Friday, April 3, 2009

Did That Guy Just Hit On Me?

It's been a very long time since a guy hit on me so I'm a little rusty at this stuff. But I swear, a nice looking, 60-ish guy made a pass at little old fifty-something me.

And it freaked me out.

Last week, I was on vacation in Palm Springs at a lovely resort, with my husband, I might add. It was early and I was on the hunt for the gift shop to buy some Diet Cokes for the room. I don't drink coffee and I needed my morning caffeine fix.
Basically, I had just rolled out of bed, put on my yoga pants-- even though I have never, ever, stepped foot into a yoga class in my life-- and threw on yesterday's wrinkled tee shirt. I pulled my too short hair into a scrawny ponytail, added a big sun visor and my wrap-around Fendi sunglasses. I was anonymous and incognito.

Or so I thought.

It's a big place and I got lost looking for the gift shop. Walking in circles, I passed the resort's coffee house-- twice. That's when I noticed this 60-ish guy, with a puzzled look on his face, staring at me. Did I still have toothpaste on my lip or was my outfit just not working for him? I ducked into the first open door I saw, which turned out to be the gift shop I'd been looking for! How I could have missed its big sign remains a mystery.

Before I even paid for the Cokes, I chugged an entire can-- Then I coughed up a hideous $13.00 for three 16 ounce cans of soda. But the burn of an ice cold Coke at 8AM was well worth it, so was the caffeine rush I was beginning to feel.

As I exited the store, there stood the 60-ish guy again, coffee in hand, with a sweet smile on his face. Did I mention he was cute too?

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stare." He's touching my arm lightly. "It's just that my wife passed away three years ago..." I step back to remove his hand. He seems embarrassed. "And you look exactly like her. You stopped me in my tracks. It's unbelievable."


I'm speechless so he keeps talking. "Seriously, you could be identical twins. I can't believe there are two such beautiful women in the world." He seems genuinely sincere. Or am I just a sucker?

What does a girl say to that? I mumble a thank you for the compliment and something about being sorry for his loss. Then I made a hasty exit and ran (something I never do) back to my room.

So the question is-- Was that weird or am I just cynical?
I mean, could this guy be for real or was that the world's worst pick-up line ever? I teeter between being appalled, flattered, and feeling sorry for him.

Don't get me wrong, I am NOT interested in being picked-up by anyone other than my dear, sweet hubby. It's just that the possibility of using your dead wife as a come on is freaking me out. Seeing dead people that look like ME is even freakier. Maybe it's time for that makeover.

I never saw the 60-ish guy again that weekend. When I told my gal pals a few days later that I'd been hit on, they jumped up in unison, did a group high-five and chanted "you go girl!". Then I sheepishly told them the "but" part-- Why do these moments always have a "but"?-- His "dead wife" words were met with absolute silence and a lot of eye rolling. The girls sat back down and finished their lunch, never mentioning it again-- at least not to me. I can only imagine how the phone lines burned up after our gathering.

Note to self: Be nicer to husband when in an irritable menopausal mood. I would suck at being single.

When was the last time you were hit on?
Welcome to TheFiftyFactor - Joanna


  1. I don't think I was hit on, but this was weird. I was browsing for eyewear. Looking at new frames, and the sales guy was kind of youngish, pudgy, not unattractive, but not hunky either. I tried on some frames with embellishments across the temple, and he said, "These look so sexy on you ... they remind me of when a woman wears a long skirt with a slit up the side and you know how she moves and you get a glimpse of the thigh." I found it kind of interesting to run into a sensualist at the eyewear place, but still, I'm like, gotta go now. I told my husband about it later, and he said the guy was a perv.

  2. So I take it you didn't buy the glasses :-) Great story, thanks. And for the rest of you out there.... check out Donna's blog It's terrific!


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