I couldn’t believe that he wanted to meet at a pot shop
Jackie is a 36-year-old translator who lives in the west end. She says “My personal style is creative, relaxed and sometimes edgy.” She says “I’m always calm and collected. People find me shy and awkward at first, but when I’m comfortable with people, I’m funny and easygoing.” Jackie likes to “hike, explore new places in the city, watch horror movies and eat ice cream.” She has been single for a year-and-a-half, and says “I want to date someone who is respectful and understanding.”
I met Evan on an app. We had great banter. I liked that he was funny and smart and didn’t waste time in making plans for us to meet. He was goodlooking, blond, blue-eyed, muscular. He asked me for my number after a few messages, and said we should get a coffee. We lived pretty far apart, so he chose a place that would be easy for me to get to. He offered to pick me up, but I told him I would meet him there instead, in part due to COVID. A few hours before the date he sent me the address for where I was supposed to go.
When I checked the address, it was for a cannabis shop. That was odd. It looked like there was a coffee chain right beside it, though, so I assumed it was all one big plaza with a shared address. When I pulled into the parking lot, I saw the cannabis shop and thought to myself, “Imagine if I was supposed to meet him there?” and laughed.
I texted Evan that I had arrived, and he texted back that he was picking up some things for our date. I thought he meant muffins or cookies or scones from the coffee shop. Nope. It turns out that he meant pot. He said that the address he’d given me was for the cannabis shop after all, not the coffee place.
I still thought I had misunderstood and that maybe he was joking around at first, and when it became clear that he wasn’t, I told him that I’m not really into that, especially because I was driving that day. I said that maybe we could just get a coffee like we said we would. I was thinking to myself, “What is going on?!” He said that he was in line in the store and it would be a little while longer. I probably should have left, but I had driven all the way there and I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. I stayed in my car and waited for 30 minutes or so for Evan to come out.
After Evan got his stuff, he got in his car and pulled up to where I was parked. He hung out in his car smoking while I sat in mine. He was definitely cute, but I was still annoyed with him.
He was acting like what he was doing was totally normal date behaviour. He never told me the actual plan, he had just gone ahead and done what he wanted, while I had to wait for him. I thought he was being inconsiderate, for sure, but it seemed like he thought he was doing something nice.
We talked with the windows down. I’m a person who will give someone more than one chance, even though it usually backfires, so I told myself to just be positive and to try to enjoy the rest of the date and getting to know him. I’m very patient, and I always try to see the good in people, and I could tell that Evan was trying even if it wasn’t working for me.
We ended up getting a coffee after that, and then Evan said he knew a nice spot nearby, so I should follow him in my car. I followed him to an empty parking lot. It wasn’t next to a trail or a park or anything, it was just a random parking lot. I rolled down my window and asked where we were, and he said that now we could be alone to hang out if I wanted to join him in his car.
I’m sure he meant well, but I wasn’t comfortable with that, since we had just met, and it’s a pandemic. That was the end of the date. I’m sure Evan has lots of good qualities, but I was ready to go.
Jackie rates her date (out of 10): 1