She told me things that seemed overly personal, but I liked her bluntness
Nick sometimes felt like he was being interrogated, but he found Kelsey’s directness refreshing
Nick is a 48-year-old painter and carpenter who lives downtown. He says he is “goofy, funny, sarcastic and easygoing” as well as “clean.” He loves sleeping in, eating Mexican food, seeing movies — “but I won’t waste money on movies that I know will be on Netflix or Prime in a few weeks” — and reading. Nick says, “I ended my last relationship because my girlfriend was narcissistic.”
He says, “I’m just looking for someone who takes care of herself physically, emotionally and mentally; who doesn’t smoke or abuse alcohol; who doesn’t have a bunch of ex-boyfriends hanging around; who has a sense of humour; and who isn’t toxic.”
I met Kelsey online a few years ago. She actually reached out to me. I liked her profile, though. She was a bit older than me and divorced.
We texted back and forth, and then talked on the phone. She was superdirect. She asked me if I had a full-time job, if I owned my home and what my relationships were like with my ex-girlfriends. It felt somewhat like a job interview or an interrogation, but it was also refreshing how upfront she was. Some people would want to ask those questions, but wouldn’t do it. She said that there were a lot of guys out there who hide who they really are, so she wanted to make sure I was who I said I was.
She suggested meeting up for dinner at a spot near her place for our first date. I always try to get to a date early so I can choose the right place to sit and settle in and get comfortable. As usual I was the first one at the restaurant and I scoped out the best table.
I had been looking forward to seeing if Kelsey matched her profile pics in real life. She definitely looked like her pictures, which is a good thing. I am more interested in the content of the book as opposed to the cover, but she was really pretty!
She also had a good sense of humour, which was more on the sarcastic side, just like mine. We laughed and seemed to really click. I thought I caught her checking out my body and she made a comment about my arms. I was wearing a tight-fitting thermal shirt. I have never had any woman make such bold statements about my body before, especially after just meeting me for the first time. She actually went on to make tons of comments about my looks. She was complimentary, but I sort of felt like a piece of meat. I had mixed emotions about that. It was slightly awkward.
She was upfront in other ways. She told me a lot about herself, including things that are too personal for most people to say on a first date. Or ever! I am openminded, but there is a lot I haven’t done or haven’t talked about, so I was a bit taken aback. I liked her bluntness and I felt like I could ask her anything. Especially because she had already interrogated me on the phone. The date felt extremely promising.
She actually went on to make tons of comments about my looks. She was complimentary, but I sort of felt like a piece of meat. I had mixed emotions about that. It was slightly awkward
I had never been on a date with any woman who was so blunt. Her confidence made things easy. The date was flowing effortlessly with a lot of banter. I really liked her. That is, until I found out that she was a reporter and my Spidey sense was activated.
I found Kelsey’s job to be very interesting and wanted to know more, but in the back of my mind I was suddenly trying to be very careful about what I said and how I delivered it. I was sure she was analyzing and recording every detail of me and my life. I thought about the conversation we were having and I thought back to our conversation over the phone, when she asked me about the personal details of my life. Is that what it would be like to date a reporter? I wondered. I wondered if she was interested in me for me or if she was just interested in information.
We were there for about three hours, which is longer than any other first date I’ve been on. I gave her a hug. Before I got home she had already sent me a text.
Nick rates his date (out of 10): 6 Want to be a dating diarist? Email datingdiariescontact@gmail.com