Round 12 - Here we go again!

The second I unhid my profile, an email arrived.  It was like this guy had been sitting there anxiously waiting to read my profile!  I'll start my numbering from 1 again since there was a 5 1/2 year gap.  It will also be less depressing to see smaller numbers since I'll probably hit 100 at this rate.

1. Blue Eyes
He was older and divorced with grown children. He was tall with dark hair and blue eyes.  His email was short, but very complimentary.  He claimed to love Latin women and absolutely had to meet me.  We had a few interests in common, but given that his kids were grown and he was 53 I figured he was close to retirement and my young children would not be appealing.  I didn't respond right away, decided to wait a day or two so as to not appear desperate according to the book, "The Rules for Online Dating." 

A day later I wrote back thanking him for his email.  We emailed back and forth a bit talking about the usual stuff and he wanted to set a coffee date.  I agreed.  He was supposed to let me know what day worked best with his schedule.  At this point I wasn't going to waste any time, better to take the bull by the horns and meet sooner rather than later.  I was looking forward to getting out and escaping my self-imposed prison. 

Suddenly he stopped writing.  I figured he was busy, no big deal.  A couple of days later I noticed his profile picture was gone, then a few days after that the profile had been deleted.  Here we go again, another magician!

2. Mr. Gelato
We were the same age.  He was single, never married with no children.  According to his profile he worked in IT.  He sent a nice email and said he liked my profile and my picture and would like to take me out.  He suggested meeting in the market for gelato.  I agreed so we planned to meet the following week.  He had a meeting scheduled downtown so we'd meet at 2:00 in the afternoon.

The day arrives and I walk over to Piccolo Grande.  He sends a text telling me that he's running a bit late, but on his way.  I wait outside.  A while later a gentleman taps me on the shoulder and says hello.  I had no clue who this was.  He was a middle aged looking gentleman, covered in sweat and slightly out of breath.  I thought he was going to ask me for directions.

Him:  "Hi, sorry I'm late.  How are you?  You look great by the way, even better than your picture."

OMG, this was my date!  He didn't look anything like his picture, not even close.  This guy was heavier, not very tall, wore glasses and had a scraggly beard.  The guy in the picture was tall with thick dark hair and it looked like he worked out.

Me: "Hi.  Who are you?"

Him: "It's me M--------."

Me: "You don't look anything like the picture on the profile."

Him: "That's a picture of my cousin, he's better looking than me."

OMG was this guy for real?  His cousin was most certainly better looking than he was and taller too!  Great, this was going to be fun.

Me: "Where did you park?"

Him: "Oh no, well I walked because I had a meeting on Elgin."

Me: "You ran over here from Elgin Street?  There's lots of parking right here."

Him: "It's ok, let's go in and get some gelato."

We ordered and sat inside to talk.  I already had absolutely no interest, but I tried to be polite.  We made some small talk and he asked about my last relationship.  I told him my husband had passed away and I had 4 children as discussed in an email, he didn't remember.  He said he really liked me and would love to get to know me better.  His sister had 3 children and he was great with kids.  Currently he was working as a consultant and had a small IT business he ran from home.  Details and information didn't match what was on the profile.  It was very obvious he didn't have a car and I strongly suspected he was a student given his large backpack full of textbooks.  He must have read my mind because he suddenly stopped talking and asked:

Him: "This date is over, isn't it?"

Me: "Unfortunately yes.  It was nice meeting you, but I don't think this would work."

We said good bye and I thanked him.  He texted me later on saying it was a pleasure to meet me and he was disappointed this would not go any further.  I thanked him again and wished him luck with his search.  I wanted to say more, but I think he got the picture loud and clear.  His profile disappeared.  Just as well given he was completely dishonest.   

What a great start!  I cried all the way back to the office.  I felt so demoralized and seriously questioned whether I should continue.  Maybe this was a mistake.  When I got home I called my girlfriend and told her what happened.  She insisted I not give up.  There will always be idiots, I can't control that.  At least I didn't waste weeks emailing and talking on the phone.  The best thing to do is meet them right away. 

As per usual, I received a few emails from guys looking for sex.  Obviously they didn't read the profile which clearly stated I was looking for a "long-term" relationship.  Oh well, I got my feet wet now I'd have to take it in stride and see what happens.

Stay tuned for more!

Dateless in Ottawa