LAST EDITED ON 01-20-04 AT 09:19 AM (EST)

Welcome back to a new season of The Bachelorette and a whole new group of male DAWs

We got to learn a little of Meredith’s background. She is originally from Portland, Oregon. In high school she was very shy but was athletic and also a homecoming princess. She is a model but also a make-up artist, currently living in LA. She is also now pursuing a degree from culinary school.

Chris Harrison, our host, greets Meredith at the limo. I have to admit, I thought she looked much better now. She was all ready to meet the men. She had a black evening gown with rhinestone shoulder straps, and several rows of rhinestones on the back also. And showing lots of cleavage.

The parade of DAWs, err, men begin:

Matthew
Age: 28, Occupation: Pharmaceutical Sales
First up is Matthew. (Darn … I was all set to rip on these guys, but if they all look like him, I’m out of luck. Definitely a nice way to kick off the party. Tall, blond, curly hair, and a cute smile. Oh yeah, I forgot, I’m supposed to be writing a summary not daydreaming about this cute Texan. Must.get.back.on.track.) He has a very thick accent, so I think he said he was hoping to live a fairy tale from this show.

Rick
Age: 29; Occupation: Entrepreneur 29 from San Diego. Tall, with short dark hair, dark suit. We find out Rick is the director of three companies. He told Meredith that he had a gift for her, and that it would say a lot about him. (Sure it will say a lot about you. Like you’re stalker material? I guess he watched Russ and Trista and thought that worked out well. Not!)

Lanny
Age: 26; Occupation: Stallion and Breeding Manager; from Texas. Tall, with short dark hair, and dark suit. He is a horse breeder. He is from a strong religious Southern Baptist family. He enjoys hunting and drinking beer with his father, and can’t wait to be a dad for those same reasons. (Excuse me, but since when do Southern Baptist and drinking go together? I work at a Southern Baptist college, and can’t say that’s something I usually hear, especially considering we can’t even have dances on campus.) Meredith must have liked what she saw because Lanny was getting more than the once over as he walked away.

Justin
Age: 25; Occupation: Professional Baseball Player; from Florida. He’s a pro baseball player, that is his passion and calling in life.

Sean
Age: 31; Occupation: CPA; from New Jersey. He feels that if you want to get married you must put yourself out there. (Really?!?! I never thought of that. Thanks for the great insight. Maybe that’s what I’ve been doing wrong all this time.) He is also tall with dark hair and a dark suit. Noticing a pattern yet?

Ryan R
Age: 29; Occupation: Sales/Marketing; from North Carolina
Another tall guy with short dark hair. Has a twin brother who recently got married, and Ryan performed the ceremony. Awww, how sweet! Wants to propose to Meredith by putting up multiple signs by the roadway asking her to marry him. (Considering the producers want a proposal at the end of the show, I don’t think that will happen. I’m discounting him as the final guy already.)

Brian
Age: 31; Occupation: Manager of athletic facility; from Massachusetts
See above physical descriptions. Said that he has never had to share a woman before. (Yeah, right. Maybe because he never had a date before? ‘Nuff said.)

Damon
Age: 28; Occupation: Arena Football Player; from California
Said he’s jealous of the other players with families who get play around on the field after games, etc. (Meredith, if you dump him, please send him my way. What can I say, I’m a Big.Sucker.For.Dimples.)Another dark haired cutie.

Keith
Age: 31; Occupation: Financial Analyst; from Maryland
Thinks he will be a great catch because he has a mother and sisters who taught him how to treat a woman. (WHATEVER! Usually the guys who say that are the biggest jerks. We’ll see about him. And what’s up with that ugly slicked back hair and ponytail? Didn’t that style go out years ago?)

Cory
Age: 24; Occupation: Small Business Owner; from New Jersey
He’s a beach dude. Lived there his entire life, and wants Meredith to know that THEY WILL be living at the beach. But he’s a laid back guy, as long as he has his way.

Chad
Age: 32; Occupation: Pharmaceutical Sales; from Buffalo
According to Meredith he is TAAAAAALLLLL. He has learned that life is short, so you need to do everything you can and live to the fullest (or some other cliché life that.) Believe it or not, he actually has blondish hair.

Andy
Age: 33; Occupation: Dentist; from Texas
Andy, is ready to be the final guy. (Andy is the only Asian bachelor this time. I don't think the odds are in his favor.

Todd
Age: 36; Occupation: Restaurant/Brewery Owner; from CA
First off – 36! What calendar does he use to track his age? (I want to get that one, so I can shave a few years off of my age.) But, he actually is not a dark-haired guy. Also said that he’s never had to fight for a girl. Maybe that’s because the girl had already chosen the other guy, perhaps? Things that make you go, hmmmmm)

Eliot
Age: 25; Occupation: Options Trader, from San Francisco
Simply says that Meredith has the attributes that he is looking for in a woman. (The only thing I could think of when I first saw him was of Eric from For Love or Money 2. Am I the only one?)

Aaron
Age: 32; Occupation: Title and Escrow Sales; from California
He’s a face value guy – what you see is what you get. Thinks she will like what she sees (Only if he can fit that ego in the room. Please tell me about the hair-do. Looks like it's from "There's Something About Mary") And he wanted her to forget all about Bachelor Blob when they met. (Tell me about it. Didn’t we all want to forget Blob???)

Marcus
Age: 27; Occupation: Personal Trainer; from LA
Said that Meredith stood out to him when he first saw her on The Bachelor. Our only African-American Bachelor

Harold
Age: 29; Occupation: Professional Hockey Player; from Illinois
He was ready to fall in love and meet the mother of his children. He greeted Meredith with a hockey jersey that had “Bachelorette” written across the back.

Jeff
Age: 30; Occupation: Pharmaceutical Sales; from Macon, Georgia
Said he is a very grounded person, and likes to have a good time no matter what he is doing. Again, I think that’s what he said, his accent was worse that Matthew’s. But I think I know who some of Jeff's relatives are -- just picture Clay Aiken with lighter hair.

Chris R
Age: 31; Occupation: architect; from Boston
Again, how does he calculate his age? 31? Right, and I’m the reigning Miss America. But he obviously has the dark-haired, dark suit thing going for him. He loves kids. He wants to find an intellectual, passionate woman also with a sense of humor. Hey, he stole my list of qualities I want in a man.)

Brad
Age: 29; Occupation: Pharmaceutical Sales, from Sylvania, Ohio (according to the ABC website), but the show said Michigan
Said that he an old-fashioned guy. (As he kissed Meredith’s hand when they met.) He’s into opening doors for women, etc. Will be one of those guys who gets down on his hands and knees to propose to a woman. ( Gee, I always thought it was down on one knee. Hands and knees? How do you hold her hand and put the ring on the lady’s finger if you are on all fours? Just wondering.)
Brad's answers from the ABC site:
Q:What are your hobbies?
A:Going to University of Michigan football games with my dad.
(I already don’t like him. He’s from Ohio but is a Michigan fan. He obviously has no taste in football teams.)

Robert
Age: 32; Occupation: Technology Development; from LA
Said he is extremely playful and just a little ADD. When he leaves to go inside, he told Meredith he was on his way to meet his future best men. (Between the hyperness and the wild hair, I don’t think this guy will ever be hard to miss at the parties. He should definitely keep the men’s house lively.)

Trever
Age: 35; Occupation: Network Engineer/musician; from Pennsylvania
”The best outcome of this would be to fall madly in love.” (In other words, just saying what he thought they would all want to hear. Nothing more.)

Anselm
Age: 32; Occupation: Art Designer; from California
Good grief! Where do you start with this guy?!?! The horrible name? The fact that he looks like something that should be on a Quaker Oatmeal box or a bit like Benjamin Franklin? Or the fact that when he has fallen in love before, the women ask why he is so upset and depressed, because he is crying all the time.

Ryan M
Age: 30; Occupation: Financial Advisor; from California
Two words of advice for Ryan M. – Less caffeine. He was so hyper and talked too fast, I thought he was the one with ADD not Robert. He also had some of the best facial expressions since Christy of Bachelor Season 2. Those bushy eyebrows need to go – please!

Ian
Age: 29; Occupation: Investment Banker; lives in New York City, originally from Brazil
He has traveled the world, and wants a companion. He said that he is retired and homeless, looking for love. (HUH???? A homeless investment baker? Someone has some ‘splainin’ to do. Guess he just was not very good at it.)

All I can say is good luck Meredith. You will need it, to keep all of the tall, dark haired, dark-suited pharmaceutical sales reps straight.

Finally the party began. We get the required comments from the men about how wonderful and beautiful Meredith is to them. The most interesting comment from them was Todd comparing the situation of 25 guys jockeying for position with one women, and he said he felt like a sperm. (I’m so glad that I was not eating or drinking anything at that minute, because my TV, on the other side of the room, would have been soaking wet. I’m guessing tact is not one of Todd’s stronger points.)

Ian was feeling like the men who had one on one time would have an advantage with Meredith. (Duh, it’s the first night. If she doesn’t talk to you, how can she choose you to stay?) Anyway, he wasn’t sure how to get her alone. The next clip is of him interrupting the conversation with another guy to take Meredith away. (Oh no! Please tell me that this is not the male version of LeeAnger. Saying how shy he is, and then the next minute butting in on Meredith.) Actually the conversation with Ian and Meredith seemed to go well. We’ll see later though, if it really did.

Rick also decided that he needed some of Meredith’s time. He offered his arm to her, but she took his hand instead. (I guess she’s not being so reserved now, is she?) He said that he owned a slipper company, so he pulled out a pair of slippers for her. Pink and white, looked like tennis shoes, with red roses embroidered on them.) He said that he wanted her to see past the slippers to his heart. (Someone please decipher that statement for me.) And then, in by far the cheesiest line of the night, he her that “I will be with you every step of the way.” (Ughhhhh! Excuse me as I reach for my trash can. Okay, all better now.) I really was hoping that Meredith would parade around the house with the slippers and her elegant rhinestoned gown.

This gesture from Rick started a flood of other gifts and comments from other men also. One man gives her a rose. (Ooops, I think he forgot he is on the wrong show to hand the woman the rose.) And Ryan R. gave her his jacket to wear. There was a gift in the pocket for her – wind up monkeys playing the cymbals and one that did flips in the air. (Meredith called the gift weird, but intriguing. Diplomatic statement on her part. My call on it – just plain weird.)

Keith did not approve of the gift giving. After all, he is a winner and a competitor. He did not need to bring a gift, it’s not his style. Meredith needed to understand that he was the gift. (Okay my earlier comment wondering about Aaron fitting his ego in the room, has been completely voided. Keith's barely fits in the entire mansion.)

Meredith enjoyed the party very much, and felt much better in this role, as opposed to competing with the others. She said her true self was coming out. The next few scenes are her giggling with many different men, and twirling around with a glass of wine in her hand, saying she doesn’t know where she is going. She ended up on Lanny’s lap. (Tip for Meredith, maybe putting down the wine glass would help you be less confused.) But I do have to admire her sense of direction for landing on Lanny Nice choice.)

The party must come to an end, so Host Chris clinks on the wine glass, and takes Meredith to the deliberation room.

He tells her that she gets to choose 15 of the men tonight to invite to stay. Fourteen get red roses, however one gets the white rose. That special man will get the first individual date with her. But the men will not know the meaning of the white rose until later in the process.

Meredith is left in the room to think, while Chris talked to the men. They got the same old spiel about rejecting the rose if the did not want to stay and get to know Meredith better.

The red roses went to
Harold
Todd
Brad
Ryan M
Ian (who answered her question with “I do.” Save it for your wedding ceremony Ian, not here.)
Chad
Lanny
Robert (who just stood there for a minute, and then pointed to himself, to be sure.)
Sean
Ryan R. (monkey boy)
Damon
Eliot
Matthew
Marcus
And the white rose went to Rick

I just have to throw in some comments about the after-ceremony interviews. (They were better than usual.) Chris was disappointed not to be chosen, but he will be fine with it. Anselm was proud of himself for opening up to the idea of this show. But Keith’s definitely took the cake – “I’m confident in my looks and my personality. Things like this haven’t happened to me in dating. I’m a special guy. It’s not about Meredith. It’s about me meeting someone, maybe it’s selfish, but I have a lot to offer.” (Keith, Keith, Keith. What was this about lessons from your sisters and your mother about how to treat women? I guess you were absent on those days. I hate to tell you, but “The Bachelorette” is about Meredith, not you. Here, take some of your sour grapes and go make some more “whine” for yourself.

Well, that concludes the first episode of “The Bachelorette.” Looks like there will be lots of fun & interesting DAW moments this season. Enjoy!