[The West Wing] 1.08 "Enemies"
Oct. 2nd, 2006 08:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
hermionesviolinMy first conversations with both Alyssa and Nicole this morning of course included "So I hear you have plans on Friday," so watching this episode at lunch was extra... whatever. Especially with everyone's insistence that this is a date. Nicole was all, "If it would make you nervous to think of this as a date..." and I kept insisting that it's not so much that it would make me nervous to think of it as such but that I don't think he is at all interested in me That Way, so it really isn't a "date." We discussed briefly what would make me consider something a date [other than the obvious explicit "Would you like to go out on a date with me this Friday?"] -- I think I decided on mutual attraction or at least some indication thereof -- and I joked about referring to it as a NotDate [though I think fandom has eaten my brain sufficiently that I thought "not!date"], which of course got me thinking of the coffee exchange in "Reptile Boy" (BtVS 2.05), though I didn't say that to her. She's not the first person to talk about the possibility of it "turning into" a date, and I find it interesting that while I totally obsess and mentally rehearse all these scenarios of how an interaction might go, at least in this instance I seem to have a realistic sense of how things actually will go. (This is especially amusing given how bad I usually am at navigating social cues.) There's also this idea that I would want to go home, change clothes, separate the event from work, which really, I don't want to do. That would make it very clearly a date -- the boy isn't that dense -- which I think would make him feel really awkward.
Anyway, the West Wing episode.
[westwringtranscripts.com]
I read Mallory being into Sam and essentially blackmailing Sam [remember the conversation at the bar in "Mr. Willis of Ohio"?] into going to the opera with her, and that the threat of blackmail was where his discomfort came from. Others at the table said that he was into her. When we learned that he got all dressed up I was willing to concede that he likes her back.
Bartlet and Leo in the "Well, I'm right next door all night." / "Me too." exchange? I had to try really really hard not to slash them.
2) Ever since the opening scene I was thinking about what it would be like to watch this with my dad, who is the one who took us on the All About the Rocks trip but who doesn't have the preservation-for-preservation's-sake mentality that some people do.
3) I made a crack about how you have to pay to get in to National Parks, and Mary Alice contested this. I remembered my dad ordering a National Parks Pass when we went cross-country but wasn't gonna argue right then 'cause we were camping, so it could have been that they just charged for staying overnight. Nope, I Googled later, and the information on this unofficial website is borne out by Googling some National Parks (e.g. Yosemite, Yellowstone). "Fees and Reservations" looks to be a part of the template for all National Park websites.
I also felt vindicated by Katie's response to my e-mail with this:
"I was thinking… I am almost positive I was $20 poorer after driving through Acadia :("
Shortly after lunch I got an e-mail (to both my work and personal accounts) from Eric:
I had in the meantime replied to his e-mail:
I ended up spending much of the rest of the afternoon doing stuff for people I don't even work for.
Prof.N. e-mailed re: a reimbursement that should have been sent in months ago -- CCing me and Eric 'cause it's from back when he worked for her the second time, but I was also involved 'cause he was away on vaca for part of this and it got given to me. My immediate first reaction was "Not this again!" and then I just started laughing. Eric was up using the copier, so I called him over, made him look. Of course he was all "I'm so not getting involved in this" -- which was a completely appropriate reaction. But as we know, when he knows something's messed-up he can't let it go, so we spent the next, I dunno, hour?, trying to figure out exactly what had happened.
I told Alyssa I'd color scan a document for one of her profs, which took an eternity 'cause the scanner is so slow -- which is mostly not a big deal 'cause I can do other stuff while it's working, but it's still a bit of a hassle.
Yeah, whine whine whine.
I decided on a sub-tag for this "dating" thing -- to separate it from the usual Eric anecdotes. Is from the Iron & Wine couplet, not the Blondie classic.
My Payless order came today! Yay for new boots.
I'd meant to go to the bank/ATM today and forgot, so I actually did cashback at the grocery store for the first time. (I needed to get groceries anyway and it occurred to me that I could use the cashback option. It was making me nervous that I only had $7+change in my wallet; plus we're going out to lunch at some point this week.)
Anyway, the West Wing episode.
[westwringtranscripts.com]
MALLORY: No, I'm asking you if you'd like to go together with me to see an internationally renowned opera company perform a work indigenous to its culture.Well that's one way to define a date :)
SAM: Right, and in what way will it distinguish itself from a date?
MALLORY: There will be, under no circumstances, sex for you at the end of the evening.
I read Mallory being into Sam and essentially blackmailing Sam [remember the conversation at the bar in "Mr. Willis of Ohio"?] into going to the opera with her, and that the threat of blackmail was where his discomfort came from. Others at the table said that he was into her. When we learned that he got all dressed up I was willing to concede that he likes her back.
Bartlet and Leo in the "Well, I'm right next door all night." / "Me too." exchange? I had to try really really hard not to slash them.
BARTLET [to Josh] What have you got?1) Hee! to Josh with the ferret line.
JOSH: The Antiquities Act. You're gonna establish Big Sky National Park.
[Bartlet laughs at the idea.]
JOSH: Yeah.
BARTLET: I can do this?
JOSH: Yeah.
BARTLET: You understand it's a bunch of rocks, right?
JOSH: I'm sure someone with your encyclopedic knowledge of the ridiculous and dork-like will be able to find a tree or a ferret that the public has a right to visit.
BARTLET [stands] More than a right, Josh.
JOSH: Sir.
BARTLET: It's a treat.
JOSH: Yes, sir.
BARTLET: You would enjoy nature.
JOSH: I've tried nature, sir. [helps Bartlet with his jacket]
2) Ever since the opening scene I was thinking about what it would be like to watch this with my dad, who is the one who took us on the All About the Rocks trip but who doesn't have the preservation-for-preservation's-sake mentality that some people do.
3) I made a crack about how you have to pay to get in to National Parks, and Mary Alice contested this. I remembered my dad ordering a National Parks Pass when we went cross-country but wasn't gonna argue right then 'cause we were camping, so it could have been that they just charged for staying overnight. Nope, I Googled later, and the information on this unofficial website is borne out by Googling some National Parks (e.g. Yosemite, Yellowstone). "Fees and Reservations" looks to be a part of the template for all National Park websites.
I also felt vindicated by Katie's response to my e-mail with this:
"I was thinking… I am almost positive I was $20 poorer after driving through Acadia :("
Shortly after lunch I got an e-mail (to both my work and personal accounts) from Eric:
Subject: Bad News....I called him just to say "I hate your family" and ended up leaving a voicemail. He recognized my number (duh) and e-mailed me (again, to both accounts):
Just found out that Friday's a really bad day. There's a family birthday party for my cousin Samantha on Saturday and I'm going to have to tkae the commuter rail Friday to my dads house. Unfortunately, with my family, sometimes this is as much notice as I'm likely to ever get (especially my uncle mike). So we need to reschedule...sorry i really though tthat was a good day, guess things always come up.
I have a better idea - next time i have a party at my house (usually have one once a month or every other) I'll let you know. I'll probably do something right after halloween. I'll let you know anyways. If you don't liek that idea, we can storm and coem up with something else. Let me know
Eric
Sorry im on the phone with my mom. I'll call you in a minute.Yup, he's a sweetheart.
I had in the meantime replied to his e-mail:
::sighs dramatically::
So now I'm the one who gets stuck at a party with a whole lot of people I don't know? ;) I wouldn't mind getting to meet some of your mythical friends, though.
And non-structured midweek hanging out remains an option (as an additional option -- not saying they're mutually exclusive).
-Elizabeth
I ended up spending much of the rest of the afternoon doing stuff for people I don't even work for.
Prof.N. e-mailed re: a reimbursement that should have been sent in months ago -- CCing me and Eric 'cause it's from back when he worked for her the second time, but I was also involved 'cause he was away on vaca for part of this and it got given to me. My immediate first reaction was "Not this again!" and then I just started laughing. Eric was up using the copier, so I called him over, made him look. Of course he was all "I'm so not getting involved in this" -- which was a completely appropriate reaction. But as we know, when he knows something's messed-up he can't let it go, so we spent the next, I dunno, hour?, trying to figure out exactly what had happened.
I told Alyssa I'd color scan a document for one of her profs, which took an eternity 'cause the scanner is so slow -- which is mostly not a big deal 'cause I can do other stuff while it's working, but it's still a bit of a hassle.
Yeah, whine whine whine.
I decided on a sub-tag for this "dating" thing -- to separate it from the usual Eric anecdotes. Is from the Iron & Wine couplet, not the Blondie classic.
My Payless order came today! Yay for new boots.
I'd meant to go to the bank/ATM today and forgot, so I actually did cashback at the grocery store for the first time. (I needed to get groceries anyway and it occurred to me that I could use the cashback option. It was making me nervous that I only had $7+change in my wallet; plus we're going out to lunch at some point this week.)
no subject
Date: 2006-10-03 12:07 am (UTC)Yeah, that's a battle you're going to lose.
And yuck, too bad about Friday.
no subject
Date: 2006-10-03 12:12 am (UTC)Yeah, I'm super-excited [sarcasm] about tomorrow being all "Who wants to come see Little Shop of Horrors with me on Friday?" I don't mind eating the cost of the ticket and don't mind seeing a play by myself. Dealing with the girl posse, however.... [I also both hope and fear that we will get to hang out alone outside of work. This prospect of hanging out with his friends is definitely intriguing, though. Groups of people I don't know is mildly scary and awkward, but on the up-side I have no vested interest in impressing them and am really curious to actually interact with these people he calls friends.]
no subject
Date: 2006-10-03 02:37 am (UTC)no subject
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