Men with babies are sexy

A few nights ago, I went out on a first date. He was funny, good looking, and intelligent. He has a fabulous job and he lives in a one bedroom in one of my favorite neighborhoods in the city, the East Village. After a few e-mails back and forth, we met in person for drinks at a renovated speak easy in Gramercy - such a cool place! The drinks were great, the conversation was going well. We talked about our careers, college, living in the city...all of the normal things to cover on a first date.

Somehow we ended up talking about a few of our married friends (I have one married coworker who is expecting a baby boy and I am very very excited for him). He went off on a tirade about how he is totally not interested in children. He wouldn't know what to do with one. He made remarks like "How does one play?" and "Why in the world would someone want a child? What a hassle." I tried to refocus the conversation on the fact that the people we were talking about were married - as in part of a committed unit looking to build a family. He then went on to talk about his lack of interest in commitment letting me know that "he's not a phone person" and "doesn't usually respond to texts"...He told me about his idea of an ideal date. A reverse brunch where you sleep with someone first and take them out for a meal the next morning...He must have noticed the horrified look on my face because although he paid for my drinks, walked me to the subway, and gave me a very gentlemanly kiss goodnight, I haven't heard from him.

The overall date was just fine - not a horror story but not a success story either. Needless to say, this guy is not for me...

Because one day I definitely want some version of this:

The Turkish Guido and The Delaware Hermit

Two very different dating adventures...

The Turkish Guido
A few weeks ago, I went out with a guy I had met online. He seemed charming albeit a little "Jersey Shore" for my taste. (Waxed eyebrows, likes clubbing, fake tan). I decided to give it a shot. He'd neglected to tell me that he was a New York transplant from Turkey. Not only was he a GTL kinda guy, but also he had a thick Turkish accent. In addition, he was a good 3 or 4 inches shorter than his profile had indicated. We weren't exactly off to a great start but I was still optimistic. I met him at a lovely restaurant on the Lower East Side where he hadn't made a reservation (another strike). Luckily, we secured a table and ordered some upscale beer and really delicious food (the cuisine was fancy comfort food). An older man in a suit who was pretty sauced, accidentally sat on me. My date graciously offered to switch tables. The older man offered to buy me a drink which I declined. He proceeded to flop onto a seat near our table and practically pass out until two women (presumably coworkers) carted him away. We laughed it off. It broke the ice. After about a half hour of conversation, I knew he wasn't for me. I was a good sport and stuck it out. He was super nice, paid for my meal and waited with me at the bus stop for my bus back to the UES. I text-ed him a thank you for the evening. A few days later, he called. It's Internet dating etiquette to disappear after a first date if you're just not feeling it.

The Delaware Hermit
Days later, I had met a guy who went to UD who had graduated in '07 and had lived in the same dorm as me sophomore year one floor up - what a crazy New York coincidence! I was a bit surprised that not only did I not remember him, but neither did my roommate, Michele. That should have been a red flag... I had to take him up on his date offer though - I was just so curious. Plus, he's tall, good looking, into the arts, getting his PhD at NYU - everything seemed very promising. We decided to grab dinner in Greenwich Village. The conversation was great until I asked him about Main Street. My question was seemingly harmless "What was your favorite spot on Main Street?" His reply was frightening: "Oh, I didn't go to Main Street." What?! There is only 1 street on the UD campus = MAIN STREET. Apparently he doesn't enjoy going to restaurants, the movies, bars, out for a cupcake or coffee...NOTHING! As we continued talking, it became clear to me that he and I had very different lifestyles. After 3 hours of wine sipping and pizza eating, I was ready to go home. The check came and he suggested splitting it. A gentleman ALWAYS pays on the first date. I sent him a sweet e-mail later in the week telling him that I'd like to stay in touch but only as friends. He responded very sweetly.

The "A" Team

Last night, my nonprofit finance professor had invited me along with 4 of my classmates to a fancy event at the Mandarin Oriental. I remembered this hotel from all of the press it got last year when President Obama stayed there. The 5 of us had been the "stars of the class" according to Professor Green and coincidentally, all 5 of us were Laguardia Scholarship Recipients....so it made perfect sense to him to invite us to the largest fund raising event of the year for The New School!! What an honor!

We were escorted to the 36th floor of the Mandarin to a reception area where we were greeted by a PR representative and a photographer who snapped many many pictures of us students (toasting with professors, smiling with the President of the School, talking candidly to each other).... we felt like movie stars. We had wine and stuck close together - we were the only students there!

After an hour of wine and chit-chat, we were escorted to our table for dinner in the Mandarin Ballroom. Our table consisted of our professors (one of the academic deans and the CFO), the dean for student affairs, and the program director of our college. We enjoyed some fine dining, a promotional video about The New School, and a speech given by the CEO of General Electric (this year's recipient of the Laguardia Award).

After the event, "The A Team" (we assumed this group name after our photo shoot) headed to the lounge one floor down to take in the view and discuss our VIP status.




For the first time in a long time, I felt like I had made it.