Date At Barnes & Noble
My former coworker, Clo, and I had a falling out a couple of years ago, due to her ex. This same ex always made her own birthday a huge deal, and kind of ignored Clo’s. Clo’s birthday is January 16, and last year, Paige and I celebrated Clo's birthday with her, as kind of a way to make up for the fact that I had never celebrated it when she and Lucy were dating (They Grow Up So Fast).
Usually, Clo, Paige, and I do see each other between installments, but between her previous appearance in Pokémon and Christmas, Clo had gone dark. I texted Clo Merry Christmas, and she told me that she is going through a little bit of burnout because she went back to school for engineering! As we continued talking, we made tentative plans to hang out on her birthday, which didn’t exactly pan out.
On Friday, January 16, 2026, I lost track of time after work. See, Paige had been working night shifts basically that entire week, so I got in the habit of staying a little later. Paige called me around 4:45 and asked me when I would be home. I left shortly after and asked her if she wanted me to get any drinks from the store.
When I got to the store, I called her, and we remained on the phone the entire time. At some point during this conversation, she asked, “Well, since things with Clo clearly aren’t going to come together, what do you want to do tonight?”
We went back-and-forth before eventually I suggested, “Why don’t we use some of the Christmas money to go to Barnes & Noble, and then see if Ryan’s available to hang out and talk.”
Paige liked the idea, so I texted Ryan, picked her up, got a little snack, and then we drove to Barnes & Noble. Now Paige and I are both book nerds. Last year I read 47 books (by this date I was starting my 3rd book for ‘26) and Paige can usually get through a book in a day. I read most books via a book on tape because if I try reading a physical book that I didn’t write, I feel like I’m being lazy because I should be writing/editing. So the books that I buy are usually ones that I’ve already read to build up my collection physically.
I wanted to write this installment because autistic people are people of habit. Paige and I have lived together for almost 2 years now, and sometimes it’s easy to just spend time with each other at the apartment and get stuck in the habit of counting that as a date. With all the stress of wedding planning, on top of regular life responsibilities, it has been difficult for us… okay fine me… to initiate dates. I’m glad that going into our marriage, we have begun to once again go on dates!
Have a Greattastic day and be safe!
J. Mitchie Ulibarri, SBT
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