Courtney starts this week off with a loud “Be Nice!” t-shirt on … and ends the episode with an even louder t-shirt off. I’m sure we’ve all worn “statement” clothing at some point, but there is a line between, “(smirk) that’s kind of funny” and “totally self-absorbed.” You want to fall into the former camp. I saw a dude at the gym Saturday night wearing a tight “I’d do me” t-shirt. Umm, if you’re at an empty gym at 9:30 PM on a Saturday, then apparently the rest of the world disagrees with you on that one, sir. Furthermore, if that really worked to catch a date, people would utilize this in other areas of life. “I’d hire me” t-shirts to a job interview? “I’d serve me” t-shirts to a slow restaurant? “I’d copy me” t-shirts to a test you studied your bum off for? OK, that actually sounds kind of funny.
Ben has the first one-on-one of the week with Nicki. One thing I have noticed with Ben is that he is not afraid of asking a lot of questions about his dates’ past relationships and feels pretty open sharing about his, too. That seems like a topic that doesn’t have a one-size-fits-all answer to it. Some want to know / share everything, and others want to know / share nothing. I think there are a few ways to check yourself when speeding or resisting down that path. You have to keep the eyes on the prize (and no, the prize is not approximately a foot below the eyes). The “goal” for many who seem to be in a good relationship is to share enough to allow your partner to understand who you are, how you make decisions, what is important to you, what you have learned (bigger picture) from events in your life, and what has deeply impacted you to allow your partner to know what makes you feel special and how to avoid hurting you. However, if you share specifics that would only serve to make them feel jealous or make you look untrustworthy, that’d be a bad idea. When it comes to what not to share, don’t lie, period. If there’s a topic you don’t want to talk about, that’s fine, but I think lying is just about the worst path possible.
Nice to see these ladies were adequately eye-blacked for their softball game. All of my facial protection concerns were for naught. Jennifer played the devastating role of slow-pitch softball strike out victim. It’s one thing to lose a date with Ben, but having to bring a case of brew to next week’s game, too? Now that is something worth crying over.
Elyse and Ben get to have a date in a nice boat / yacht. What do you think that costs, like 10 grand? I’d like me one of those. J Unfortunately for Elyse, Ben sunk her battleship. I thought he went WAAY to far in breaking up with her. He didn’t need to say “my relationships with all these other women are SO FAR PAST where I think we could get to.” Jerkville, population you. If she’s begging for answers, you can respond, but stay a little classier there, San Diego.
This show blurs the lines of ethical / moral behavior (understatement of the year nominee). Ben doing the skinny swim with the vegan raw (thank you for the clarification, reader of the week!) doe-eyed model crossed that line. He knows it. He felt guilty. She will pay the price soon (I think). Feeling guilty strongly, early, and often is not the best way to start something good. Guys may say they want girls to make out with each other and be super bad, but they do not usually want that from the one they genuinely dig.
I was shocked at the time that Emily stuck around. However, after thinking about it, I give credit to the producing / editing. She should be a strong candidate and the Courtney drama is a sidetrack she can still hop off. The mannequin (Casey) should have gone home instead of Jennifer; I see no semblance of a connection there. However, Jennifer has a strong portfolio that is impressively diversified, so she will bounce back in the next fiscal year if not by the next quarter.
See you next week in Panama City.
