What's a Stalker?

Φ: "Have you ever been 'stalked'?"

Mrs. Φ: "No, actually. But then, I was always careful about where I went at night."

Φ: "No no, I didn't mean stalked as by a stranger on a dark street. I mean stalked as by a spurned suitor who wouldn't leave you alone."

Mrs. Φ: "Oh, that kind of stalker. Yes! There was a boy in high school that I went out with a few times but I wasn't really interested romantically in him."

Φ: "He was a pity date?"

Mrs. Φ: "No. More like, here is someone to do stuff with over the summer.

Φ: "A placeholder then."

Mrs Φ: "Yeah, a placeholder. But he tried to play silly head games and I eventually decided it wasn't worth it." [NB: The only thing worse than no game is bad game.]

Φ: "Tell me about the stalking."

Mrs. Φ: "Well, one time when I was driving along [rural road near where she lived], I passed him driving the opposite direction. And he stopped his car in the middle of the road!"

Φ: "You mean, kind of like someone might do if he wanted you to slow down so he could speak to you through the driver's side windows?"

Mrs. Φ: "Um, yeah, like that. But I kept going."

Φ: "That was it? That was the whole stalker episode?"

Mrs. Φ: "Well, yeah. Plus, for a while afterward, he only dated girls named [Mrs. Φ's first name]. I mean, that was just weird."