I'm A Loser - Exhibit "A"

Here is Exhibit "A" of why I am sometimes a complete loser.

I'm down in Encinitas for the Encinitas Sprint Triathlon. It's a quick in and out trip, so I came down alone.

The stretch of Coast Highway that runs through Encinitas is filled with amazing restaurants. They are everywhere, serving everything . And since it's still off season, it's not like they are filled to the brim and impossible to get into.

But I still went to Denny's for dinner, which is 40 feet from where I sit now. And I ordered take out - a grilled chicken sandwich with the seasonal fruit side.

Truth is I can count on one hand the amount of times that I've eaten in a restaurant alone in the last 10 years. And this includes breakfast and lunch where it's more or less socially acceptable to eat with your face buried in a newspaper.

The last time I ate dinner alone was in Paris. This must have been 2001. It was a pretty nice place, filled with romance, and snooty par excellence with what is to be expected in France. I don't read or speak a word of French. I was self conscious, could not comprehend the menu, and as a result I was flustered to all hell. So I punted. I ordered a pizza. Based on the reaction I got from the waiter, I felt like ordered off the kids menu. I half expected them to take away the table setting, replace it with a Euro Disney coloring book and crayons, and then bring out the pizza with the pepperoni shaped in a smiley face. I expected Yves The Dancing Clown to show up table side and start juggling. And if the clown didn't make me cry, I might get a one scoop hot fudge sundae for desert.

In the end, they served me, but just. I was so embarrassed I ate and got out of there as fast as I could. But I'm not sure I ate again for the rest of the weekend.

I'm obviously still traumatized.