The next evening I find myself neck-deep in this very article. I’m feeling inspired and confident… until now. I have no ending. No conclusive epilogue to wrap things up and make sense of being single in L.A. That is, until I receive an e-mail from an “Anoush Stevenson,” the owner of SpeedLA Dating. Her e-mail is as follows:

Hi Marco,

I hope you had fun at STK last night and that Jade & Nikita took good care of you. I must say I found your Scorecard to be very sweet, as I know you brought Sophie along as your friend. She didn’t seem to be enthused about anyone at the event either, however I do not have a match for you. I am happy to help in anyway I can if you feel uncomfortable letting her know or asking her out on a date. If she is like me or most women, then she is probably completely oblivious to your affections. I am always available for advice. Let me know.

Best, Anoush

Needless to say this was an unexpected, and amusing, turn of events considering I was not expecting any e-mails from the service. How this woman could read so much into a score-card is beyond me. Anoush’s caring seems to go above and beyond the typical business owner’s, even if the business happens to be love. Despite the possibility of making things awkward between my colleague and myself, I feel inclined—as a dutiful journalist—to include this development as a humble summation of the event. The irony that the owner of the dating service e-mailed me personally to offer her support in pursuing the girl I walked in with, is not lost on me. Irony — if not love — truly makes the world go round.

I pour myself a Jack on the rocks with a splash of Ginger Ale and sit back. The article is done and I am none the wiser. Most of my small-town, East Coast friends have all married, settled and reproduced. They seem happier than the lot of us Angelinos. Maybe because they never aspired for fame & fortune like so many desperate souls in this city. After all, there’s only so much fame & fortune to go around, and that inevitably leaves a lot of people stranded on the outskirts of their dreams. And yet, as the traffic roars around us, as we find ourselves divided and isolated in this giant neon mecca called home, I am convinced that the people of Los Angeles might not be so doomed, after all. We can choose to abandon these concrete islands with a little whiskey and a lot of faith. We can choose to reach out over the widening fault-lines and connect with each other.

How fast you want to go, is entirely up to you.