Bow Tie Boy as an 'Office' character

by: Carnacki

Sat Jun 16, 2007 at 00:42:40 AM EDT

Now that is out of the way...you've got to read this post by Bow Tie Boy:

We're wrapping up taping of two Decision Makers in Wheeling and being here today is really kind of a strange sensation. I've stayed in pretty close contact with my hometown over the years and have always preferred it to Charleston, but in a way, for the first time, I feel kind of like a stranger here.

I was considering running by Ye Olde Alpha for a cocktail, but realized I can't think of a single person to call to meet me there. I grew up here and worked in newspapers here starting when I was 17, but I feel a strange sense of disconnection now.

It's sort of like running into a girl you always carried a torch for and having her not recognize you at first. I don't mean to sound too sentimental, but as I get a little older, I increasingly appreciate the fleetingness of time. I know and love many people here, not the least of whom are my parents, but this little town that I always thought of as my own isn't quite mine anymore.

Yes, even as I wipe away the tears of laughter as his post reaches Onionesque heights, I can't help but feel sympathy at the unintentionally too revealing details that are cringe-worthy. On the other hand, someone so lacking in self-awareness of how he comes across (you can just picture him -- or rather how he pictures himself -- as the world weary columnist back in his hometown from the big city of Charleston) that I have got to share it with the readers the way Jim and Pam exchange stories about Michael on The Office.