I'm an idiot

[Bob The Mercenary]

I made a mistake over the weekend and now I am probably more depressed than I've ever been in my life.

Waiting in line at a panel for Veronica Taylor at Comic Con I met a girl and we started chatting. Naturally we both had the same interests, got along well, she didn't live far from me (Brooklyn) and she was attractive. We got front seats and talked through the entire panel, then when it was over, we rushed to get autographs. That's when I lost her in the mob and never saw her again. I only got what I think was her last name and the first name of her cousin.

I've searched Facebook and MySpace. I've scoured Comic Con groups everywhere and come up empty. The only thing I can think to do is post the video a friend filmed from the front row on YouTube, post in the comments section, and hope the girl responds. Urrrrrrrgh...it was right there!

[bluestarultor]

Hey, honest mistake, man. She's probably off somewhere saying the same thing.

[Seil]

Bob. Hey hey bob. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsjR5P3TuWY)

[bluestarultor]

Bob. Hey hey bob. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsjR5P3TuWY)

You're not helping.

[Seil]

Jonathan, in the meantime, is wandering around Central Park. He finds Sara's jacket and uses it as a pillow as he lies down. As the first snowflake drops, the other pair of the gloves floats to him and he sees Sara. They introduce themselves to each other formally for the first time. The film concludes with Sara and Jonathan at Bloomingdales enjoying champagne on their anniversary at the same spot where they first met.

So what, a romantic movie somewhat mirroring Bob's situation which ends with the main characters - who could easily be interchanged with Bob and Ms. E. Nigma - hooking up at the end?

Well, I guess it deserved more explanation than a linkpost. That being said, there certainly are - or should be, at any rate - ways of tracking this lady down. However, none that don't seem slightly stalker-ish. Then again, if you are really, really, really into this mystery lady, and you kinda sound like you might be, you could give it a try.

[bluestarultor]

So what, a romantic movie somewhat mirroring Bob's situation which ends with the main characters - who could easily be interchanged with Bob and Ms. E. Nigma - hooking up at the end?

Well, I guess it deserved more explanation than a linkpost. That being said, there certainly are - or should be, at any rate - ways of tracking this lady down. However, none that don't seem slightly stalker-ish. Then again, if you are really, really, really into this mystery lady, and you kinda sound like you might be, you could give it a try.

If he does it by stalking her, he pretty much ruins his chances with her. ;)

[Seil]

Oh, come on! Hiding outside the house in the bushes always works out in the end!

[Token]

Oh, come on! Hiding outside the house in the bushes always works out in the end!

Don't listen to Seil; all his ideas about romance came from Twilight.

[bluestarultor]

Don't listen to Seil; all his ideas about romance came from Twilight.

Totally appropriate: http://www.cracked.com/article_18756_6-romantic-movie-gestures-that-can-get-you-prison-time.html

[pochercoaster]

That's kind of creepy, Bob. >_O You don't even know if she was just friendly or if she was actually into you, anyways (or if she already had a boyfriend) so you should just move on... Sorry if that sounds harsh!

[greed]

Yeah listen to Pocheros, I was gonna post the same thing but I didn't want to be the first to say it.

It was probably just a one day thing, nothing to worry over, and worrying over it and blowing it out of proportion like that is kinda, yeah, creepy's the word.

[Hanuman]

Bob. Hey hey bob. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsjR5P3TuWY)
Wow, a million and a half hours? So she's what? 1000+ years old?

[Tev]

In keeping with the theme.......~that's a missed connection.~ (http://comedians.jokes.com/nick-thune/videos/nick-thune---missed-connections)

Anyway, it happens man. Just keep a vague idea of her in your head for a year and see if you don't run into her again next year at the Con. I run into people every year that I only know in passing and we usually pick up right where we left off a year before. That's how conventions work. They're like little microcosms of time that exist independently from the rest of the world.

[Krylo]

You don't even know if she was just friendly or if she was actually into you, anyways

We've seen Bob's face. I think we all know whether she was interested.

[Seil]

Don't listen to Seil; all his ideas about romance came from Twilight.

Nah, man. If I told him to do the Twilight route, he'd have to know who she is but pretend he hates her - then he sneaks into her room every night to watch her sleep, and drink her blood at some point.

[Aldurin]

Don't try to hard to find her. If she knows your name and then you become famous by some horrendous error in the lottery or something then she'll find you.

Point is, if she doesn't show up, move on. Hitting the "wait" button on life is gonna make you feel crappy afterwards if she never does find you.

If you want to find her with better odds, go to next year's Comic Con. She might remember and look for you if she goes.

EDIT:
Nah, man. If I told him to do the Twilight route, he'd have to know who she is but pretend he hates her - then he sneaks into her room every night to watch her sleep, and drink her blood at some point.

I request a poll about whether or not Seil is allowed to give advice relating to love and romance.
Possible options:

As long as he labels it "what not to do"
Of course he is, I use his advice all of the time!
Depends on Seil's romantic success.
All of that stuff is legal in my country, so sure.

[Magus]

I know you guys are kidding for the most part but does it really seem like stalking? I think Bob is more annoyed that he never got the chance to ask her out at all. Being a stalker would be like, he asked her, she told him no, and now he wants to track her down so he can keep asking her every day for the rest of her life. Bob is annoyed he never even got the chance. I feel sorry for Bob.

The best chance I can come up with is to figure out the first cousin (via the cousin's first name plus the girl's last name) and try to get contact through her. But yeah, better luck next year if you go to the con again.

I had an extremely similar experience at a concert, completely lost her in the crowd when it broke up. Quite disappointing. I mean, it would've been disappointing when I asked her and she inevitably laughed in my face, but at least I would've got the chance to ask her. :D

[Seil]

I think it's less stalker-ish if he sees her on the street and "casually bumps into her." It's more stalkerish if you track her down online, start walking around the area purposefully looking for her, or message her saying "It took me hours of sifting through MySpace to find you!"

[Magus]

So what you're saying is that pursuing a specific woman's phone number, with even the slightest amount of effort, in order to ask her, one time, if she would like to go out on a date, is stalking?

Like, I'm going to refer to Seinfeld here. There was this one episode where he purposefully went to a woman he was interested in's place of work and waited in the lobby so he could "accidentally" bump into her and get her number. Is Seinfeld a stalker?

Well, yeah, I mean, Seinfeld is a stalker, but what I'm saying is that this is automatically looked upon as "I want to stalk you and kidnap you and make you into my rape slave" behavior in our society? Or is it just "I really like this particular girl and want her number because I like this particular girl" behavior.

What I'm asking is, if I want a specific girl's number, putting even the slightest modicum of effort into getting it is stalking? It just seems like the only way I'd ever get it, in this situation. Not stalking. Stalking is when I have ready access to her number and call her up twenty times day and at night to pant loudly into her phone.

[Bob The Mercenary]

Thanks guys. I think I'm over it now. Might have just been a bout of con depression mixed with sleep deprivation. We'll see about bumping into her next year.

[Seil]

So what you're saying is that pursuing a specific woman's phone number, with even the slightest amount of effort, in order to ask her, one time, if she would like to go out on a date, is stalking?

Well, from what I can tell of the OP, Bob was looking to "casually" bump into her via MySpace, which is less "casually bumping into someone" and more "creepy."

[Magus]

But it's basically the minimum amount of effort he could put into it. He could have put months into learning computer hacking and hacked into the FBI database to see if he could track down her number, in order to drive to her house, break in, and hide under her bed so he could hop out and surprise her at her most vulnerable moment with a, "Hey, we met at that con or whatever, wanna go out for coffee sometime?"

Basically Bob is putting so little effort into this stalking business it is pathetic really! He is amateur at best.

[Tev]

We'll see about bumping into her next year.You're on the right path. Best of luck next year.

[Seil]

You're on the right path. Best of luck next year.

Yeah, man. Sorry 'bout this. Good luck.

[Aldurin]

We'll see about bumping into her next year.

Or next year you can hack the largest display there and show her picture with "Are you here?" (or a crude sketch if you lack a picture). Show that you care before she even sees you.

[Token]

1. Seil
2. Magus
3. EvilEarl

Did I miss anyone?

[Satan's Onion]

Or next year you can hack the largest display there and show her picture with "Are you here?" (or a crude sketch if you lack a picture). Show that you care before she even sees you.

Yes, Bob's inevitable arrest and imprisonment would be as nothing in the face of his pure undying magical luuuuuuuuv~

zomg u guyz it'd totally be just liek Shakespeare n shit

...but seriously, Bob, I think you did well to take the pleasant conversation for what it was and not to get nosy. Think of it like this: should the situation arise (unlikely as it may be) that she should ever see you again, her memory of you, should she have any, is "that pleasant fellow I talked to at a convention" instead of "that creepy asshole who thought a brief conversation was justification enough to track me and my family down on MySpace". You're generally always better off erring on the side of respecting a woman's boundaries.

As for everyone else: If I ever find myself in the midst of a romantic problem, the first thing I'm gonna do is ask the NPF for advice. Then I will read that advice and make a point of disregarding whatever you all told me to do, because whatever it is (a) can't possibly be a good idea and (b) is probably illegal.

[Fenris]

Did I miss anyone?

Mac

[Magus]

Sheesh, the "hide under their bed and pop out to surprise them while they're getting dressed" routine has gotten me tons of court dates with chicks.

[krogothwolf]

Mac

That ones a given though.