Secret Admirer?

After having not done a lick of walking since the Halloween 5K, I woke up this morning ready to get back into a daily routine. It was 43° when I headed out to do a few miles around the complex. My long sleeve athletic top wasn’t cutting it. Thankfully, I’d wrapped a hoodie around my waist, just in case. Once I added the hoodie to the athletic top and pulled the hoodie up, I was sufficiently protected against the cold and it felt good to be out again, but catching a glimpse of myself in a car window, dressed all in black, hoodie, dark glasses, I looked dangerously thuggish.

I should have taken a selfie. Next time I will.

About 45 minutes into the walk, I ran across Apache.

“Hey, I have something for you”, says he.

Having just had a leg operated on, Apache is getting around on a walker. There’s a compartment in the seat of the walker, which he opened and displayed needlepoint patterns and tatting thread.

“Do you want to take it now or later?”

I was incredulous, didn't want to take it at all, but said “I’ll pick it up in the Community Room later because I’m still walking.”

Apache is a really nice person, always thinking about others, always doing something for others.

HOWEVER … it was just a few weeks ago when a thought began to form that Apache was thinking about ME personally a little too much, always trying to do something for ME personally a little too much.

At first, I wrestled with the thought, tried to push it away because, to me, Apache is just one of the girls.

He’s not gay nor effeminate but, having grown up with a house full of sisters, having still a close relationship with those sisters (Two of which I’ve met, one of which visits and I’ve come to know well), he enjoys the company of women and is generally felt by us to be one of the girls.

So, I wrestled with the thought, tried to push the thought away that Apache might have a little crush, but I began to remember …

“I was thinking about you when I saw this computer paper. Do you want it?”

“Oh, no thanks. That won’t fit my computer. It’s continuous paper for those industrial machines, but thanks.”

“Hey, you have a computer. I was thinking of you when I saw this computer puzzle game. Do you want it?”

I really didn’t but took it saying, “I’m really busy with needlepoint projects right now. So it will be some time before I can give it a try.”

At the time, I didn’t think anything of Apache’s “I was thinking of you”. I figured it was just his personality to be thinking of others.

BUT THEN, with Apache now knowing needlepoint is my thing, it was just a few weeks ago when he brought me a tote bag full of needlepoint patterns and tatting thread. The patterns were all cats – I only do Indians, Cowboys, Boots and there’s a big difference between needlepoint floss and tatting thread, but that was when the thought began to form that Apache was thinking about ME personally a little too much, always trying to do something for ME personally a little too much.

Not wanting to hurt Apache’s feelings, I accepted the patterns and thread but said, “This is a lot. I’m going to share” and he was okay with that.

The plan was not only to share, but give everything to the resident (Older Sister) who’d asked for my old needlepoint patterns – the patterns buried in storage that I won’t be able to find until the Christmas decorations are out of the way.

I take the tote down to the Community Room and, as I’m giving the contents away (Older Sister was happy to take all the patterns, another resident wanted the tatting thread), who comes walking in but Apache. I’d told him I was going to share, but catching me giving it ALL away, I mentioned to him that these patterns were cats and, for some reason, I only enjoy doing “Indians, Cowboys, Boots” and the tatting thread were a whole different craft.

“Oh, okay. I’ll tell my sister.”

Why would he tell his sister?

Is he having her look for stuff for me as well?

At any rate, that's when I began feeling uncomfortable with the "Thinking about you."  So uncomfortable that I began staying away from the Community Room. You’ll notice that posts of the last few weeks has me making brief runs through the Community Room to check on the sign-up sheets, but not hanging out with the folks.

So now, Apache is walking around with stuff for me in the compartment of his walker. This time more tatting thread and I caught glimpse of not cats, but a house.

I'm thinking he saw me out walking and timed it so he'd be outside his unit for me to run into when I came back around.

I don’t imagine it will do any good to tell Apache once again that I can’t use the tatting thread or the patterns, as he’s bound and determined to gift me and, at this point, there’s so much craft materials being given to me that I don’t think even Older Sister will want it.

I could give it all to the Salvation Army, but I have a sense those are the places he’s browsing, looking for craft items for me. So I guess I’ll add another container to storage and label it, “Stuff from Apache I Can’t Use.”