The Glass Cactus

Okay, so I know I said the Iron Cactus was where I'd be visiting next, but for those of you who know me (and for those that don't) things in Jessica's World rarely goes as planned.

This week, I ventured out to The Glass Cactus, which is a bar on the Gaylord Texan hotel property. It is not inside the hotel but next to it. Believe it or not, my mom joined my sister and me on this week's man hunt. My mom is single and looking, just like I am, so I thought, "Why not take her out for a good time too?"

The Glass Cactus has people of all ages that frequent it. Since it is located by the Gaylord in Grapevine, people from DFW are there as well as people visiting the hotel. So you are bound to meet people from other areas of the U.S. too.

We go on Wednesday, which is ladies night there. I'm not really into the bar scene, but on my man hunt, I'm not leaving any area unexposed...because you never know where you're going to meet your "wish man."

I realized it was a very chilly night, as we quickly walk what seemed like a mile to the front door. Of course when it's cold outside and you're not wearing a coat, a two minute walk seems like it takes 20 minutes. The parking lot looks empty, so I am quite skeptical going in.

I have only been to The Glass Cactus once before, when it was 80's night. Now, I'm a sucker for 80's music and really enjoyed it the first time we went, because I knew almost every song they played. It was also packed, and there were tons of people everywhere. You would think that would be perfect for finding a man possibility (a man that has potential) but only one guy talked to me, and he was quite a bit older and unattractive.

So when I see that the place, by the parking lot, looks like it wasn't going to be busy, I have my doubts. With my long sleeved white buttoned down shirt, red pants and shoes, and matching earrings, I feel like I might be a little overdressed. When I went before, most people were in jeans with some girls in cutesy skirt outfits. I don't think my pants are too dressy, until I walk in and see so many people in jeans. I end up seeing a few guys who look like they just got off work, so that sets me a little at ease.

My mom and sister quickly get a drink, and then we take a seat at a table near the dance floor. I love people watching, especially at bars. We watch as a few couples danced, but I am really glancing around the bar, scoping for men. Disappointingly, no one immediately catches my eye...but I refuse to give up! I'm on the hunt, after all : )

I notice a couple dancing quite far apart and almost solo on the dance floor. The guy's flailing arms and stiff body movements make me smile, so I point it out to my sister. As I'm telling my sister, a cute guy walks up to a table of guys, two over from us. I quickly notice his nice smile and spiky brown hair. I glance over at the table several times in the next few minutes. Then the waitress approaches us and says, "I had an open tab at this table, and I thought they were done. They went out to smoke, and now they want their table back. I'm sorry."

Surely I didn't hear her correctly.? I've never heard of this...in a bar, when you give up your table, you don't get dibs on getting it back. When you leave your table, you give up all rights to it, right??!!

I reply to the server, "It's not your fault. You don't need to be sorry. It's just quite rude of them."

Well, we reluctantly oblige the server, because I don't want to make if difficult.

Now, I'm not one to worry about not making things difficult. I will buy something at a store, and if I find it somewhere else for a dollar cheaper, yes a dollar cheaper, I will buy it and return the first one. On another note, I have no problem sticking up for people or telling people what I believe is correct. If I feel like I am wrong, I don't have a problem speaking up. I do think the server in this case should have explained to the people that once you give up your table, you don't get to kick other people out of it. You don't get to reserve the table. Do they think they could get the table back, because The Glass Cactus wasn't that busy? The same rules should apply whether it's a full house or just a few hundred people. I don't make a big deal about it, because we are just wanting to have a good time.

We move to a table two rows back with a somewhat obstructed view of the band. I tell my mom and sister, "I liked the other table better, because it gave me the perfect view to the cute guys at the other table." My mom laughs....but I was being serious.

A gentleman at the table next to us asks, "Why did you have to move?"

My mom explains it to him, and then he says, "Well, I'm going to have to dance with you ladies at the next good song."

When we see that only one guy was sitting at our previous table, that doesn't sit well with us. But the next song quickly comes on, and the guy and my mom go dancing. That gets our mind off things, because now my sister and I can laugh at my mom. My mom is always one that can provide a good laugh, most of the time probably without her knowing.

While the guy and my mom are gone, a thin, dark haired guy walks up to me. His thick circular glasses reminds me of ones I saw in Revenge of the Nerds, while his straight legged 80's jeans with white socks peering out from his shoes doesn't help strike that image. He asks me, "Would you like to dance?"

I respond, "No, thank you."

His determined tone asks, "Are you sure?"

I reply, "Yes, but thank you."

Perseverance doesn't always pay off, because when he asks, "Are you absolutely sure?" I want to say, "UHHH, yes, I've politely said 'No" twice."

Instead I say, "Yes, but thank you."

Then he turns to my sister and asks the same thing, "Would you like to dance?"

My heart teares for her being the second choice, and I want to say to him, "How dare you!!"

She replies, "No thank you."

With that, his fight is out, and he says, "Ladies, have a good night," before walking away.

I think he was actually trying to be nice in asking her...but still. As we watch him leave, I say to my sister, "That's the guy who was on the dance floor earlier dancing a mile away from the girl with his arms flailing."

She and I share a quick chuckle, and I'm sure she is even happier she didn't get on the dance floor with him...although I would have had a good laugh if she had : )

My mom comes back from dancing, and about 15 minutes later, I see the cute guy walking towards our table. My heart skips a beat as he gets closer. I start thinking to myself, "Surely, he is not going to approach us...surely he isn't going to approach us, surely he isn't going to approach us...OH MY GOSH HE IS! He is NOT pulling up a chair...He is NOT pulling up a chair...OH MY LAND, he IS pulling up a chair."

As he sits down, he says, "Hi, how are you?"

I wait a half a second, seeing if my mom or sister reply, and since they don't, I feel the pressure..."Hi, I'm good, how are you," I manage to utter to him sitting across the table from me.

My sister and mom sit in utter silence, as I stumble to quickly try to think of something to say or ask. I've been told a few times that I am "a question asker."

It doesn't matter who you are or where we are, I tend to ask questions...I tend to like asking questions. If I don't know you, it helps me get to know you. If I do, I like you...I'm interested. I also like details. So, I might be asking questions, because it's all about details...details...details...I want to know what you were wearing or how you gestured or what exactly made you smile...or your mood, thoughts, or why you hesitated. Just saying the fact that you did something isn't enough. I want to know how, when, why, where...and every imaginable detail. It helps me to form a picture in my head...so I can picture the way you were walking when you went into the store, or how you looked when you talked to the person or what your mood was when you went to the restaurant. I guess asking a lot of questions also makes me better at my job...a talk show host.

Anyways, so I begin with the usual, "What do you do? How did you get into that? Do you enjoy it? Where do you live? Why are you up here?" After all of these, I think, "Hey it might be good, Jessica, for you to finally get his name." So, of course, the polite way to do this is, "Hi, I'm Jessica."

He says, "I'm Jeremy."

As I point to my left, "This is Jennifer."

He says, "Jeremy."

And I point to my right, "This is Gail." Of course, I don't give them the title, "My sister" or "My mom."

He says, "Jeremy."

I say, "Your friends can come join us."

He replies, "They are quite boring."

So my mom decides to go to those guys and say, "Your friend says you're boring. You should come prove them wrong."

One guy says, "We will when it's important."

Guess it wasn't too important right then, because my mom quickly comes back to the table.

Then she and my sister still do not try and converse, so my mind starts running a mile a minute trying to figure out what I'm going to ask next. He asks what I do and where I live.

I reply, "An internet television talk show host" and "North Richland Hills," respectively.

He then tries to be funny, "So, do you want to interview me?"

I can't stand people saying this, like I just want to interview every single person I meet. I feel like saying, "What story do you have that can help others?"

Instead I just laugh.

As we try to talk, I realize how young he really is...not only in appearance (after all he looks about 26 or 28) but in his maturity level. The conversation doesn't flow, and it's a struggle to find something to talk about.

His friend approaches the table and says they are ready to leave. Jeremy has a presentation at 7:30 a.m., and it was already midnight. He says he isn't worried about it, but apparently the other guys want to go to bed. Jeremy then says, "Hey, Jessica wants to interview you."

I manage to fake laugh, because they are finding this funny. Jeremy's friend says again how they want to leave. So, I say, "It was nice to meet you and good luck on your presentation tomorrow."

With that, he leaves, and I'm sure I'll never see him again, which is perfectly fine.

We sit for only a few minutes before two guys sit down at our table with us. The first guy says, "Hi."

I quickly respond with, "Hi."

I can tell they have been drinking a little, when one says, "We've been drinking since three o'clock."

My immediate thought is, "Not something you want to tell someone that you just met," and "How and the heck are they still carrying on a conversation and not passed out?"

So I ask, "How are you still standing up?"

The other one replies, "Oh, we are about not to be."

Just then he asks my mom to go dance, and my mom obliges.

I can't even tell you what my sister and I say to the guy that remains. I guess it wasn't too memorable. Heck, I didn't even get either of their names, so that has to tell you something.

I'm ready to go, so I take the opportunity to tell my mom as soon as she gets back from dancing.

A little while later, we go to the bathroom before facing the cold breezy air of the night. Walking quickly to our cars, as we laugh about the night and share different stories, I realize how fun the night really was. Although I didn't meet my wish man, it feels really good that a cute guy even tried to talk to us....that a cute guy made the effort to come and sit down at our table. This gives me great hope for the future. I'm not saying, "Oh my gosh, I can't believe a CUTE guy talked to us."

What I'm saying is that I really don't get approached by guys (not to say he was approaching me and not my sister---gosh, I hope he wasn't approaching my mom...what a cougar she would be??!). I don't know what it is but good looking guys don't tend to approach me. Well, I'm setting out to change that. And who knows, maybe I'm going to have to start approaching some hotties...Won't that be a sight!? Betcha can't wait to see (and hear) about that one??!! Well, you'll be the first.....Here's to still prowlin'...