Spidey Watch, Part 2

So I've heard from many of you that I was too harsh on Spidey Watch. That we had an otherwise pleasant date and the poor kid was nervous as hell from being in the mere presence of a worldly woman. That he most likely spent his entire week practicing what he'd say and when the time came, all those long rehearsed lines flew right out of his head, thus leading him to bring up Spidey Watch and the Darth Vader piggy bank.

In an effort to prove that I am not a cruel, heartless, black widow bitch, I decided you were right and gave him a chance at redemption. I think he felt like he'd just won a trip to DisneyLand, he was so excited when I called. I was equally excited when he suggested our second date take place 9 rows back from the first base line at the new Mets stadium. You want to take me to a major league baseball game I couldn't possibly afford on my own? Field level seating? Alright, I think I can survive this.

I'm a huge baseball fan. Grew up in a house surrounded by the sport. My dad, my brother, my grandfather, my uncles, my cousins... it's kind of a family obsession. On top of which 90% of us are born and bred Mets fans (sorry Mom.) It's not easy being a Met fan. "You gotta believe" for a reason. Yankees fans are a dime a dozen. Who doesn't like winning World Series and pennants year after year? It's easy loving a winning team. But holding out the hope that one day, it will be our turn. One day, we'll hit the big time. One day, we'll be victorious in pursuit of that coveted title. That's the spirit of the blue & orange.

This die-hard hopefulness is how I think of dating in the modern world. It's so simple to get discouraged when you see people coupling off left and right, hitting home runs when all you're looking for is a base hit. A little taste of their boastful glory. Yet here we are, single girls turning 29, 30, 35, 42...not knowing when it will be our turn to walk up the aisle. To be relationship champions.

But I digress.

This is my first second date since Train Guy / Phonophobic / Big Head (however you like to refer to the December dating scene.) Still, Spidey Watch does have some redeeming qualities, I remind myself and it won't be complete torture seeing him again. He's sweet, he's polite, (he thinks) he's funny, he's very generous and thoughtful. And while 4 hours seems like an excessive amount of time for a second date, if nothing else, we can talk sports the whole time and cheer for our favorite New York team. Hey, you wouldn't have turned down free field level seats either!!!

I meet him at the Home Run Apple in the plaza by the stadium. He turns up half an hour late and we miss part of the first inning, but it's ok. Dork that I am, I brought a book to read on the train, so no harm done. But standing in front of the iconic symbol, he springs on me that he's also invited a friend along tonight since he had some more spare tickets. Sure, no problem. I didn't think we were up to the meeting of the friends yet, but how bad can it be?

Bad. The friend is CUTE. Way cuter than Spidey Watch.

It gets worse when I somehow sit down between them for the whole game and can't seem to stop flirting in the wrong direction. Control yourself! Ugh, must go talk to someone who can smack some sense into me.

I excuse myself to get a hot pretzel and text my mother, ever the voice of reason.

Me: The friend is cuter.

Mom: Get his number AFTER the game.

Me: I didn't realize in the dark bar on date #1 that Spidey has gray hair!

Mom: At least he HAS hair.

Me: Our seats are on the first base line. They're kind of amazing.

Mom: Yes, but are they AWESOME???

Me: No, seriously, he's already said "awesome" 37 times and it's only the 4th inning. I might smack him soon.

Mom: You might wanna hold off if he has tickets behind home plate for next week!

Me: He can't stop talking about Japanese theatre and how George Lucas stole the idea for Star Wars from some epic film he saw at some artsy fartsy theatre.

Mom: What is it with you and Star Wars geeks???

The final score was Mets win 5-2. Awesome count = 85.

But the best part of the evening happened after the game was over and everyone had left the stadium. Standing there by that very same Home Run Apple was a man dressed head to toe as SpiderMan...playing the saxophone.

And yes, I made them take a picture together. I know you wouldn't believe me otherwise!!!