You know you have a Gary when you forget – or don’t even want – to check your phone.
While I still stand firm in refusing to tell people what characteristics their Gary should possess, I feel it’s okay to provide some guidelines. Because, really, The Gary Club is essentially a guide itself, so what’s the harm in having a guide within a guide?
The following are signs you might have a Gary in your life and therefore are on the path to relationship bliss.
• It dawns on you three hours have gone by without reaching for your phone – even if you hear it beep – and you really don’t care because you are more interested in your potential Gary than a screen.
• As you listen to your friends cry/complain about their significant others and how they constantly fight, how they never seem happy, and how they find it miraculous if they survive a vacation without volcano-like explosive arguments, you realize you can’t relate. At all.
• Your potential Gary takes you into consideration when it comes to decision making. Not only decisions relating to their life, but decisions when it comes to things affecting you both – vacations, décor, date nights. In other words, it’s not all about him. It’s about you both.
• Songs that used to remind you of heartache don’t seem to have the same effect anymore. You can actually listen to the entire song instead of quickly turning it off. You might also find yourself detached from negative emotions when listening to any song about tortured love, lost love, failed love – you get my point. Your Depressed Mix Vol. 1 through 4 CDs are now buried somewhere deep inside a box, where they will hopefully remain until years from now when curiosity sets in and you decide to see what’s inside.
• He takes a genuine interest in your life and hobbies. I don’t mean he has to join you on 4:30 a.m. runs, but he supports your dedication and doesn’t put up a fuss when you have to go to bed early, when you stick with a relatively strict diet, or you’re busy with said hobby and can’t hang out. Or he patiently listens as you talk about people he’s never met, and asks questions, instead of cutting you off and, in a tone filled with annoyance, tells you he doesn’t understand why you tell him about people he doesn’t know or care about. (Note: it took me a really long time to fight off my eye-rolling attitude when my boyfriend would make any mention about what was going on with sports I didn’t particularly care for. Did I care who was traded, who went on a Twitter rant, or who scored a crazy shot, or what that shot even looked like? No. But I eventually came to the conclusion all that was expected of me was a little show of respect and interest, because I know I wouldn’t like it if he behaved the way I did if the roles were reversed. Plus, the line “wow, that’s crazy” can be used in almost any situation, so consider that your contribution to the showing interest cause).
Agree? Disagree? Are there other signs that point to Gary? I want to hear from you!
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