The best way to break the ice with a compliment
A couple of my friends from France came to visit me in Melbourne, and for the first time since I moved here I felt a little bit at home as I told them something about the city, showed them around, and wrote down a list of things to do, see, and especially eat while they're here. I've known them for quite some time now but it was the first time for my boyfriend to meet them, I was hoping for him to like them at least half as much as I do. Because God knows sometimes silence can be awkward!
We picked them up from the airport and, while walking to the car, I asked one of them about her thoughts on the other cities she's visited in Australia and commenting on her very Aussie attire (jacket + sandals combo). The usual girly chitchat. I turned around and there they were: the two boyfriends standing in front of the open boot of the car commenting on LPG cars. They ignored us and the bags for a while, which is a good thing because they were bonding, and a bad thing because heavy bags, obviously. Maybe talking about cars is the male equivalent of nail polish for girls.
It takes one comment or compliment on your nail polish and you could talk for hours braiding each other's hair. You know what I mean, right? After money spent for that particular colour that you saw on display and looks so good on the model, plus it's like it was meant for your summer outfits! After time spent filing your nails to a legit shape (yes, round-ish is a shape) and more time applying the nail polish and waiting for it to dry completely. Or, in case you are like me, time applying but not enough time waiting, so more time re-applying and more waiting and flapping mid-air pretending not to see your boyfriend puzzled stare.
That one compliment from a random person, which I deliberately choose to believe it's completely sincere, could mean so much. It's an instant ego-boost: someone noticed all the effort, someone knows the struggle! Now, I am not aware whether there's any effort behind choosing the interior of a car, or engine modifications, surely though there's money involved, which should be interchangeable. I asked my boyfriend if he'd ever compliment a friend on their new jacket and its fabric, the expected answer was no, and I was not mistaken. But it's absolutely fine if you are feeling and complimenting someone's new leather seats. It works as an indirect compliment and there's no shame in it in the males fantastic universe.
It takes one comment or compliment on your nail polish and you could talk for hours braiding each other's hair. You know what I mean, right? After money spent for that particular colour that you saw on display and looks so good on the model, plus it's like it was meant for your summer outfits! After time spent filing your nails to a legit shape (yes, round-ish is a shape) and more time applying the nail polish and waiting for it to dry completely. Or, in case you are like me, time applying but not enough time waiting, so more time re-applying and more waiting and flapping mid-air pretending not to see your boyfriend puzzled stare.
That one compliment from a random person, which I deliberately choose to believe it's completely sincere, could mean so much. It's an instant ego-boost: someone noticed all the effort, someone knows the struggle! Now, I am not aware whether there's any effort behind choosing the interior of a car, or engine modifications, surely though there's money involved, which should be interchangeable. I asked my boyfriend if he'd ever compliment a friend on their new jacket and its fabric, the expected answer was no, and I was not mistaken. But it's absolutely fine if you are feeling and complimenting someone's new leather seats. It works as an indirect compliment and there's no shame in it in the males fantastic universe.
Note to self: if you are a girl do not compliment guys' seats when you first meet them, it feels very odd and awkward silence might happen.
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