I had met a couple at Lowe's, we had a very nice chat for almost 40 min outside the building, they seemed nice (still do, but we'll see) and they seemed genuinely interested in me, and excited to have a new, like minded friend, so I invited them to come over and I would cook supper for us (They would bring their meat)
I already had that steak, the taters were getting old in my fridge so I roasted them all, and while at Kroger I bought 3 avocados.
(Made my first Guac in like forever, and it was great)

I gave them time (while cooking the taters) sent texts with pics of my turtle (they use the bus, so would be walking from the corner)
When after nearly 2 hrs I'd not heard anything, I went ahead and cooked my meal.

Later I got a txt that she was starting a new job this morning (she did say that in our chat) and felt it would be better for her to stay home and prepare for the new job.

Rex told me to be careful, people will take advantage of me.

^{I related this story to my friend Ed this morning, he had this to say}

I am sorry that your dinner plans didn't go as expected. I think your smart enough to know if someone is taking advantage. Who knows, they might feel the same way. Nothing wrong with making new friends. Even the homeless guy needs a friend and a home cooked meal and will go on his way. I am sure you get my thought process. not everyone is out to get someone.

It was so weird how this got started.
I was pushing my cart of goodies I'd just bought, heading towards my car. They were sitting on the bench outside.

Old pic from last year, stolen
He had long hair, pulled back into a tail, so I stopped and commented, asking him how he got it to stay so flat (not frizzed) and there we went.
The conversation between he, his wife and I ranged from hair, to covid, to politics, to music, to my new house and music room (he is also a musician), to their having had to give up their car because both had lost jobs due to stupid pandemic etc etc...

After I ate, I went over to R&T's (my neighbors who once owned this place) house with my keys, and played for their clients and kids from about 7:30 until after 9:30. They operate a sort of "Adult Foster Home" so they have 2 adult clients, plus they are raising a grand daughter that is quite a handful, plus an adult son with Asperger's... he doesn't like my music ha ha ha
Tina sent this via text
They REALLY REALLY enjoyed it, we did too (the adults/caregivers) of course
I came home (still haven't got my keys back outta the car) ate a LARGE bowl of vanilla Ice Cream, with extra real vanilla extract, cinnamon, FRESH Pineapple, and raw, unfiltered honey.

So the moral of this story might be:

Life is risky, Life is short.
One must take risks to live a full life.
One must move forward with eyes open, and
Be prepared for possible negative consequences.
C'est la vie.
But above all,