Always one to support a good cause, Prahran Mission is now even closer to my heart because I work just around the corner and visit once a week.
Plus, fashion favourite (and someone I am thrilled to call a friend) Philip Boon, is involved, along with students from the Whitehouse Institute of Design, so you know it will be a quality event for a cause.
Purchase tickets by May 26 and go in the running to win a double pass to see The Temper Trap.
This article first appeared for Onya Magazine.
How quickly time flies when you are having fun. Or when you are not.
On Tuesday, it was St Valentine’s Day – the traditional day when lovers share with each other their undying passion and desire to spend the rest of their lives together.
I just heated up a microwave meal for one.
But all is not lost, because after much soul searching – well, actually, not much – I am finding that I am quite enjoying the Five in Five concept and the way it is actually expanding my horizons and introducing me to new people. It feels okay to take a risk, to jump in the deep end or take a leap of faith. Who knows what might happen? Perhaps next year I’ll have someone to share my microwave dinner with.
Unfortunately though, in terms of dates, I don’t have too much new information to share with you. Officially, I haven’t been on another date, however, I have had much interaction and the prospects are definitely there. Come to think of it – perhaps I do have a bit to share.
One of the best parts about the Five in Five concept is that is provides a talking point, not only with those people you have just met, but also with those whom you spend a lot of time with. It seems everyone knows someone single once you start chatting about it; all you need is a conversation starter.
While chatting with the people you know is a great – and easy – start, finding ones you don’t is a little harder. However, if you have a confident friend, she (or he) is the perfect wingman. For example, last weekend while crashing a friends barbeque by the Yarra on a Sunday morning, my confident friend, let’s call her Lola, decided to randomly approach the guys at the BBQ pit next to us.
A simple smile and a handwritten phone number later, Miss Lola and I were giggling like we were in high school. And, after a minor false start (boys who have been drinking all day can be excused) a date was set and a string of text messages with Ryan Gosling followed. Stay tuned for the date.
Meanwhile, the power of Twitter saw me set up a lunch date and I was actually feeling pretty good about the Five in Five deal. While the date with Kevin Rudd didn’t go ahead (the guy cancelled but he had good reason – massive respect to Kev for giving me the truth straight up) I hit Valentine’s Day with a massive case of the singles.
The speed-dating event I had so been looking forward to seemed like a pain the butt: time when I could be reading Vogue, eating Thai or simply having an early night. The persistence of a certain barman and friends (yes, Lola was there) encouraged me to come out and I headed to the event despite my own reluctance.
And this is what I learnt. I love meeting new people. It doesn’t matter where or how, I just love new people. And if it so happens that I am in a room full of them who are single? All the better for me.
If you are open to the idea of meeting new people, then almost like magic, opportunities present themselves – be it because you strike up a conversation with friends, or because your wingman decides to take matters into her own hands.
Speed dating was fun – Come back next week to read the next instalment of my Five in Five experiences to see how many matches there were, how the catch ups went and whether Ryan Gosling was as good in real life as he was via text.
NB: Brad Pitt finally got back to me. Two weeks to the day after saying he would call next week. His excuse? He did text – I didn’t get it. Should I follow up? Vote now.
To support Sarah, and raise funds for Concern Australia, visit her fundraising page here.
This article first appeared for Onya Magazine
The dating game has a long and pained history. Your chances of winning are not all that high, you can easily get hurt or embarrassed and the rules seem to change all the time. Why is this activity something that anyone would want to engage in?
Actually – why is this activity something that I would actively agree to participate in – en masse – for a number of weeks? Perhaps it’s the things I will do because I think it will make a good story. Or maybe it’s the good side of dating. Perhaps it’s the chance of meeting someone special or having a fantastic night out – meeting a kindred spirit or making a new friend.
Perhaps it’s just putting myself out there – after all, if you never play the game you will never have any chance of winning.
The Five in Five concept was first introduced to me several weeks ago. My first reaction was fear. If I hadn’t asked anyone out in the past (censored) number of years, how could I start now? If none of my friends had set me up with anyone in (censored) number of years, who would I go out with? How could I go on five dates in five weeks, when I hadn’t been on ANY in (censored) years?
I will be 28 years old next month. I often go on about my seemingly terminal state of singledom, but I never do anything about it. I have only ever asked one man out, and was rejected – once bitten, twice shy. Everyone I know (pretty much) is married or in a relationship. I blame the man drought, my busy lifestyle, my own nerves, but at the end of the day, I am still single.
In the interests of full disclosure, I am vehemently opposed to internet dating. I love the traditional notions of romanticism and having a quirky story to tell the grandkids – we clicked over coffee rather than I clicked your profile kind of thing. I appreciate this system really isn’t working for me, but I’m happy to wait. I do have a few good years left in me. Right?
Which is where Five in Five comes in. Five in Five means five dates in five weeks – a seemingly impossible notion – using traditional means. You ask friends, family, work colleagues and your networks if they know single people, ask out the stranger in your Woolies queue or the barista you have had your eye on for months. And the best bit? It’s for charity!
You: ‘Yes, good morning, can I have a flat white, a muffin and a date? It’s ok – it’s for charity’
Barista: ‘Sure. Do you want sugar? Pick you up Friday at 8?’
Or something like that. Start by registering at Five in Five to support homelessness, get some tips on dating and where you can find a man (or a woman!) and hook up some dates. Easy right?
It was time to get over the fear and just go for it. What did I have to lose? And so date number one was set up.
Found through a work colleague, date number one will from this point on be known as Brad Pitt. (This bears no resemblance to his appearance, age, occupation or otherwise, but since I was going to change the names of the dates anyways, I figured why not aim high? Stay tuned for Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Kevin Rudd (cause there’s always one) and Superman).
Brad was given my number and sent me a text introducing himself. A phone call the following weekend and I had my first date – midweek drinks. Which is when traditionally, the nerves and stereotypical freaking out tends to begin.
I am one of those people who want to know everything there is to know about what I am getting myself into. Google (and Facebook) has proven an excellent tool for this in recent years (don’t judge me, you do it too!*) but this time, I was at a loose end. No Facebook. No online history. All I had to go on was the brief profile from my work colleague.
He chose the restaurant and picked me up (win, win) and off we went. Of course I had agonised over my outfit, whether we would stay for dinner and all those other little things but as soon as we started talking, all those things were forgotten. Two glasses of wine and several hours later, we ordered food and the laughing and sharing continued.
By the time the winebar was close to empty and we called a cab, I had to admit I’d had a really good night and by most standards, a really good first date. Brad Pitt asked about going out again next week. I wonder if I can count that as number two for Five in Five?
No boys were harmed in the making of this column.
*For the record, Brad Pitt had no issue Googling me either.
To support Sarah, and raise funds for Concern Australia, visit her fundraising page here.
