Freak magnet

It's official, I am a freak magnet. The current freak that I've somehow attracted works in my office and sits less than 10 feet from me. He somehow found out that I am a cyclist and started up a conversation with me. The next thing I know he's inviting me to lunch. Given that I recently moved floors and know no one in my new office space, I naively accepted his invitation under the assumption that he was trying to be welcoming. Note to self: be less nice, learn how to say no and keep to yourself at work.

The lunch invitation in and of itself was not cause for concern. What set off the alarm was the fact that he: a) paid for my lunch; and b) asked how he could reach me outside of work. Being honest to a fault and not good at making excuses, I STUPIDLY gave him my contact information. I know, I am an idiot, but I am not good under pressure. How do I get myself into these situations? Note to self: learn how to lie and improve your excuse making skills.

This morning he prattled on and on about all these bike rides and wanted to know if I was interested in joining a ride this weekend. Mind you, while he was waxing poetic I was busy taking an online training course and 100% focused on work. Couldn't he see that I was busy? When I got up to leave for lunch he stopped me and asked if I was leaving for the day to go on a training ride. When I returned from lunch he came over to my desk to show me a picture of some bike on his cell phone. A few minutes later he interrupted me to show me an enlarged black and white print out of the same photo. Yesterday I was eating something at my desk and he suddenly yelled over to me: "time for a snack?" I wish he would just disappear.

What a nightmare. I think I need to see if I can move to another desk on the floor. I would do anything for a cube and some privacy. Open work space environments are over rated.