Pity the Fool

Sometimes you come across a woman who is so unlikable, so objectionable that you just have to pity the fool who's involved with her.

I've had the misfortune of working with such a woman. For six miserable years, I and my co-workers endured her bad attitude and behaviours. The sad part was that management refused to do anything about this employee from the depths of hell--no doubt Satan had kicked her out from Hades.

On the surface, she seemed perfectly normal; that is, until you actually had to work with her. She was someone who could generate instant dislike--from both sexes. Some of her (lesser) qualities included insincerity, belittling of others, passive aggressiveness, bullying, backhanded compliments, her complete lack of awareness of the impact of her words and behaviours had on the people around her, and unwillingness (and possibly inability) to process feedback that was meant to be constructive to name but a few things.

I recall a colleague sharing with me what she had been asked by the Employee-from-Hell: How come nobody liked her?

Well, that wasn't entirely true as she had a boyfriend. And you just had to shake your head in disbelief that such a person actually had someone who found her appealing and would admit to being her boyfriend. Some things in life are just inexplicable and it just goes to show that love is blind as a bat and just as insane.

And what exactly was her job? Public Relations.

Go figure.

Songs About Love & Relationships

When I'm feeling a bit down about love, relationships and what's missing in my life, I have this playlist to pick me up and get positive about life and love again--if only for an hour or two.

1. The Girl - City and Colour
2. Silver Lining - Rilo Kiley
3. Love Like This - Natasha Bedingfield
4. Can't Get Enough of Your Love - Taylor Dane
5. Love Song - Sky
6. Drowning - Backstreet Boys
7. Think About Me - Fleetwood Mac
8. God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You - NSYNC
9. Come and Get Your Love - Real McCoy
10. Every Rose Has Its Thorn - Poison
11. All My Life - K-Ci and JoJo
12. Bad Timing - Blue Rodeo
13. Last of the Red Hot Fools - The Jitters
14. Keep It Coming Love - KC and the Sunshine Band
15. We Just Disagree - Dave Mason
16. Stickwitu - The Pussycat Dolls
17. Only Love Can Break Your Heart - Neil Young
18. As Long As You Love Me - Backstreet Boys
19. Some Day We'll Be Together - The Supremes
20. Come See About Me - The Supremes

Regret

Regret is an awful burden to carry around. It's also a bitch to rid of. Just when you think you're clear of it, it comes back with a vengeance...Regret....

It prevents you from moving forward.
It saps your strength and distracts you from living life.
It lingers because it is focused on the mistake you'd wish you never made.
It lives in the past but occupies the present.
It's about "If onlys..." (If only I did it differently.)
It'll go away when you accept your mistake and forgive yourself.
It'll take time.

Reasons for Breaking Up

10. She overcooks the broccoli.

9. Her smiles are forced.

8. She hates Arnold Schwarzeneger (the actor) and action movies.

7. She chooses her friends poorly.

6. She either talks too much or not at all.

5. She's taller than you.

4. She refuses oral sex [all meanings].

3. She insists on buying only wholewheat bread.

2. She refuses to shave the one place where you really want her to.

1. She won't go to a City and Colour concert.

Remembering You

I remember your smile
and the warmth
in your eyes
the first time we met
and how my heart would miss a beat
whenever I saw you

I remember how my heart sank
when I saw you
with another
Not realising that
I was to be the one
You would love

I remember the softness
of your kiss
the gentleness of
of your touch
the sweetness
of your love

A Missed Opportunity for Love

Because I didn't have the courage then to tell her how I really felt, she--as I recently discovered quite by accident--married someone else. The last time I saw her was four years ago when she was heading off to university. In the intervening years, we lost touch and ultimately went our separate ways.

I suppose I should be happy for her. Perhaps, she found in him what I lacked. He was the right one for her. I guess I was full of doubt back then wondering whether she was the right one for me. Does one really ever know for sure?

I recall a story told by a writer about a man who failed to marry a woman he loved, and because he lacked the courage to commit himself to her, she married his best friend instead. On the day she was to fly off on her honeymoon, she confessed to him that he was her true love. While in London, she threw herself under a subway train. Her new husband killed himself shortly thereafter.

As for the man, he went on to become successful financially and professionally. He dated a succession of women but never did settle down with any one woman. Despite his success and material wealth, the underlying emptiness of a love lost haunted him--a love he could never recapture. And for him, it was too late.