I was 20 minutes early and had a shot of nervous energy that hadn�t hit my stomach yet. I looked around and wondered if I should go through with it. I had no reason to be nervous about the dinner, really; about as much as anyone meeting people for the first time. I wasn�t used to socializing in a group, about the last time being Dr. Zivago�s lab party last quarter. I remembered that I could be charming if I let go, though, so I tapped my foot insistently and demanded I relax. Stepping from the car and bulked down in my trenchcoat, I stopped playing that tug-of-war and focused on the matter at hand.

The head girl looked confused when I mentioned GE�s reservation. She tentatively asked how many people were showing up. Something in me said 6. She mentioned the table would be ready in 20 minutes. Already I didn�t have a good feeling about Macaroni Grill that night: the reservation had been botched, it was 7:20 and I was alone. Being in public spaces with no clear purpose makes me nervous. This time was no exception, but gradually I got used to people taking occasional side-glances at me. I was slightly overdressed for the restaurant, though.

I decided to use that same anxious energy to pace outside. I loved pacing. Did it for about 5 minutes, then sat in the foyer, then went outside again, then back into the foyer, then to the other side of the foyer, and back again.

7:30 begat 7:35 then 7:40. Minutes hadn�t passed this slowly in years. The 7-inch cushy green ass bench lifted my feet an inch from the ground. I simultaneously tried to keep my feet from crossing, thighs from separating too much and the look of annoyance out of my hair. The waiting was getting to me more than I thought it would. The woman inside had mentioned �at least one other person will be showing up�, passingly saying he�d be late. �Where the hell is this one person?� I thought to myself. More to the point, where the hell was everyone else? Was it Tuesday? Yeah. The 9th? Yup, had to be. And it was 7:30? The clock across the way in the Greek restaurant said so. I went through whether it was the right day a few more times, trying to stay still.

Eventually, the slightly clueless hostess came through the doors of the foyer and said the table was ready, then she seemed apologetic; allegedly she�d called me for the day once already. I looked down to the pager she�d given me, the one that usually lights up and beeps when your table is available. She must have been new to space out paging me. At that point I was just glad to sit at a table where I could do nervous waiting things.

And there I was: table for six, party of one.

My waitress was an attractive Irish woman in her mid-20�s, kind by the type of smile she gave; slightly pitying as well. She mentioned that I was the first to arrive with a slightly hopeful tone in her voice. I was hoping that that wouldn�t be the case all night. By now it was 8:00.

Sitting at an empty table for six didn�t help my anxiety. I pretended to read the menu for 10 minutes, then finally gave up on that prop. I pawed at my drink, occasionally broke off some herb bread and purposefully gazed at the foyer doors to pass the time. I also counted out the 156 free-hanging lightbulbs in the place. Now I wasn�t annoyed with the idea of me sitting there by myself for long stretches, but it was the principle of it. At the time, I hadn�t received any word about where everyone was besides whoever this guy coming was.

At around 20 after 8pm, I noticed a striking young woman with dark black hair and a teasingly revealing�but tasteful�white blouse. I heard her mention the GE table. My left eyebrow did its� famous arch over at her. She then turned around, engaged her cellphone and went outside the foyer doors. This confused me. Stranger still was that everyone in the GE party showed up at the same time.

As everyone sat down I still felt disconnected from the waiting. J sat to my left, with the dark-haired woman, Athiest, sitting to my right. The pictures J had shown me didn�t do her justice. Her slightly metallic red hair complemented her complexion quite well, with an elegantly simple black dress tied around in back. She reminded me of a friend I knew once. 'Hot' isn't sufficient for her, but it'll do. Across from me was GE, J�s friend, who struck me as a remarkable human-being. To his right sat neAngel, another young woman with what seemed like a corporate finish; not in the slimy sense, but dignified and polished. Finally, on GE�s right was Atheist�s brother, who seemed either slightly uncomfortable or wary. He was there as �protection�, though, so one couldn�t blame him.

All of this pre-dinner detail might seem odd to you, but I�m having trouble remembering the dinner itself. It went clear on until near midnight. At first I was pissed off about the late arrival, but I learned from J that they�d called ahead to the Mac Grill to give me a message. I couldn�t fault them or be angry after that, since it was the restaurant�s fault for not telling me. J was genuinely apologetic about it several times. I believed her when she mentioned that sort of thing never happened. It was good to know that only the staff was off that night.

And that included the waitress. She forgot our group appetizer, some drinks here, a food order there. I wasn�t quite sure what sure what was going on in the restaurant that night. The staff was almost always competent, if not on top of things.

From what I could tell, I think I was hitting all the right notes in terms of being a social creature. At first I listened to some of the conversations for awhile, then talked with Atheist briefly about science. She was quick on her feet�so to speak�and occasionally smiled in that pleasantly genuine way. I�d make a joke about this or that, she�d laugh and touch my arm, and in general we carried on well.

After that I�d listen or briefly join into a conversation that was going on. J and I then started talking. She was just as charming in person and seemed genuinely interested in some of the lab stuff I was talking about, or the grad school decision. She mentioned the trip to Las Vegas and a myriad of other things she and GE had done. I was glad she was having so much fun, more so that she wanted to come around to LA again. What can I say: in the flesh is better than on a screen.

Everyone meandered around the words of others and we gradually grew close as a group. The dinner was going splendidly well, with the entrees themselves as more an afterthought than anything. I was having fun with being witty and commenting on this or that niblet of conversation. Seemed as though people appreciated those bits from me, so I (hopefully) didn�t accidentally come across as arrogant.

Toward the end of the night, I mentioned to J that I didn�t need to be in at the lab at the ass crack of the morning. I wanted to spend more time talking to her, but I wasn�t sure how tenable that would be. I also didn�t want to make GE uncomfortable. I�d mentioned the prospect of trying to go out by the Redondo Pier, since that was a cool place to walk/observe. At the time she mentioned it was a good idea, but after dinner I think it was too late for that to happen.

By the time we decided to leave, the staff had long since pull out their tucked in shirts, put away things on the tables and long since taken care of our checks. The Irish waitress was very pleasant throughout, and I think she appreciated the reassuring nods or smiles I gave. For me that�s just general good conduct, since I can only imagine how much food service sucks.

We milled into a circle outside and had some more conversation before splitting off. At that point it was just GE, J and I. We lingered for about ten minutes after that, mostly with well wishes or my pawing at whether that dock idea was still workable. They mentioned they were doing sushi on this past Wednesday, so I said I could probably make it. On that note, though, I ended up not being able to do it because of timing conflicts.

Even so, it was a wonderful night and a great opportunity to meet these insightfully cool people.

With the two hours of work at the lab that I mentioned in the entry before this, I had a set-up for a great Wednesday�

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