They posted the next round for the tournament. Donny, shut the f- when do we play?

This post is part of The Big Ledateski series. I recommend starting at the beginning.

So I was wrong about Duder. It happens, every now and then. Turns out he was interested and had sent me an email saying as much the exact second he got home according both to him and the time stamp of his email. He wanted to go on an actual date, and suggested a restaurant that had been featured in the blog. He said he wanted to ask in person but hadn’t wanted to put me on the spot. He also offered to come all the way to my place to actually pick me up.

I must say I was surprised to see the email. But I thought it was sweet of him to take my date-hating into consideration, and I couldn’t turn down one of my favorite restaurants. Plus, I hadn’t gathered enough intel on Duder to weigh in on my interest level. So I accepted. The picking me up part I graciously declined.

Here’s how the date breaks down.

The Dinner. Delicious. I had this ragout with squash and apples as an appetizer and it was unbelievable. I also had a glass of wine, almost at Duder’s insistence. You see he doesn’t drink when he is driving, which is very smart, but also very contrary to the life of a city dweller, which of course I am. He didn’t want me to feel restricted, but I kept it to one glass. Next to a non-drinker I’m sure I’d look terribly alcoholic. Or at least I would feel that way.

The Ambiance. Good and bad. When given the option to sit in the room with the live music, Duder chose the music. An apt choice, considering he’s very into all those independent bands I’ve never heard of, but it ended up a little loud for conversation. Plus the jazzy musicians were really interesting to watch, and thus very distracting for me.

The Conversation. Decent. More about our interests - we’re both playing kickball although he is team captain and I am new to the “sport” - and a lot about his quirks. Everyone has quirks, I just have an ability to draw them out of people while holding mine back. We lasted a solid hour and a half before we started to struggle.

The Flirting. Non-existent. He did say I looked nice, but there was definitely no “I’m into you” vibe. To be fair, I wasn’t doing any flirting myself, just trying to feel him out, but I’m also the kind of girl who wants a guy to make the move.

The Exit. Well, it went something like this:
Brandt: Well, enjoy. And perhaps we'll see you again some time, Dude.
The Dude: Yeah, sure, if I'm... in the neighborhood and I, uh... gotta use the john.

Actually it went like this:
Duder: Well, have a great weekend. (it was Monday)
Me: Oh, I'm sure I'll talk to you before then. I'll let you know where I'm watching basketball on Saturday if you end up in the city before your (music) show.
Duder: Well we don't know what we're doing yet...

And then I walked myself to my car, through an alley. No next date planned, and seemingly no interest from Duder in planning one. I guess I'll just have to check my email when I get home.