Dan & Phil Part 63: hitting you with our gay agenda

[SHITiveHITtheFANdom]

Sorry yeah I'm on my phone so it's hard to type this quickly. I did edit my post immediately after. I know it's probably about pinof, but I also know I really had to think of what else he could be referring to aside from *cough* heavy finger-quotes "editing".

* gah! What a cringe post to be my first top of page I apologize to everyone and their dog

[alittledizzy]

Well that tweet is a bit of a mood killer.

I'm glad I'm not alone in feeling that way. My pink little balloon of happiness deflated a little.

It's definitely not a mood killer for me; all it looks to me is like Dan is drawing a line and saying he's not going to tell us any more about his time with Phil's family. That's his gentle discourager to tell us we're not getting any more information, and I'm just... totally cool with that. I appreciate that he's not trying to make work an excuse or hide that he went at all, and I appreciate the boundary he's setting.

[sunshinias]

Tomorrow will definitely be the Sims, I was thinking that earlier today. “Saving the best for last” just means the series D&P keep saying is “the only content anyone cares about” (not true of course, we care about Golf too). No Truthbombs with Moondog... Cornmoon? (I forget their smushname.) At least not for us to see. I’m sure they’ve played it.

I believe it's either Martynelia or just Marnelia.

Also they probably played the prototype version together like (was it PJ and Sophie?) did.

Edit: YES finally I'm not delia smith's placenta anymore. What a perfect Christmas present

[tyhane]

And Stakhanov, I can see where you're coming from but isn't most of the stuff such as outrightly denying their relationship and saying they're not gay from around 2012, whereas acting out fan fiction and being ambiguous is from more recent years?

This is always what confuses me... I don't understand why people still talk about things from years ago like it just happened.
But I did hate the live fanfiction part of tatinof more than words can express so I'm def not defending that part.

The video was good, made me laugh like all the Yasuhati videos have. I'm not someone that necessarily hates their Sims series, but I'm not gonna pretend that I'm not disappointed that they're ending gamingmas with it. Though I actually thought today was the last, as in the first video they had said "leading up to Christmas Eve", so maybe I'll just think of it as a bonus. Eh, considering we're getting pinof bloopers the next day, they could upload practically anything.

[pastelspectre]

i loved the yasuhati video! the duet got me omg. my heart warmed at that part. also it definitely reminded me of season 2 glee with klaine.. i miss glee :c anyways, it was good! i liked the funny joke dan made about my little pony hahaha even if i'm sort of in the fandom it's still funny haha

good video and the duet part...i am blessed

[hello9217]

Those videos always make me laugh. I really loved it.

I wonder why dan said he went for a day though when it was probably 3-4 days. It's like when he went to Florida for a month but was like "I spent like a week there for work things." Whatever you want to tell people danny boy.

[drearyquery]

I liked Yasuhati! As others have said their duet was a highlight for me. You also have to enjoy dan’s “no homo” rant and then amazingpally for the endscreen.

I’m slightly bummed the last video is sims, I’m usualky on the fence about it and wouldn’t have minded it earlier in gamingmas, but as the last video it feels kinda... anticlimactic?

[missemma]

"to say i've been outside and gone for a walk" okay dan

Why didn't he just ignore this question, there was no need for him to answer it at all. He really does confuse me, I just want to be like "yeah sure thing Dan" because I don't get the point of him even having to prove a point by saying he only went for a day. It's a long way to go just for a walk, London has many pretty parks to do that in. Also why the "...some editing." These two

In other news, I finally got round to watching some more gamingmas videos and yes Dan giving us all a new Wanking!Dan avatar, long may they continue to provide us with this content

I’m slightly bummed the last video is sims, I’m usualky on the fence about it and wouldn’t have minded it earlier in gamingmas, but as the last video it feels kinda... anticlimactic?

I'm pretty sure they'll throw out the pinof bloopers as a "surprise" last video - unless they said otherwise in the latest vid, I haven't got round to watching it yet.

[malday]

I'm glad they were comfortable enough to have that little rant about the no-homo Michael Buble song in a gaming video.

[alien]

Well that tweet is a bit of a mood killer.

I'm glad I'm not alone in feeling that way. My pink little balloon of happiness deflated a little.

It's definitely not a mood killer for me; all it looks to me is like Dan is drawing a line and saying he's not going to tell us any more about his time with Phil's family. That's his gentle discourager to tell us we're not getting any more information, and I'm just... totally cool with that. I appreciate that he's not trying to make work an excuse or hide that he went at all, and I appreciate the boundary he's setting.

This is how I read the tweet too. But I will say I'm not at all surprised at his tweet lol

Anyway, my favorite part of the new video is 10:12 when Dan combines "Oh dear" and "Oh Phil" and gets "Oh fear" and then "Oh doe".

[whelpkeeper]

cute video with a cute duet at the end.... I am pleased although I'm not the biggest Sims fan so I'm a little disappointed that they're ending on it. All in all I liked Gamingmas a lot, after the first few videos I got more into it and really started enjoying it.

I would love a Truthbombs with Cornelia and Martyn, please boys make my dreams come true also excited for the PINOF bloopers to drop, I kinda forget so I'm re-hyped. And I know this is a little belated (by like a year lol, I wasn't around for this so I'll say it now), but whoever decoded that Christmas card literally put the FBI to shame, like what the hell??? How is that even remotely legible?? This community fills me with fear and pride lol

[Catallena]

I had really been hoping for this after I saw someone suggest it and I'm glad they did

Dan's gamer rage cracked me up because I love me some OTT swearing even if it was bleeped (when they say they don't want to get coal they mean demonetized right?).

Santa Pally and Dan's mocking ~NO HOMO~ was oddly appropriate for the previous discussion *cough*

That duet was a mess that delivered the final blow to my eardrums, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't here for it. I said I'd be living at the bottom of the trash can if Dan had really been up north with the Lesters and here I will stay until after Christmas

Well that tweet is a bit of a mood killer.

I'm glad I'm not alone in feeling that way. My pink little balloon of happiness deflated a little.

It's definitely not a mood killer for me; all it looks to me is like Dan is drawing a line and saying he's not going to tell us any more about his time with Phil's family. That's his gentle discourager to tell us we're not getting any more information, and I'm just... totally cool with that. I appreciate that he's not trying to make work an excuse or hide that he went at all, and I appreciate the boundary he's setting.

I agree. To me it said something like "We let y'all know where I was even though we didn't have to and that's enough and you ain't getting much beyond this tweet and maybe a short statement that still won't tell you a thing on a liveshow in the new year" and tbh I expected that anyway.

I'll still poke a bit fun at him though

I hope festive Sims won't be shit. Adopt a cat please!

[greenergrass]

"to say i've been outside and gone for a walk" okay dan

Awww Dan... I was hoping he wouldn't brush it off like this, idk... But then again, it's very on brand.

I didn't really take it as him brushing it off. I think he's just being purposefully... sarcastic isn't the right word, but I guess hyperbolic? Like, he knows we all know he had to take a plane to get to IOM, and that he isn't going to take a plane just to "go outside and go for a walk". I actually don't take this as a denial of any sort or "brushing it off"; rather that he acknowledged that he went. Like you said, it was a very 'on brand' response, and I think that's all it was.


The video was good, not my fav of gamingmas but still a solid video. The duet at the end was great. The best part was the whole Michael Buble 'santa pally' no homo discussion. I love that they went out there and made fun of the no-homoing. And also that Phil knew exactly what Dan was talking about when he mentioned his favourite michael buble song! Definitely must be something they joke about and mock a lot. (I'd never heard the song before, and just looked it up and it is hilarious. wtf michael. just say santa baby)

[rainydays]

it wasn’t my favorite vid bc i don’t like that game but...... that baby is cold outside bit made me think of s2 klaine and (god i miss glee/ klaine lol)

god, me too. that's the first version of the song that comes to mind every time someone mentions it. I'm ruined (rip).

anyway I liked the video! not my favorite of the three in the series, but it's okay because the first two both have a special place in my heart (the first one was the very first dan and/or phil video I ever watched) and they both are among my favorite dapg videos of the year, so it was quite a high standard to live up to. still loved it though! the duet was so cute. yes, I thought about klaine but deppy made me forget about them pretty quickly with their awful rendition.
also good on them for speaking against heteronormativity and the silliness of the "no homo" culture.

dan's tweet.. eh. I mean, he could have just ignored the question and avoided the topic entirely and he wouldn't have had to acknowledge it at all. he chose the other way.. which is fine. honestly he could have said something worse, like when he said he went to florida to answer emails lmao. one step at a time, I guess. it did put a bit of a damper on my mood ngl, but it didn't quite kill it. I guess the video helped as well. also I expected him to leave today, so

sims as the last video of gamingmas was expected, but I am a bit discouraged anyway. I don't hate sims, but I also don't love it. I just find it kinda boring and uneventful, but I understand why they keep playing it. it's still their most popular series, after all.

pinof bloopers on christmas day is a nice way to end the month. not looking forward to the week (or year?) of content drought that will follow though.

[parallel]

the duet was amazing. also i'm so happy they feel comfortable going on a rant about michael buble no-homo'ing. imo idc about dan's tweet. yeah, i'd have preferred he just didn't talk about it, but it's not bad per se. also, dan getting "oh phil" and "oh dear" mixed up was adorable

[alch]

He didn’t really take a step back - still acknowledged he went, didn’t use his go-to “went to a friends” explanation- just gave some vague info and that’s okay

Personally, I'd call it a bit of a cop-out. Everyone's main focus in this is that he went to the Lester house for around the holiday time, and his tweet doesn't really acknowledge him being in at one of Phil's family events or that it's at about Christmas time.

I don't know, it's not like he'd actually said anything on the matter and he's not denying it though. I'm not sure what I think of it.

[autumnhearth]

Well that tweet is a bit of a mood killer.

I'm glad I'm not alone in feeling that way. My pink little balloon of happiness deflated a little.

It's definitely not a mood killer for me; all it looks to me is like Dan is drawing a line and saying he's not going to tell us any more about his time with Phil's family. That's his gentle discourager to tell us we're not getting any more information, and I'm just... totally cool with that. I appreciate that he's not trying to make work an excuse or hide that he went at all, and I appreciate the boundary he's setting.

I get that it’s about setting a boundary and that’s fine. Frankly I think it was kind of in poor taste for the fan to have asked him that. Like yes, I’m sure Cornelia had their blessing in her posts, but neither Dan nor Phil said anything about Dan being there, so to bring it up is pretty damn cheeky, like “see we know’. However him not ignoring it is something. Understanding it doesn’t change my emotional reaction, I’ve had an awful day, but I don’t blame him.

[Loafer]

About this as proof -it’s just one more piece of the puzzle imo. To me, trying to argue against this being proof would be like holding a piece of a puzzle and being like “look, it’s blue! It could be the sky, or water, or a piece of clothing, or a wall, or so many things!” which of course is true. But in this case most of the other puzzle pieces have fish on them. So it makes the most sense for the blue piece to be water, right? A lot of the arguments against phan I’ve read sound like “I put together a puzzle with a blue piece like this and it was a baby’s bedroom, so that’s what I think this must be! All the fish must be a painting on the wall or something, silly!” Or “I see the fish but I think we should wait until the puzzle is finished to see what the picture is, I think is still could be the sky.”

Well yes i think this illustrates how as a fan community we are always going to be stuck in the dark and are confined to speculation, bringing in many assumptions and trying to puzzle snippets of information together to make a bigger picture.
Of course, if we say the puzzle piece is most likely blue because most other pieces have fish in them, it becomes very important how you look at the entire puzzle so far. If you think they're together, you see fish so it's likely water to you. If you think they are friends, you don't see fish and it may look more like a sky piece to you rather than water that confirms the fish
That's exactly what confirmation bias is: you give a certain significance or not to a piece of information and view it as confirming the image you already had. I feel that we only have a couple of pieces and we are always eager to puzzle about every little thing they do because we like them and we like to know more about them.

Well, the point of the analogy is a fish is 100% a fish, not that it could be a fish or it could be a bird in this case, the facts of dnps life that indicate a long term relationship. Like you’re most likely to find fish in water, it’s most likely that two men who have been living in each others pockets for 8 years and who have spoken about adopting a dog in their forever home are most likely to be in a relationship. But of course, the puzzle is and will always be incomplete.

So- “a couple of extra days in Florida” translated to about 3 weeks, so I guess we can approximate that “for the day” actually means a few days? We know he was there yesterday, and it seems extremely unlikely he would fly all the way there for one night. But it makes sense that he would fly back to London today, if he’s traveling to his familiy tomorrow!

[relatablemood]

I think I've become pretty numb (not the right word, but the only one I can think of) to anything Phan-related. Everyone talks about the little things and for me, it's often only the big steps that make me smile. I guess Dan and Phil confuse me so much that I can't focus on the smaller things because they don't seem real.... Does this make any sense to anyone?? It's just like we've had the same old for so long, but never anything definitive or big since 2012's whirlwind of denials. I'm tired of speculating, I just want them to come out or show they're not together. But that's just me and I understand why they can't do that and why my opinion doesn't mean anything to them, like at all lmao.

So Dan coming to see the Lesters didn't make me feel anything, but his tweet did, I think because it's sad to see you guys go from being happy about it all to "oh".

Also some questions, sorry to be a bother, but why did Dan get a plane? Did he go to Florida or something? And speaking of Florida, can someone give the date/thread number where that all happened?

[tyhane]

dan's tweet.. eh. I mean, he could have just ignored the question and avoided the topic entirely and he wouldn't have had to acknowledge it at all. he chose the other way.. which is fine. honestly he could have said something worse, like when he said he went to florida to answer emails lmao. one step at a time, I guess. it did put a bit of a damper on my mood ngl, but it didn't quite kill it. I guess the video helped as well. also I expected him to leave today, so

This is more just my reaction to the tweet than a response to you, but your post reminded me of it: to me it was almost a funny tweet. Like... "yeah I went all the way up north to go for a walk" is such a silly, stupid excuse that it can hardly even be called that. No anti or whatever you want to call it is going to read that and go "see!! guys he went up there for a WALK not to spend time with Phil's family!!". (And the causal fan/follower probably doesn't care one way or another or even realize he was there lol.)

And the thing is, he made no effort in thinking of some sort of plausible reason. In my mind, that shows that at the very least, he doesn't care enough about people knowing he went (and/or getting excited about it in the shippy sense) to bother with some sort of legitimate-sounding reason.

It actually made me happier than if he would have said nothing at all, because that could be interpreted like he wanted to hide the fact that he was there.

[greenergrass]

I think I've become pretty numb (not the right word, but the only one I can think of) to anything Phan-related. Everyone talks about the little things and for me, it's often only the big steps that make me smile. I guess Dan and Phil confuse me so much that I can't focus on the smaller things because they don't seem real.... Does this make any sense to anyone?? It's just like we've had the same old for so long, but never anything definitive or big since 2012's whirlwind of denials. I'm tired of speculating, I just want them to come out or show they're not together. But that's just me and I understand why they can't do that and why my opinion doesn't mean anything to them, like at all lmao.

So Dan coming to see the Lesters didn't make me feel anything, but his tweet did, I think because it's sad to see you guys go from being happy about it all to "oh".

Also some questions, sorry to be a bother, but why did Dan get a plane? Did he go to Florida or something? And speaking of Florida, can someone give the date/thread number where that all happened?

I actually find the 'smaller' things just as exciting as the 'big' things. Them choosing to be more honest and open with their audience (regardless of what their exact relationship is), and seeing how happy it has made them, makes me so so happy for them. I think the 'small' things make me so happy because it's clearly something they have discussed and worked out together, if that makes sense? It is way more real I feel, for them to slowly open up more and more on camera, and it shows that they are real people who have been communicating and making this decision together. I've noticed such a huge change with them and their onscreen selves over the past year (especially phil), and it makes me so thrilled for them, and has also made this year's video some of the best they've ever done. Something that has stuck with me so much (and which I'm trying to take as advice for my own life), is Dan's liveshow where he's talking about how being your authentic self is what will make you truly happy. I think he (and phil) are really trying to live by that idea - but that doesn't necessarily mean they have to show their public audience every single aspect of their private lives, and it doesn't mean there hasn't been huge progress even if it doesn't seem that major to an outside audience.

For me, I don't see this as a TV show, where there has to be crazy plot twists every month to keep it exciting. It's the little details that keep me engaged with their videos and them as people and their chemistry. I understand the wanting to know are they or aren't they, I get the appeal of the mystery, so I'm not attacking your opinion or anything. Obviously we're all human and I too am curious to know all details of their lives (I think we pretty much all would love to be a fly on the wall), but I'm fine with not knowing. As long as they keep progressing and putting out good content, I'll be happy.

And about the plane thing - Phil's family lives on the Isle of Man, which I believe requires a plane to get to from London. Someone more knowledgeable, feel free to correct me. He did go to Florida this year, but not this recent trip.

This is more just my reaction to the tweet than a response to you, but your post reminded me of it: to me it was almost a funny tweet. Like... "yeah I went all the way up north to go for a walk" is such a silly, stupid excuse that it can hardly even be called that. No anti or whatever you want to call it is going to read that and go "see!! guys he went up there for a WALK not to spend time with Phil's family!!". (And the causal fan/follower probably doesn't care one way or another or even realize he was there lol.)

And the thing is, he made no effort in thinking of some sort of plausible reason. In my mind, that shows that at the very least, he doesn't care enough about people knowing he went (and/or getting excited about it in the shippy sense) to bother with some sort of legitimate-sounding reason.

It actually made me happier than if he would have said nothing at all, because that could be interpreted like he wanted to hide the fact that he was there.

Quoting this because I pretty much agree with this whole post. This is basically what I was trying to say in an earlier post, but you said it better. Dan was being his usual, hyperbolic self. If he didn't want people to know he was there, Cornelia wouldn't have posted her insta-story (or whatever social media it was), and Dan wouldn't have replied to this tweet. He knew what the reaction from the fandom would be, so nobody can claim something like, 'they decided to show Dan in Cornelia's insta story, then were overwhelmed by the reaction from Dan so Dan tweeted that to calm it down and sugarcoat it'. That makes no sense because he's not stupid and he would have already known what the reaction would be. They are smart people who have been doing this job for many years.

[missemma]

I just watched the latest video and it had my sniggering out loud. I loved it! I love that the game is crap so they were crap and Dan was getting frustrating. Him being a brat about winning the spider was my favourite part, I love Bratty!Daniel.

Dan really does have a death metal growl on him, would have paid good money to hear it a couple of times in this video. Definitely one to re-watch for me; the bants were 10/10.

[kalli]

Sorry yeah I'm on my phone so it's hard to type this quickly. I did edit my post immediately after. I know it's probably about pinof, but I also know I really had to think of what else he could be referring to aside from *cough* heavy finger-quotes "editing".

* gah! What a cringe post to be my first top of page I apologize to everyone and their dog

I love that your mind went straight to "editing" being code for something else, and I actually feel quite boring for only taking it literally until I saw your interpretation I mean, I'm still pretty sure he's legitimately editing videos (sims for tomorrow and pinof bloopers for Christmas?), but I'm definitely in favour of adopting a new definition for "editing" in reference to the infamous editing tips story and meme. Uma Thurman just watched me edit? Now I'm gonna go and edit then cry into a slice of pizza?

dan's tweet.. eh. I mean, he could have just ignored the question and avoided the topic entirely and he wouldn't have had to acknowledge it at all. he chose the other way.. which is fine. honestly he could have said something worse, like when he said he went to florida to answer emails lmao. one step at a time, I guess. it did put a bit of a damper on my mood ngl, but it didn't quite kill it. I guess the video helped as well. also I expected him to leave today, so

This is more just my reaction to the tweet than a response to you, but your post reminded me of it: to me it was almost a funny tweet. Like... "yeah I went all the way up north to go for a walk" is such a silly, stupid excuse that it can hardly even be called that. No anti or whatever you want to call it is going to read that and go "see!! guys he went up there for a WALK not to spend time with Phil's family!!". (And the causal fan/follower probably doesn't care one way or another or even realize he was there lol.)

And the thing is, he made no effort in thinking of some sort of plausible reason. In my mind, that shows that at the very least, he doesn't care enough about people knowing he went (and/or getting excited about it in the shippy sense) to bother with some sort of legitimate-sounding reason.

It actually made me happier than if he would have said nothing at all, because that could be interpreted like he wanted to hide the fact that he was there.

I didn't really take it as him brushing it off. I think he's just being purposefully... sarcastic isn't the right word, but I guess hyperbolic? Like, he knows we all know he had to take a plane to get to IOM, and that he isn't going to take a plane just to "go outside and go for a walk". I actually don't take this as a denial of any sort or "brushing it off"; rather that he acknowledged that he went.

I agree, the tweet gives off fairly strong jokey vibes imo since it's pretty obvious he didn't fly there just to go for a walk. I also imagine most of us would be celebrating this tweet if it weren't for Cornelia's Instagram story, since it's a confirmation he was there.

It's nice to see Dan spend some time with Phil's family over the holidays and be open about it

[relatablemood]

I think I've become pretty numb (not the right word, but the only one I can think of) to anything Phan-related. Everyone talks about the little things and for me, it's often only the big steps that make me smile. I guess Dan and Phil confuse me so much that I can't focus on the smaller things because they don't seem real.... Does this make any sense to anyone?? It's just like we've had the same old for so long, but never anything definitive or big since 2012's whirlwind of denials. I'm tired of speculating, I just want them to come out or show they're not together. But that's just me and I understand why they can't do that and why my opinion doesn't mean anything to them, like at all lmao.

So Dan coming to see the Lesters didn't make me feel anything, but his tweet did, I think because it's sad to see you guys go from being happy about it all to "oh".

Also some questions, sorry to be a bother, but why did Dan get a plane? Did he go to Florida or something? And speaking of Florida, can someone give the date/thread number where that all happened?

I actually find the 'smaller' things just as exciting as the 'big' things. Them choosing to be more honest and open with their audience (regardless of what their exact relationship is), and seeing how happy it has made them, makes me so so happy for them. I think the 'small' things make me so happy because it's clearly something they have discussed and worked out together, if that makes sense? It is way more real I feel, for them to slowly open up more and more on camera, and it shows that they are real people who have been communicating and making this decision together. I've noticed such a huge change with them and their onscreen selves over the past year (especially phil), and it makes me so thrilled for them, and has also made this year's video some of the best they've ever done. Something that has stuck with me so much (and which I'm trying to take as advice for my own life), is Dan's liveshow where he's talking about how being your authentic self is what will make you truly happy. I think he (and phil) are really trying to live by that idea - but that doesn't necessarily mean they have to show their public audience every single aspect of their private lives, and it doesn't mean there hasn't been huge progress even if it doesn't seem that major to an outside audience.

For me, I don't see this as a TV show, where there has to be crazy plot twists every month to keep it exciting. It's the little details that keep me engaged with their videos and them as people and their chemistry. I understand the wanting to know are they or aren't they, I get the appeal of the mystery, so I'm not attacking your opinion or anything. Obviously we're all human and I too am curious to know all details of their lives (I think we pretty much all would love to be a fly on the wall), but I'm fine with not knowing. As long as they keep progressing and putting out good content, I'll be happy.

Oh, it's not that I don't understand the significance of how they've grown, or that I'm not proud of them for it, it's that on the shipping side of things, it's not something I'll generally take note of. I'll think about how much more open they are now with their audience, but not specific examples. And I'd find it nice that Dan's with the Lesters, but not think of it as Phan proof. I don't know, maybe it's a sign that I'm losing interest in them. Or that I need to up the antidepressants

Also, very ot but I was watching a film with my mum tonight (Tell Me How I Die) and it had Ryan Higa in it. And I was thinking that I'd love to see Dan in a film - but I don't think he'd want to be involved in something where he has a love interest, or something overly serious. I don't think he wants to act at all. I just can't stop picturing it now though, Dan as an actor years into the future.... (Ok but in all seriousness, Dan and Phil will succeed Ant and Dec as the iconic British duo presenting talent shows and such. No one can convince me of any other future).

[rainydays]

dan's tweet.. eh. I mean, he could have just ignored the question and avoided the topic entirely and he wouldn't have had to acknowledge it at all. he chose the other way.. which is fine. honestly he could have said something worse, like when he said he went to florida to answer emails lmao. one step at a time, I guess. it did put a bit of a damper on my mood ngl, but it didn't quite kill it. I guess the video helped as well. also I expected him to leave today, so

This is more just my reaction to the tweet than a response to you, but your post reminded me of it: to me it was almost a funny tweet. Like... "yeah I went all the way up north to go for a walk" is such a silly, stupid excuse that it can hardly even be called that. No anti or whatever you want to call it is going to read that and go "see!! guys he went up there for a WALK not to spend time with Phil's family!!". (And the causal fan/follower probably doesn't care one way or another or even realize he was there lol.)
And the thing is, he made no effort in thinking of some sort of plausible reason. In my mind, that shows that at the very least, he doesn't care enough about people knowing he went (and/or getting excited about it in the shippy sense) to bother with some sort of legitimate-sounding reason.
It actually made me happier than if he would have said nothing at all, because that could be interpreted like he wanted to hide the fact that he was there.

I get your point, but I think for me it's not about what he said specifically, but more about the fact that he went out of his way to answer the question and downplay what happened. I mean, of course nobody will actually believe he only went there for a walk, but he also said that he was only there for a day, which is a blatant lie, but not so blatant that even people who don't pay attention to everything they do would know. I guess I just think it was unnecessary? he could have just ignored it and moved on and kept his privacy that way.
I also get the "he was setting boundaries" interpretation, but ignoring the tweet would have done the same thing imo
but anyway, I'm not super bothered by it, more like rolling my eyes.