Dave II

i haven't been overly satisfied with my eharmony experience... the site isn't very user friendly and it seems like my matches aren't willing to share their pic with me. for those of you who don't know how it works, there are a few steps you need to complete before being able to message your match (or you can skip right to messaging). i had finally made it to the "messaging phase" with not one, but two matches! eharmony miracle, right? one of them, shaun (30), only had one photo posted of himself and seemed clueless as to how to send me others despite the fact that he worked in the IT field. he also divulged that he was "living at home (saving up money)" - kind of a dealbreaker for me. i can't date another dude living at home with mommy and daddy because it reminds me too much of my bro...

and then there was dave (38). i hemmed and hawed about contacting him... in fact, i was curious how he had even been matched with me because i thought i put a cap at 37! ha. but, he had a nice smile and his emails were funny. i knew that he was born out east, worked for IBM and currently resided in the hunt club area, but that was pretty much it before i decided to ask him out. i'm not one to message back and forth a lot before meeting up because i find it builds too much expectation. we agreed to meet up for a quick drink after work last night. he kept giving me his phone number and asking me to call him because it was a "big bar".... it's ottawa, how big is any bar in town? plus, i didn't want him to have my digits in case the date was a bust.

i found him immediately when i entered - he must have also just arrived, so we made our way to a table and had a few pints of beer. immediately, it felt like i was on date with my dad (i guess a compliment to my dad?!). i don't know what 38 looks like, but dave looked OLD. a nice looking guy, friendly, but old in every sense - his mannerisms, his outdated humour, his references, etc, etc, etc.

the following are a few dealbreakers from our date:
- please don't tell me racial jokes. they aren't funny.
- it's rude to check your bbm and not apologize for it.
- still waiting for the punchline...
- he's divorced and has a 6 year old daughter (not necessarily a dealbreaker, but he could have been more upfront about that info).
- don't tell me about how much of a slacker you are at work. it's unattractive.
- believe it, i don't have a car. and i'm ok with that.

so yes, it was a date FAIL. i'm pretty sure the feeling was mutual because neither of us said we should do it again or that we would contact the other, and he didn't offer to give me a ride home on his way to The Keg. i felt disappointed as i walked home after my two pints of beer (thankfully, he paid), but the good news was that it was still Friday night! hopefully i will get a few more dates out of this eharmony business - if nothing else, just to make me feel as though i got my money's worth.