Lunch with a reporter and excursions with a dating agency

I had lunch with a Bloomberg reporter that I've known for a while on Monday.  A very down to earth Chinese who spent a few years in Oregon and Arizona, he seems to know about life in small town USA.  He just had a baby and overall seemed to like all the places he had been.  One needs to appreciate where one is at and not start to appreciate it all when you leave.  Oregon was green and Arizona was a desert.  One just needs to appreciate the geography when one is there.

I went to a dating agency yesterday.  I was kicked out of another repeatedly for no reason.  This time they accepted me, but it is exorbitant, costing HK$6000 for 3 introductions.  The lady who didn't have any makeup on herself and looked rather drab told me that I was dressed more like a mom type in the bird-print top I had on.  I should work on my hair and makeup.  She then handed me the prices for professional photography.  "Competition is more fierce in Hong Kong.  Other girls, graduates of Harvard and Insead all know how to package themselves.  They all took those professional photos to start."  Even Gweilos care.  They say those tops with large prints remind them of their mothers.

I went through her database and made my picks.  Half of the guys work in IT.  There are a few dorky Asian guys.  I felt a sense of entrapment thinking that I may be trapped with a guy like that for the rest of my life.  Yet I have to be the one taking professional photos to impress when the guys never needed to do that.  The strategist did say that all guys are looking for in a mate are "young and pretty."  This is a depressing reality.  I am no longer young and I can't say I'm extraordinary.  My brother today told me over im chat that the chance that I would find my perfect partner in Shanghai is 0.  So drastic and heartless.  If I want to deceive myself and dream, then by all means I should go on.

I had lunch with another potential employer who was interested in hiring someone like me in his team.  It also being a Chinese firm with marginally better platform, I acted rather reluctant.  This is especially true when I am considering altering my lifepath altogether.  I should just enjoy the present for now.