Avoiding Avoidance
(September 27, 2017)
I thought that I was going to be keeping up with a blog while I was living in Alaska, but that didnāt happen this time around. I was too busy being concerned with getting likes and attention, so I posted and shared my adventures on social media instead. When did social media become all about self-glorification? Itās basically a platform for everyone to be a narcissist and to brag about how awesome their lives are. āLook at what Iām doing. Look at what Iām wearing. Look at where I am. Look at what I bought.ā
Since when did I care so much about what people think of me? I would be lying if I said thatās not what I used Facebook or Instagram for too, but then it occurred to me yesterday when chatting with a new friend that maybe I share too much with people and donāt give them enough questions to ask to genuinely socialize with me. I make it too easy. I donāt entice them enough for them to pursue me because theyāve been trained to know that Iāll tell them everything whether they ask me to or not.
Admittedly, I loved posting about all my new awesome experiences, sharing the places I went to, tagging all my new friends in pictures. I made sure that EVERYONE could see how much fun I was having because secretly, in the back of my mind, I hoped that a certain someone from my past would spy on me. I wished that he especially would see how much fun I was having without him in my life when all I really wanted was for him to talk to me again. Pathetic. Why on earth would he ever want to talk to me again when he was the one that dropped me off the face of the earth without warning?
Just because you give someone the world or because youād do anything for them doesnāt mean that you should or that you deserve someone. And so ironically, in Alaska, on September 9th, 2017, I came full circle with my dilemma and got to know someone who was on the opposite end of the problem.
They say in Talkeetna itās possible to have a crush on someone for 20 minutes before you decide to move onto someone else, but I wonder if you can have lingering feelings too.
On September 8th, 2017, it was a beautiful autumn day. The yellowing of the leaves was just barely noticeable and there was still some sunshine left. I sat there eating a Caesar Salad Wrap next to my friend Marija when I noticed a familiar stranger walking around shirtless about 50 feet away. He had long, curly locks of hair and his lack of shirt was made up for by his abs. I looked over at Marija and whispered āI really wish that guy would come over and talk to me.ā
The universe or karma or quite possibly even the mystery man himself must have heard me because in just a moment, the shirtless Jesus with abs was walking in my direction and offering me a pink flower. āWould you two lovely ladies like a flower?ā
Absolutely.
I was in awe that this man was so bold. It seemed like something only I would do, but then he put his shirt back on and hopped onto his ATV with not a word more and rode off into the sunset like some sort of Alaskan Fabio. It was all so dramatic. The thrill and the spontaneity of it all had me reeling, and I Ā was determined to find out who the heck that guy was.
I took to the Talkeetna Trader, the community Facebook page where people posted lost items or things theyād like to sell. That was a huge mistake. I posted that I was in search of āThe Jesus with Abs who gave me a flower in the parkā and instantly 50 people knew exactly who he was because it was such a small town. I was already turned off because there was no mystery to solve anymore, but then made matters worse when I ran into him at the Fairview the following night while he was playing foosball.
āHey! Kiana! I am so flattered that you posted that about me. I never thought of myself as a āJesus with Absā before. That is seriously the best compliment anyone has ever given me!ā He said as I failed to pass him.
āOh. Haha. Yeah, well I guess you just made a huge impression on me yesterday. A random guy has never given me a flower before, so I was pretty disappointed to not get your name. Nice to meet you officiallyā I said sheepishly.
He wanted to buy me a beer, but I said no. Wow I was such a disappointment. All that hype for an āI think Iāll pass.ā
It didnāt take long for me to notice someone else staring at me from across the room. A broad-shouldered man with curly brown hair caught my eye. He was standing alone next to the bar, and I could see that he was looking my way. I needed to get away from Jesus, so that was the perfect excuse to inch my way closer to this new guy.
At the time, my friend Marija was at the bar buying me a Sprite because I said I wasnāt going to drink anything that night. I was already high, so I didnāt think that was the greatest next move, but then Shoulders with the Smoldering Green Eyes was glancing my way and said āAnything you want is on me. Itās my birthday.ā
āOkay. Iāll have an Alaskan Summer.ā
I shook his hand. Firm grasp, and he still kept eye-contact. He had beautiful eyes. Shoulders had a name, but I wonāt share it because I donāt think he would want me to. Shoulders wanted to go outside and talk because there were too many people, so we disappeared and Marija was left wondering where the heck I was for probably the third time that night. Sorry Marija, Iām hard to keep track of with everybody, not just you. Iām easily taken by opportunities for adventure and especially by hot guys with beautiful eyes. My tragic flaw.
When we were outside, I offered Shoulders some weed to smoke. I just got extremely high with a stranger from the Fairview probably 10 minutes before this, was drinking a beer now, and was going to get more stoned. I guess thatās why I donāt remember that much of our conversation, but what I wonāt forget is that he told me I was the first person heād genuinely talked to in months, even though he was traveling with his girlfriend for 3 years.
āYeah Iām glad that I managed to even go out for my birthday. This might be the third time Iāve been out in probably 3 monthsā He said.
I could hardly imagine not talking to anyone for that long. Iām someone that buys an extra large pizza by myself just so I have a reason to talk to strangers and share my pizza with them. I used to be so antisocial in high school, so Iāve forced myself to become an extrovert ever since then.
Shoulders had some things deeply troubling him. He told me all about them and I feel like it would be wrong to share them even on this blog where nobody would ever find it. He told me those things in confidence though, so Iām not sharing even with my future self. We talked for over 6 hours that night, surpassed the last call at the bar, and he drove me to my house. I wanted his only night in Talkeetna to last as long as possible, so I took him on a self-guided tour of the Lodge that I worked at and then when we came outside again, the northern lights were just barely visible beneath the clouds.
I later brought him inside my house to meet my roommates that were all still awake at 3 AM. I could see Tediās winking smirks at me as I brought a handsome stranger into the house. I could tell that he was on edge and out of his comfort zone being around this many new people with all eyes on him. We smoked just a tad more and he impressed me with his smoke rings. It was nearing 4 AM and Shoulders had to be on his way. Not even thinking twice about it, I gave him a hug and forgot to ask for any of his information. All I had was his name.
That night I bonded with someone who left his girlfriend without warning. I understood every reason why he was afraid, but more importantly, I understood why someone did the same thing to me exactly a year ago. For months I was in pain, but this was just another one of those instances screaming at me to let go, forgive, and move on. Part of my forgiveness was letting this stranger into my home and talking to him for 6 hours.
I thought I might never see or hear from Shoulders again. I found him on Facebook, sent him a message and gave him my phone number, and two days ago he sent me a text message. I said he was welcome to talk to me anytime he needed a friend, and because he is so private and shy, I appreciate any words he says to me.
It feels oddly familiar waiting by the phone anticipating my next message. It feels like I have a new crush. Of course I do. He isnāt available. But more importantly, I feel like this new crush has given me hope because I no longer feel the need to cyberstalk someone who left a long time ago. Now I can cyberstalk someone who really has zero information about himself available online and only about 2 pictures for me to drool over. Itās great because I have to actually get to know him by asking questions and having conversations instead of idolizing him in his absence. It inspired me to do the same by untagging and deleting a lot of pictures of myself on social media, making my own profiles more private than public. Making social media more SOCIAL instead of all about myself.
Iāve avoided a lot of things like getting rid of reminders of the past and moving forward. But now Iām finally making real progress.

















