Annoying (Extended Edition)

On St. Patrick's Day, while out at the Laughing Lizard Lounge in Old Town Alexandria, I received a text message at 11:21 pm from a number that I did not recognize.

It read as follows:

"I hear Destini's in Fredonia 2 night."

I don't know what the purpose of this was. I don't know any of my friends who would deem it necessary to specifically notify me of the whereabouts of my former girlfriend on a night which should obviously be reserved for good feelings and camaraderie. I can't imagine anyone sending that unless they wanted to upset me. Actually, they didn't accomplish their goal immediately. That night, I was drinking (surprise) and in a good mood. I took one look at it, was mildly puzzled, and resumed having a good time. It didn't bother me until I remembered it the next day. Since then, I have called back, messaged back, and left voice mails. The voice mail is generic, just announcing the number. The person does not actually speak.

My solution? I'm asking anyone and everyone who reads this to call THIS NUMBER:

716-***-****

The first person to email me or leave a comment here notifying me of the person's identity will receive a prize. First, my gratitude. Second, if you have a PayPal account, I'll send you five dollars. (!)

Obviously the person knows my number, but they may pick up the phone if they get a bunch of random calls from other numbers they don't recognize. So if you find out who it is, let me know.

Get to work!

Thanks to all who participate (and I hope that means all of you).

UPDATE: Matt K has checked in with some curious information. Apparently the mystery text message came from Destini herself. I guess I'll leave you to puzzle that one out for your selves, since I have no idea what to make of it.

LATER UPDATE: Oz, I went back and 'censored' the number after Matt let me know who it was. I have no wish to give Destini's phone number out to everyone who reads this blog. If it would have been some other jerk, I would have left it up.

Matt's theory on the event was a fairly plausible one. He thought maybe Des thought I was still in Fredonia and (either in a somewhat sober but manic state, or alternatively in a drunken state) wished to see just how fast I would respond to such a message. Sadly, had I been in Fredonia, I probably would have called right back. But knowing that I had no control over the situation allowed me to let it go - or, as someone anonymously (and again, annoyingly) suggested - get over it. It was only the next day that it became a stone in my shoe, so to speak.

I'm not that surprised that she would do it, but I'm a bit curious. I'm also bothered a bit by her use of '2' instead of 'to.' That's not like the Des I knew.

Matt's theory is somewhat in keeping with the way she has behaved in the past, like her late-night visit to my house after I returned from Colorado. She stayed the night, but nothing really happened, although I savored having her with me. I knew I had to, because I had a feeling it wouldn't last. It didn't - I gave her some toast the next day as she hurried to work, but never saw her again for weeks or months.

And I hadn't heard or seen anything of her since last September at the RFK Jr. speech in Fredonia - at which she was very cold and stand-offish (see this post). I think it was Tia who asked me about her a few weeks ago and I couldn't remember the exact date. Paul exclaimed, "good" because it obviously is a bit unhealthy.

Anyway, the other possibility is that she probably somewhat enjoys the power she holds over me. I would imagine that may be true. I certainly have nothing over her.

Matt said he almost got the feeling when he talked to her a few months ago that she was reluctant to say what she was doing or where she was, almost as if she were ashamed of it. I can believe that, because she probably feels a lot like I felt when I was just working at Sears and not going to school. She might be just as lazy and a even a tad less ambitious than I am, which doesn't work out well in life very often.

She was always much more intelligent and well-rounded than I was, so I think she probably would feel a little bit worthless languishing in Jamestown with only a two year degree. I definitely did, although that doesn't mean I will never go back there. I'll be back for a few weeks in May at a minimum, and who knows what's going to happen after that. She's meant for greater things, and I'm sure if she started back on the path toward getting things done, she would do very well for herself. Tutoring high schoolers is noble, but the pay and prestige are fairly low.

I could go on - seems like I always can when talking about her - but I will refrain for the good of all.

-By the way, Matt will receive his prize of five dollars when he and Thom visit next weekend. I told him I would buy him one beer, and he'd probably have five cents left over with which to tip.