CCCC

T h e A d v e n t u r e s o f C h i c a g o J o

first entry profileemailguestbookringsolder entries

A Year of Reasons

2004-11-16� � 9:42 a.m.
The last drunken entry I wrote was written a year ago this past weekend. I never posted it because double clicking an icon, typing in one�s login information, and waiting for the dialup connection to connect would have left me fast asleep before even getting a word out there, but I saved the notepad musings onto my desktop for future reference.

I tried to convey my nervousness for the upcoming night when I was finally meeting Benito, somehow comparing it to pants costing $78 and how I�d never consider buying $78 pants. I don�t know how $78 pants from Banana Republic and meeting Benito are related, but I�m sure there was some line of logic there, no matter how ridiculous it was.

It was a year ago today that I rode the red line to the Belmont stop. Not wearing a coat on this cold night, I scampered one street up to the designated meet-up spot.

After weeks of emailing, a few phone calls, and several text message conversations later, it was finally time for a face-to-face meeting.

About a minute after I arrived, he hurriedly entered, also without a coat on.

Adding that final confirmation of immediate physical chemistry established that I was indeed extraordinarily attracted to this man.

This man who wrote me emails about Diet Coke-ism and turd-flinging monkeys that actually made me laugh aloud.

This man who dared me to slip phrases such as �cervical asthma� into my entries as an inside shout-out to his readership.

This man who kept my attention unlike any other.

This man and I shared a most-excellent first date where we talked until the restaurant closed down, walked around and peeped into the windows of the now-closed shops on Belmont, and then grubbed on burritos at Taco Burrito Hut.

(I know, I know. Any date that ends up at the Taco Burrito Hut has got to be a good one!)

He drove me home a couple hours later, and he kissed me sweetly goodnight.

Each get-together since has ended with such a kiss, even 365 days later.

So I give you now, 365 Reasons Why Benito is Great.

1 He smells like Drakkar and Tide.

2 He is oh-so manly.

3 He is amazingly talented.

4 He sticks up for Ming.

5 He loves Wheat Thins.

6 He rented the Piglet game for me.

7 He is so damn handsome.

8 He got me blue flowers for Valentine�s Day.

9 He contacted my coworker for the delivery address.

10 He wrote a note with the flowers to include an inside joke.

11 He took my dad and brother on a tour of where he works.

12 He reads a lot of this website.

13 He helped me move.

14 He helped me pick out furniture.

15 He watches for taxis when we cross the street.

16 He encourages me to workout.

17 He lets me pick the rental.

18 He repeatedly drove from the suburbs to visit before he lived in the city.

19 He has a great smile.

20 He has a great laugh.

21 He makes me do a lot of both.

22 He says, �I wasn�t going to say anything, but...� and it�s not that bad.

23 He asked my opinion when he was house shopping.

24 He sets up bridges across my loft walls for Hambone.

25 He tells me when I look pretty.

26 He pops my back with his hugs.

27 He introduced me to his friends.

28 He introduced me to his mom and dad.

29 He was cool when he met my friends.

30 He was cool when he met my dad and brother.

31 He shared his mango with me.

32 He didn�t get mad when I ate it all.

33 He tends to my clavicle.

34 He called after my girlie doctor visit to make sure I was okay.

35 He leaves notes in my guestbook.

36 He arranged for us to meet for dinner before Thanksgiving last year.

37 He met up with me in Houston over Christmas last year.

38 He can talk with anyone about anything.

39 He usually shaves before I come over.

40 He chose a restaurant because he knows I love guacamole.

41 He takes glances when he thinks I can�t see.

42 He has good guys for friends.

43 He took me home early on New Year�s Eve.

44 He asks my opinion.

45 He will rub my head until I fall asleep.

46 He was an amazing amount of help with my house purchase.

47 He gets my brother videogames with his discount.

48 He throws in extra games as surprises.

49 He is reliable.

50 He appreciates Diet Coke more than I do.

51 He is a great snuggle sleeper.

52 He makes poop jokes.

53 He recognized when I wore a new perfume.

54 He is funnier than everyone I know.

55 He puts thought into our dates.

56 He is the best kisser ever.

57 He is in one of my favorite pictures.

58 He is patient when I shoe shop.

59 He accepts that I�m going to do silly stuff.

60 He helps me play the hard spots on videogames.

61 He says that I�m Jonderful.

62 He rarely calls me Joron.

63 He laughs when I call him Benitard.

64 He knows he�s Beniterrific.

65 He has the sexiest hands.

66 He acts excited when I get new toe nail polish.

67 he holds my hand when we walk.

68 He calls me for CTA directions.

69 He came to watch one of my volleyball games.

70 He called to ask if I wanted any hummus when it was on sale.

71 He takes me to Target.

72 He trusts me with his e*trade password.

73 He IMs me funny pictures at work.

74 He sent me pictures from his phone while he was at a tradeshow.

75 He doesn�t mind my hair in his bed.

76 He has no idea about threadcount and sheets.

77 He loves my fake bling.

78 He might not, but he at least pretends that he does.

79 He Tivos good stuff.

80 He loves paper shredders as much as I do.

81 He tells stories about when he was younger.

82 He isn�t in a band.

83 He doesn�t hunt.

84 He has short hair.

85 He has good breath.

86 He doesn�t snore.

87 He has a Roomba.

88 He enjoys trying new restaurants.

89 He pretends to speak Spanish.

90 He loves my sundresses.

91 He orders food without cheese.

92 He won�t use my girlie liquid soap.

93 He will use my girlie bar soap though.

94 He is still manly when he smells like roses, freesias, and peonies.

95 He IMs me at work.

96 He writes the most fantastic emails.

97 He usually has a great memory.

98 He petted Hambone so sweetly the first time they met.

99 He loves Hambone, despite what he says.

100 He is at least amused by Hambone using the toilet.

101 He worries when I play softball near the dangerous neighborhood.

102 He wants me to see a doctor when my chest hurts.

103 He doesn�t smoke.

104 He doesn�t drink too often.

105 He isn�t an ass when he�s drunk.

106 He is actually rather funny then.

107 He drunk messages and calls me.

108 He wears cool shirts.

109 He always has nice shoes.

110 He is interested in science-y things.

111 He says �fantastico!� when something good happens.

112 He points to his lips for kisses.

113 He likes wasabi.

114 He gives me gaming theory books to read.

115 He can eat with chopsticks.

116 He thought to bring smores to the camping trip.

117 He promises toys for Hambone if the stock market goes up.

118 He always has DC in the fridge.

119 He grilled bacon.

120 He put Cajun spice on it too.

121 He makes really funny faces.

122 He signs me up for free magazines.

123 He buys only wooden clothes hangers.

124 He wears black socks.

125 He offers to help with my house, even if it�s something I can do.

126 He notices when I wear something new.

127 He has great timing and delivery when telling stories.

128 He doesn�t talk about his exes.

129 He doesn�t ask about mine.

130 He has a very kissable neck.

131 He also has very kissable lips.

132 He gives me scripted lines about football so I sound knowledgeable.

133 He has candles throughout his house.

134 He carries me if I�m tired.

135 He throws a great Super Bowl party.

136 He asked a NASA employee if any astronauts ever got caught doing it on the space shuttle.

137 He gets excited (or pretends to) when I get something new and shiny.

138 He has crazy adventures with his friends.

139 He isn�t snobby.

140 He calls his mom funny names.

141 He gets me JoPrizes.

142 He doesn�t wear jewelry.

143 He likes ratemykitten.com.

144 He makes fun of my J-Lo glasses.

145 He will wear them if needed while driving.

146 He uses hair wax.

147 He keeps his house pretty clean.

148 He has good taste in furniture.

149 He likes eBay a lot.

150 He comments on my new purses.

151 He is really cute when he�s sleepy.

152 He helped move my fishtank and said nothing when I changed my mind and needed help moving it again.

153 He has dark brown eyes.

154 He won�t shop at JCPenny�s.

155 He loves beef jerky to the point that it�s funny.

156 He comes up with hilarious similes.

157 He uses dryer sheets.

158 He likes my ridiculousness.

159 He stalks clothes until they go on sale.

160 He got me the same JoPrize that I got him one day.

161 He shops at Old Navy as much as I do.

162 He drinks Blue Moon and Woodchuck.

163 He was disappointed when my dad wasn�t wearing a Hawaiian shirt when they met.

164 He has no concept of towels as decoration.

165 He showed me Whirlyball.

166 He tells me stories about him being in the press.

167 He laughs at my goofy friends.

168 He pastes me IMs from his goofy friends.

169 He is so laid back.

170 He blows raspberries on my belly.

171 He�ll go shopping with me and not complain.

172 He doesn�t have anything pierced or tattooed.

173 He is a good sport when I kick snow on him.

174 He kicks snow all over me in return.

175 He is already adored by my friends who haven�t yet met him.

176 He chews his gum quietly.

177 He keeps cold water in his fridge.

178 He rests his hand on my knee during movies.

179 He taught me how to stalk stocks.

180 He designated Hambone�s bathroom as the poop-only bathroom.

181 He is hubba-hubba kinda hot.

182 He likes Auntie Anne�s pretzels as much as I do.

183 He hides the good snacks from me.

184 He has one of the five phone numbers that I know.

185 He puts Cajun seasoning on everything.

186 He was thrilled that Branden�s first word was Ming.

187 He has beautiful eyes when he smiles.

188 He takes me grocery shopping since I can�t usually carry Diet Coke home when I walk.

189 He picks me up if I drunk dial him and am walking somewhere.

190 He makes the best grilled corn.

191 He signs his name funny.

192 He orders food without sour cream.

193 He has no ear hair that sticks out.

194 He made a player on the Tiger Woods game who looked like me.

195 He even gave her pink clothes.

196 He keeps shampoo for me at his house.

197 He pants to make Hambone roll around.

198 He wears the same deodorant that I do.

199 He has good grammar.

200 He doesn�t mind a drunken, giggly Jo.

201 He watches Beavis and Butthead with me.

202 He drives a kind of car I�ve always liked.

203 He offered me camouflage clothes for paintball.

204 He helped keep me warm when we went camping.

205 He rubs sunscreen in places I can�t reach.

206 He calls fondue �fancy nachos�.

207 He looks great in black.

208 He used his grill for the first time with me.

209 He bought me veggie hotdogs for our camping trip.

210 He has a blue toothbrush at my house, and I have a pink toothbrush at his.

211 He introduced me to sushi.

212 He took off work on his b-day with me.

213 He isn�t bothered when I go out with my friends without him.

214 He was shocked when my brother beat the PsiOps videogame in just over 6 hours.

215 He actually said something like, �Sonuva...�

216 He adds to my happiness.

217 He smells my feet.

218 He then makes a horrible face.

219 He does this each time because he knows it will make me laugh.

220 He can definitely entertain himself.

221 He calls my arm muscles �guns�.

222 He has funny pictures in his Friendster profile.

223 He makes funny faces when he brushes his teeth.

224 He probably doesn�t realize it.

225 He watches out for his friends.

226 He was crappy at raft paddling until I showed him how to do it.

227 He then ruled the school in rowing.

228 He rules the school in a lot of ways.

229 He doesn�t act like he knows it.

230 He uses two hands to take out his contacts.

231 He ordered me PB&J at Panera Bread.

232 He scours the web before buying something.

233 He does his laundry frequently.

234 He laughs at my sparkly cell phone.

235 He has cool swim shorts.

236 He is impressed by my very clean house.

237 He doesn�t drink whiskey.

238 He makes a face quite similar to how whiskey makes my face scrunch when it�s mentioned.

239 He brought me a cheese hat back from Wisconsin.

240 He has funny CDs from work that he plays for me.

241 He has a hilarious solution to global warming.

242 He would sufficiently piss off some hippies if he told them about it.

243 He has Fred Flintstone feet.

244 He makes room for me on the couch.

245 He has a very cool real name.

246 He wanted his dland name to be Fuckles, Slappy, or CapnAzz.

247 He understands my objection.

248 He refers to my coworker by her nickname.

249 He says that I�m the worst vegetarian ever when I crave meat.

250 He has enough pillows on his bed to share.

251 He loves a good Jamba.

252 He makes me crazy in a good way.

253 He avoids making me crazy in a bad way.

254 He is a smart man.

255 He also knows what�s good for him.

256 He didn�t really mind when I threw confetti all over his house.

257 He buys low-sugar juice.

258 He stands one escalator step below me so we can kiss.

259 He knows the suburbs well.

260 He throws away old magazines when he�s finished reading them.

261 He dislikes the Ashlee Simpson show.

262 He is fun to go to a Cubs game with.

263 He is so pretty.

264 He predicts that google would blow up if Britney Spears cured AIDS.

265 He knows exactly where I�ll fall asleep in the car when coming home from the suburbs.

266 He will only make fun of me a little for it.

267 He unconsciously pets Hambone when he (Benito) is asleep.

268 He gets so excited about football.

269 He jokes about setting his friends up with mine.

270 He would never wear pink.

271 He doesn�t match up his socks when he puts clothes away.

272 He always has clean towels.

273 He writes funny fake news stories on his fantasy football league�s front page.

274 He treats fantasy football as serious business.

275 He doesn�t drive too fast.

276 He said his mom wants my fortune cookie recipe.

277 He rearranges store displays to give his company�s products better placement.

278 He wears silly shirts when he works out.

279 He is �hawt� according to Happy.

280 He is also fun to watch Tivo with according to her too.

281 He definitely is.

282 He included a quote from me when he wrote an article for the Tribune.

283 He learned all about exfoliating after getting a sunburn.

284 He almost caught a fly ball on his birthday but didn�t mind that the other guys got it because the guy was so excited.

285 He is really good to his friends.

286 He sounds like he knows a thing or two about wine.

287 He relies on me to do any math.

288 He has a friend he met online but hasn�t ever actually met.

289 He reads the labels on foods.

290 He loaned me his digicam for my Vegas trip.

291 He calls me out when I exaggerate my stories online.

292 He says he�s as graceful as a sack of bricks.

293 He plays football videogames better than everyone.

294 He especially shows no mercy when playing his company�s VP of marketing.

295 He left a funny note on my birthday evite, calling me a cheap date.

296 He grills everything.

297 He watches crime TV shows.

298 He schools me on come-back lines.

299 He has grey hairs in his temples.

300 He won�t take a trapeze class with me.

301 He says I can join his fantasy football league next yet.

302 He calls at night if we didn�t IM much that work day.

303 He offers to feed Hambone while I�m away on vacation.

304 He has spiky hair.

305 He keeps pictures of his family around his house.

306 He creates workout and stock trading contests for us.

307 He was impressed by my NCAA tournament success in my office pool.

308 He uses sunscreen if needed.

309 He rode the ferris wheel with me at the Taste of Chicago.

310 He doesn�t own a dog.

311 He gets these crazy hairs that stick out wildly.

312 He takes me to work with him when cool stuff is going on.

313 He no longer looks at me confusedly when I say I want cold food.

314 He thinks it�s funny when he finds my hair all over his house.

315 He pretends that it isn�t funny when he finds a Hambone hair though.

316 He talks layperson science with me.

317 He wears Packers clothes on football Sundays.

318 He got me a Roy Williams jersey so I wouldn�t feel left out.

319 He goes on afternoon walks with me when the weather is nice.

320 He says funny things while riding rollercoasters.

321 He can set up wireless Internet, my TV stuff, and my stereo equipment.

322 He is sometimes the boss of me, and I am sometimes the boss of him.

323 He doesn�t have the t-shirt to prove it though.

324 He rolls his eyes when I wear my proof-worthy t-shirt.

325 He doesn�t win at darts or air hockey, but he�s good competition.

326 He has a joke about eating caveman-style that makes me giggle and annoys his mom.

327 He dares me to make out-of-place statements in public (e.g., �Mmmm, roughage!� while at a salad bar).

328 He likes bananas.

329 He knows not to bring up the beef between me and apples.

330 He takes random pictures of me with his camera phone.

331 He types, and his hands look like crab claws.

332 He rubs my back and shoulders while we�re watching TV.

333 He has never left a hickey mark on me.

334 He named one of his fantasy football leagues �Cat Turds in the Tub� after Hambone.

335 He doesn�t like snakes.

336 He like snacks.

337 He likes when I rub his feet with lotion.

338 He remembers when I�m right about stock predictions.

339 He uses anti-Hambone address labels.

340 He has excellent taste in bedroom furniture.

341 He always has a monkey picture as his IM logo.

342 He knows to gauge my mood off of my IM logo.

343 He asks how Ming is doing in Houston.

344 He has an office chair that matches mine.

345 He still thanks me for going places with him, even though it�s definitely my pleasure.

346 He sometimes calls me �Hon�.

347 He calls me with sports scores since I don�t have a TV.

348 He knows that one kiss usually isn�t enough.

349 He loans me books since the library won�t.

350 He knows that to get me to do something, it�s got to be a competition.

351 He bought a house when he was 26; I bought when I was 24.

352 He has a financial goal of a certain amount; I�m trying to reach it prior to being his age.

353 He works out each day; I work out each day plus one morning extra each week.

354 He stalks these certain stocks; I stalk those plus two others.

355 He doesn�t get mad when I put my cold feet on him to warm them up.

356 He tells people to buy Mary Kay from me.

357 He doesn�t tell me he bet on a football game until he�s already won the bet.

358 He laughs really funnily when I tickle him.

359 He downloads software and burns CDs for me.

360 He will drive me all over the place and wake up extra early when Hambone is sick.

361 He also accidentally washed a load of laundry after the dryer sheets box fell into the washer.

362 He makes jokes about my driving, although I�ve never driven with him in the car.

363 He Tivos LOST each week but saves the episode so we can watch it together.

364 His arms fits around me just-so when we lay down.

365 He is amazing, wonderful, kind, thoughtful, and fantastic, and I�m so glad that he�s around.

Yes, everyone.

This man who says that a box of rocks could beat Justin Timberlake at a game of Scrabble.

This man who drinks enough Diet Coke to put Coca-cola�s chairman�s kids through college.

This man who reserves a night each week for me without fail.

This man who has me like no other.

This Benito. He�s really something. �



Miss something?

Moving Day - 2008-02-15
Working from Home is Glorious - 2008-02-13
Speaking in Tongues - 2008-02-07
I Have My Reasons - 2008-01-25
Got an Itch, Fix it, Shine it Up, Sing it Out - 2008-01-23

back one -- forward one

get notified when I update:
email:

hosted by DiaryLand.com