ben and Jack’s, in my opinion, is well worth it. Especially for NYC Restaurant Week. The preparation of the steak is quite similar to Peter Luger’s, and that’s high praise. Will I go back? Yes, a resounding yes! Check it out for yourself and let me know what you think.

Are there any restaurants you are looking forward to checking out?

Currently Listening To:

AFI – Silver and Cold

A Dude Dinner Night!

There’s nothing like a night with the guys. Every once in a while, it’s good to get out on the town with a bunch of fellas and just see what will unfold.

As we get older, our lives pull us in many different directions, leaving us with very little time with people that we actually enjoy being around. It’s not like when we were younger when we seemingly had all the time in the world, maybe too much time, to do whatever we wanted. Now, time is precious. It’s a valuable commodity that not many people have. Which is exactly why I look forward to these aptly named Man Dates by my circle of friends. It’s a time to reconnect and share some time together.

This next gathering will take place at Ben & Jack’s Steakhouse in the Flatiron District of New York City. Nothing makes for a good man date like slabs of meat and alcoholic beverages! Have I ever told you all how much I love meat in my mouth (yea, I went there)? Meat and strong alcoholic beverages, that’s what men need! Ask any man, I dare you. In fact, I double-dog dare you! Everyone will agree with these two basic principles, these foundations of manhood.

It’s not all we need though. Camaraderie, friendship, making fun of (and laughing at) each other and saying (and doing) stupid stuff over the course of a few hours is an escape from reality. Every guy needs a break, what better way to spend it than with a few guys looking to have a release as well?

As you can tell, I get very excited for these nights. They are so few and far between that it usually turns out to be quite the event when we do all meet up. For the latest installment, there will be 11 dudes taking part.

I can only imagine what’s going to happen!

What do you get excited for?

Currently Listening To:

The White Stripes – The Hardest Button To Button