You give love a bad name....

Okay, not YOU, per say...but lame pick up lines most certainly do give love a bad name.

Al and I were invited to a Hootenanny this past weekend-complete with live blue-grass music, and animal heads adorning the walls. The last time we went to the Hootenanny-everyone got into it-checked gingham as far as the eye could see, and cowboy hats and boots galore.

We had dressed accordingly for this party as well-with Al donning a Sheriff's/cowboy cap and a glue-on mustache, and me with a "howdy" shirt lined with rhinestones (oh yeah), and a kids bow and arrow set. If you must ask, we went with the cowboys AND "native americans" motif, trying to represent all hootenanny attendees. (when in DC, best to be PC)

Of course, this Hootenanny was a less enthusiastic crowd, leaving myself and the sheriff the only folks in full garb. Not to worry, we're champs, we like to make assess of ourselves as much as possible.

We had brought our friend Jess with us, and she brought along a few other single gals for the ride. After the Hootenanny trailed off, we decided to go to Tony and Joe's-which is a waterfront bar on the Potomac. Let me tell you-it's one thing to walk into a Hootenanny with the outfits we had on, but quite another to walk into a Georgetown bar filled with folks who had just come back from the horse races.

I quickly found that a kid's bow and arrow set is sure-fire (pun intended) way of getting a pick-up line. I heard everything from "Are you playing cupid tonight?" to "Is this a batchelorette party?" to "Ummm, can you tell me why on earth you have a bow and arrow?". My quote of the night was "What? Haven't you ever seen a girl in a bar carrying a bow and arrow before? Geez!"
And, after a few beers later, it was, "Howdy y'all, there's a new sheriff in town!" (having stolen Al's hat from him at this point.)

If you are single and ready to mingle, my best advice is to bring a random prop with you that will lead to interesting conversation. And, if you are married, and not doing the single thing, you can at least feel uber cool toting a bow and arrow set!