Gone Fishin’
Chance is always powerful. Let your hook always be cast; in the pool where you least expect it, there will be fish. -Ovid
It’s funny what can happen in the course of a simple lunch. Yesterday started out as your typical Tuesday. (Except for the part where I slept through the 5:00 a.m. alarm and had exactly 20-minutes to dress, paint the lashes and will the curls into hostile submission before racing for the subway to get to work by call.) But sometime between the eggplant sandwich and second glass of water I found myself knee-deep in the tide-pool now cleverly branded: “Project AshNeedsLovin”.
The fact said “project” got started at all is a miracle on its own. Not usually a fan of saying “cheese” for the camera most pictures of me look a little something like this:
But anyone who knows the fabulous friend who got this crazy ball rolling is well aware that her powers of persuasion are… well, powerful. ((wink))
So now, my buggy-mug has been posted along with the call to help find me a boyfriend. (Jill, my mother, my grandmother and the lady that taught me piano all thank you as they have each become quite exhausted of the incessant “tick-tock” of the clock apparently living inside of my ovaries.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=XNwhwwuRnB0
Was I surprised? Not really. My friend is a girl of action, not one to sit through life just waiting for the fish to fall from the sky.
Was I embarrassed? I thought about blushing, but red doesn’t go great with big, buggy blue eyes, so I stopped. Besides, Martha Stewart herself was all too happy to announce my eternal “singledom” on national TV a couple of years ago (yup) so at this point… anything goes!
Am I serious? You are aware of who is in charge here, right? Well then, I guess you have your answer. ((wink))
So after an overwhelming response (Really! ashneedslovin@gmail.com received far more messages than I ever expected it would) it is time to face the first big challenge… TIME. Now that the hook is baited and the line is cast it’s time to find time to make time…
I’m working my way through the emails and I’m going to read every one! So far I’ve notice a couple of things…
*You military boys are a pretty responsive bunch
*Jill has a lot of Facebook followers in Colorado
*Men with shaved heads seem to have a thing for me (it’s OK, “must have hair” was not anywhere on my check list) ((wink))
*Moms, sisters, and female friends LOVE to find girls for the guys in their lives
*I should be more open-minded to mature men in their late 20′s – yes K. Robson, I read your note and after reading the messages from several 20-somethings, I think you might be right! ((smile))
*My fabulous friend was 100% correct – there ARE a lot of great fish in that proverbial sea (and they DO have a sense of humor!)
So, I’m off to tend my pole now… Oh shoot! I think I forgot my sunscreen!
Love it so far! Cant wait to see what happens!
This is awesome! Good luck on your journey
GOOD LUCK!!! I’ll be interested to see who you pick!!!
Best of luck to you! Your friend has had quite an impact on my life, so I certainly have no doubt that she’ll change your life as well. Here’s hoping for hot (and sweet, trustworthy, generous, and honest) guys!
I know we’re gonna find Mr. Right. We got this Bug. Xoxo
My wife and I are just envious that Jillian is your friend!! We’d launch an all-out love fest/quest for you if we thought we’d get to meet her if we found you the right guy!!
Love your first post. You can tell you have a wit and sense of humor. Can’t wait to follow along on your journey. May the fishing be good!
This was really funny
Good luck!!
I’m so excited to follow your journey.
And yes the military men are easily excitable, I should know I married one.
good luck!!
Can’t wait to see what happens! Good Luck girl!
Next . . . http://www.jillianmichaelslovematch.com . . . haha
I think it’s the last stop before attaining “Leader of the Free World” status!
This is great! I love your writing style by the way. Its wonderful to have a friend who cares so much about your happiness! Can’t wait to see who ends up being the lucky “fish”.
You certainly write well, so this will be fun to follow. I’ve already added you to my blog reader. Good luck! And thanks for letting us follow along….
You are in my thoughts and prayers and I wish you the best! I have watched Jillian for many years now on TV (love her!) and if she is as good a friend as she appears to be you are in good hands! Can’t wait to hear how it all goes. Best of luck to you!
I cannot wait to see where this journey takes you. Good luck!
We want to see pics of your top picks. Good Luck!
lol Girl, I loved you on the show, NOW I love you and your blog. This is hiliarious.. ok not you, not your situation.. but umm yea you get it! If you thought Sam and Koli were hot,, I got a million Tongans who I could throw your line in the poly water with.. Let me know!
I shall stalk again
I will be watching closely as I have completely given up on the dating world.
It sounds like you’re going to have a lot of fun… and I’m sure plenty of disappointments too. Clearly, you have an awesome friend, and you must be an awesome person to mean so much to her. So, good luck, and just remember that people are rarely the same person they portray themselves as so always be cautious, make some new friends, and have a blast doing it!
Absolutely hilarious! I came home last night to find my 7yo watching the show and talking all about you girls. My oldest daughter is 17yo and her name is AshLee so you were a big hit right off the bat. Can’t wait to read along and follow your journey!
I will be following along for updates!
I kinda feel like I know how you feel. Aside from an awesome “famous person” broadcasting my singleness on Facebook, I too am a single lady who has many a’friends lookin for a good man for me. Best of luck. I look forward to reading about your journey.
Who needs ABC and The Bachelorette? We’ve got the internet and Jillian Michaels. You go, girl. This is going to be fun to follow.
Ash, I am so excited for you! This really could be a T.V. show at this point. Heck, they are making a show of “@#$% my dad says” right? You are sooo lucky to have a friend who is such a go getter, even better that she loves you enough to make your happiness a priority. Some people are not lucky enough to find that kind of friendship! I am one of the Lucky ones too! Wishing you all the best on your exciting new adventure!!!!!
Hello Ashley
cool blog page, sorry i do not have a shaved head, well, yes and no, i have a full head of hair, the other one, wink wink, just being funny.
So your fishing for some really big fish? Funny Fish? Cool Fish? Fish that like to cook like me? Fish that is a creative person? I am not a military fish but do like the military. Would love to hear from you when you fish thru to my email.
Brian
Ok… not enough guys on here yet, so I’ll add my 2 cents worth!
Hey, love your writing style for starters. I’ll have to keep up with this blog if for no other reason. Jillian posted the link so I thought I would at least check this out. I’m glad I did.
My daughter is married, and I’ll share with you the advice I shared with her as a teen… how to pick a good guy!
There is one very important word…Respect!
Watch how he treats his mother, especially when he thinks no one is looking. After marriage, he’ll never treat you any better.
Watch how he treats his friends (at all times). Once married, he will never treat you any better.
Watch how he treats the waiter or waitress… after you are married, he will never treat you any better.
If after getting to know a guy for many months (or longer), you notice that these things start to get worse, it may be time to consider another model.
Here’s wishing you the best of luck. There are lots of fish in the sea, some are keepers, the rest… are just fish, throw em back.
Hey Ash! Don’t ya wish that the guys’ ears ticked along with the Peter Pan video? If they had the same sense of urgency as we do sometimes, maybe it wouldn’t be so rough to find the “one”! Hoping and praying for your success! ~L
Fabulous!! Ash, your sense of humor and writing skills have me laughing like never before!! Jillian may have started something here…and hey, send all the “older ones” (late 30′s – early 40′s) over MY way in Georgia…I’ll owe you! =) Good luck to you, girl!!
Gooood. Luck!!! I still have hope for myself…
Haha!! Those more mature boys in their late 20′s… EH?? Oh my!! If you want to raise them, I guess… *sigh*
Good luck with your journey! I am one of the many Jillian followers from Colorado! Colorado Springs, here
I enjoyed reading your first post. Well done!! A few years ago I had a blog I kept for about a year that stemmed from a fundraising effort that revolved around a cross-country bike ride I was making. It evolved into something personal before long and I loved it. Reading your post and seeing the work and thought you put into it reminded of how I enjoyed the creation of something from nothing, and that people actually were taking an interest in what I had to say. God only knows why, but they did. Hopefully you will get the same satisfaction from this blog regardless of how short-lived it is……and a boyfriend!!! TICK-TOCK lol
Chris D
Good luck! It seemed to work well for Sarah Stokely in the 100 dates project:
http://www.100dates.org/2009/12/i-have-a-nice-friend-you-should-meet/
Perhaps it’ll work for you.
Love it! You have a great sense of humor Ashley~! This will be fun to follow!
And yep Colorado loves Jillian! The mountains have a lot of great men…;)
Love your first post, you are lucky to have such a good persuasive friend, and any guy you pick will be lucky too. I look forward to reading your blog.
I just wrote a screenplay about fishing, though it has nothing to do with dating.
Can one find that special someone via email or FB request? I don’t know, I’m not an expert on the subject!
Jillian has Tweeted me a couple times, but that’s all I got to say.
Good luck and don’t go blind reading all the replies.
Me!
Awesome! Thanks for letting us join your journey!
Ashley ~
As a fan of Jillian I saw this whole “find Ashley a boyfriend” thing on her posts. I’m sure it seems all fun and even a bit overwelming to you.
I would like to tell you, as fun as this is for you, it is not a way to find “Mr. Right.”
As a 44 year old man, who looks, feels, and acts like a 32 year old, love isn’t something that you go looking for or accept applications and then hire the best applicant. Finding a compatable mate is something that just happens. It finds you. If you go looking for it, you won’t find it. You will find many men that will be fun, good looking, and may even seem like a good match. But I tell you now, the odds of that working out in the long run are not good.
The key here is to just live your life, on YOUR terms. When it is meant to happen it will. You just have to trust that. You are a very attractive girl and seem like a lot of fun. I can easily see a guy taking advantage of that and hurting you in the end.
Be carefull and good luck to you!! I am curious to see where this ends up.
Take care. Jeff
Love it so far. Can’t wait to see what happens….Good Luck!!
I don’t like Fish..but! this ” fishin” I’m going to enjoy! Goodluck Ashley , I cannot wait to see how this will turn out. Your ” friend” is awsome for doing this for you! ..I”m too picky..I think that’s my problem..lol
I think this is a great idea! Welcome to the blogging world. I’m sure you will find someone. There is someone for everyone in this world!
Go for a military guy – they are HOT in uniform.
Good luck!!
I can’t stop laughing at the military comment. My husband is a Marine and I know far too well how lonely his buddies get. Poor guys. Anyway, good luck and we’ll all be stalking your progress.
You are blessed to have such a good friend! Good luck on your journey! With your wit and style, which come across so clearly in your writing, you should be able to find what you are looking for with no problem.
hey ash, i totally relate to your dilemma. we’re both in the same boat LOL. i’m also 32, single, and live in nyc so i know how hard it is to find a good guy in this great city of ours! so best of luck in your search and looking forward to reading all about it!
Good luck!
Just keep in mind that this is the time when those fish are on their best behavior. You have quite a school of fish to browse through. Stay picky my friend.
Enjoy!
Good luck girl. I followed Jill’s post yesterday and thought how persuasive she must be. Bless your heart, your going to have a blast!
Oh this is so much fun! I am following you now… You should post like… Mini-profiles of your “finalist” guys with photos and have people vote or something like that! And definitely keep us updated on any dates… Matchmaking is so awesome! What a great blog idea… I hope you find that perfect one!
Nothing like Jillian getting you out of your comfort zone
I’m sure you’ll find someone as witty and as humurous as you. Best of luck girl!
I just wanna know are girls an option, or out of the question?
YOU’RE SUCH A CATCH. HE BETTER BE AMAZING. WHEN CAN I SHOOT THE FIRST DATE?
I submitted an entry! 27 is not too young…right?
Ash,
Just love what Jillian is doing for you. Feel free to throw some of the So Cal applications my way. I live fairly close to the BL ranch.
Jillian,
You seriously crack me up!!! Following on your facebook fan page.
You’re off to a great start! Maintain a good sense of humor through it all and you’ll enjoy even the strangest moments.
Wow this is amazing! I can’t wait to keep following you on your journey to Mr. Right. I wish you the best of luck. I hope that through all of your candidates you find the right one to make you happy!
How crazy, fun, and exciting this must be for you. It’s great to have wonderful friends like that. Best of luck to you!
I want to complete an application for my best friend Chris! He is the perfect guy for you! He is 31 years old, very charming, cute and way funny. How do I complete an application?
I’m watching this with great interest. Thinking that perhaps it’s time for me to end my “eternal singledom”, as well, and am really interested to see how this goes for you!
Best of luck on your journey, Ashley.
Coolness. All sounds awesome so far ! Thanks for including us on your journey. I can see that Jill is one of the best buds anyone can have, so I know the two of you will find you a fine fine suitor.
All the best.
You are a BRAVE woman. Think I’ll join your friend in the dentist’s chair instead.