Arden Leigh Totally Gamed Me

Last night I went to Arden Leigh's party at Lucky Cheng's for her new book The New Rules of Attraction. And she totally gamed me. I have to say, at the outset, that Arden is astonishingly good looking in person (for further reference, see photo above). In a form-fitting, eye popping red dress it is hard to imagine why a women of her calibre would need any type of "game" with men other than what she brings to the table in terms of her spectacular gorgeosity.

And yet the book, which brings together her research in neuro-linguistic programming (Arden is a certified practitioner of neuro-linguistic programming and Ericksonian hypnosis), brand marketing and the psychology of men, is an answer to Neil Strauss' The Game. It had to be done -- a feminine answer to Strauss' testosteronal-fueled cynical tome -- and Arden was the gal to do it.

After an astonishing amount of vodka cocktails, we mustered up the nerve to ask her a question. "What was the most surprising thing you learned in your research about men gaming women and women gaming men," was what I asked. I noticed that as I asked the question, Arden sized me up -- a thing she also did with all the other people who asked questions, it occurred to me. Arden then began to answer my question -- and I won't repeat the precise answer she gave -- in a manner that suggested to me that she had sized me up correctly and was giving me the answer that my personality type might find most interesting. Very, very interesting.

Her answer involved that we are all, at the base of things, human beings. This is -- and all who know me know this -- the sort of thing that I particularly look for at the fundament of all things. But as Arden started giving this answer, I couldn't help but smile. I was being gamed.. I didn't know whether to be impressed by the accuracy in which she detected my particular personality type or in that she gave me exactly what I was looking for. Whatever the case, "The New Rules of Attraction" is probably at least as fascinating as Arden Leigh herself.

Damn you, woman!