CuriousByNature

I get what you're saying, and I don't want to overly dissect things, but I still find it hard to see how his reply to you was objectively a dismissal. I can totally understand that it subjectively felt like a dismissal, but the average person reading the text would not likely come to that conclusion based on what he wrote. He even thanked you for the offer. Some could argue that you dismissed him by not replying to his text, until 12 hours later. True, he did not ask any follow up questions, but there is no reason to if he only wishes to consider professional photographers. I imagine that he thought the conversation was over once he told you he was not interested in being photographed and you did not respond with any other interest in meeting. I have never met with anyone, so I don't know what an interaction like this is supposed to look like, and I'm sorry you have been rushed and scammed by others in the past. It makes a person understandably wary, and in some cases we can become extra sensitive to how a message is given to us. Maybe this is part of the situation? I am nobody to judge or guess what goes on in another person's mind, but it is incredibly difficult to view text messages objectively if we have been hurt or disappointed in the past - it is too easy to read a tone into them that may not have been intended. Or the guy is a jerk - but I can't come to that conclusion on an objective basis. This is part of the issue with social media and virtual relationships - too much depends on our assumptions of one another, and not enough is based on real life connections.

I've been on a number of cruises and have never seen these sorts of port excursions listed by the cruise lines.

Who is that? He looks familiar but I'm not sure from where.

I don't think you should call yourself a weird person, and there isn't anyone who is everybody's cup of tea. You have your interests and those did not happen to intersect with the interests of this provider. You expressed the desire to photograph him and he was not interested and he let you know that directly, but still politely. If you put yourself in his shoes, there is very little incentive - even paid incentive - to pose for a non-professional photographer. You or I could be absolutely anyone looking to do something with his photos that he might not approve of. With a professional photographer there is a greater likelihood of professional conduct and ethics than with someone just showing up at his place with a camera. I'm not suggesting you would do anything nefarious with his photos, but he does not know that. It makes sense that he would like to see examples of your work before accepting that sort of offer, or at least have some sort of a relationship with you beforehand. I looked at his advertisement and I didn't see any mention of him posing for clients, or an interest in being photographed, so your desire to photograph him may have made him uneasy rather than feeling complimented. The reply you gave him 12 hours later about being dismissive seemed a bit over the top to me, but I understand from various experiences in life that sometimes we can take the rejection of what we consider a reasonable proposal as something harsher than it was intended. I don't think he was being dismissive towards you - he was being straightforward, and saving both of you time and effort going back and forth about something that was not going to happen. If he was truly dismissive he could have blocked you after knowing what you were interested in - the fact that he did not do this suggests he is likely quite reasonable. Does that make any sense at all?

Ohhh - that isn't generalizing about an ethnicity at all...

The worst I heard was someone asking the school secretary to page a fellow student on the intercom. Student name: Mike, last name Hunt.

I've never been to a clothing-optional venue because I'd be worried the staff and other guests would insist that I not exercise the option... 🤣

Is it possible to wear a condom with something like that and have it remain intact? And assuming the urethra is perforated, wouldn't urination be a bit messy - especially when the piercing is out?

When I lived in BC there was a moderately strong quake south of Seattle. It would have been around 2001-2002 and I was living in a 12th floor apartment in Burnaby, which is immediately east of Vancouver. I think the magnitude was 6.5 or maybe a bit stronger, and I felt the apartment sway about 5 times. Some friends in Vancouver felt much sharper shaking and it amazed me the same quake could create such different sensations even though the distance from the epicenter was almost the same. I suppose it was because of different substrate and ground compositions, and maybe because I was high up. Anyway, glad you are fine @BuffaloKyle

Hey hey hey... oh, wrong Albert

Guilty and verbose as charged! LOL

I don't think that everyone is being exploited, by any means. But there are those who are knowingly or unknowingly exploited due to their desperate situations, and while everyone should have the freedom to make an informed choice, I think that freedom of choice also implies the need for proper discernment in order to protect those who may not feel that they have any choice other than to offer themselves up to another person's desires.

This guy might be able to help...

I love geography discussions. I tend to consider the following: East Asia: Most of China, Taiwan, Japan, the Koreas South East Asia: Southern fringe of China, including Hainan, Macao and Hong Kong, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, East Timor, and the Philippines South Asia: Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan Central Asia: The rest of the 'stan' countries Western Asia: Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, most of Turkey, Cyprus, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories, Kuwait, and the nations of the Arabian peninsula. Northern Asia: Siberian Russia, Mongolia, Northern fringe of China including Northern Manchuria As for the term 'Oriental', I stopped using that term to refer to people of Asian background once I realized how silly it would be to call myself 'Occidental'.

Since I live in Ontario, I consider Quebec and the Maritimes to be the Orient.

Only in areas where there's a lot of copper, gold, or other mineral and ore deposits.

I agree that putting one's own needs/wants first is part of human nature, generally speaking. But must we give in to that nature when the result is potential harm to others? 🤷‍♂️

WOW - I thought it was 'public assistance' too... reading can be a challenge, evidently.

57 replies in 13 hours. Congrats to the OP - this must be some sort of record. Ooops - now it's 58 with this reply of mine. I'm out.

In light of the OP's responses to comments on this thread, I'm inclined to think the scenario presented never happened. I think someone needs to get back to the kitchen and stir the pot there.

I think it might be important to remember that while you were giving back the provider's time, you were also taking away from the provider's income. If having free time at that moment was critical for the provider, he would not have scheduled to meet you then. The donation that is made is for the provider's time, and in this case he received nothing, even though he blocked off that time to meet with you. Things happen and people don't always make the wisest choices in the moment, but perhaps this can be explained to him and an offer can be made to at least partially cover the loss to him - assuming your foremost intention is to make things right

An 18 year old woman in Canada purchased her first ever lottery ticket several weeks ago and won $48M Canadian on our Lotto 649 draw. Not a scratch ticket, but the chances of winning on your first purchase must be ridiculously minuscule - the chances for any 649 jackpot are about 14 million to one....

If a person is having a Nuru massage, isn't that basically the same as frottage? Would both people be unclothed and face to face? If that is the case - and here's maybe the stupidest question so far - what are they doing with their faces? I would think that such a level of connection could lead to kissing, unless the participants are expected to look away from each other. I know that YMMV, but wouldn't Nuru probably end with some sort of release? Is the person being massaged that way supposed to just lie there with their hands at their sides and their face turned away? I'm probably overthinking this... but if I ever try Nuru it would be nice to have an idea of what would be appropriate behaviour.