I knew he would and was used to it, but the boost of confidence was great. I went to the counter and smiled at the guy behind the counter, who recogn...zed me and asked, “Did you get new hair? You look great!”“Thanks, I did,” I said with a smile.I changed my five-dollar bill and paid the entrance fee and went back into the dark alleys of the arcade. I went around the first corner and a found man, apparently fresh from ‘working late at the office,’ still wearing a loosened tie with his slacks. I looked at that and said well that's a good start then he went on to say that he had really read my page could tell that nobody had really looked and given me what I needed. And a phone number.I read the other messages only half into them I knew I'd be dialing on them numbers. My hand was shaking a little as I dialed I heard a deep, rich, man's voice on the other end say hello and how can I help you so I told him hi this is Teddie and I loved your message on FetLife to make a long story short. " And tattoos. Several of 'em." So my wife's a smartass." Hey, buddy, you had fair warning."In the car, she was adamant. "I don't see the point in arguing. What's wrong with a simple gold band?" Nothing. Baby, I can afford to put a diamond on your finger. Seriously. It's a minor thing." If it's a minor thing, then drop it. I love you. Ring is symbology I like. No beginning. No end. Diamond is a marketing ploy. Diamonds didn't show up on the radar for weddings until de Beers started an ad. "Knock that shit off, you guys," I said. "And don't bother Bernadette again all year."I know, I know. It sounds lame to me too, now that I think about it. I mean I didn't even suggest what would happen if they didn't. And, in the old days, they'd have turned their attention on me, while Bernadette scurried away and everybody else pulled back in one of those silent moments, watching.Oh. I forgot one thing, and you need to know it. While Mark was in the hospital, Jerry visited him and told him.