I was watching a television programme called First Dates and it was based in a restaurant exclusively for people meeting for the first time.
It was interesting and enlightening to eavesdrop on conversations. It made me think about blind dates on the whole, and there are two other programmes on the television that set people up like that.
One is called Dating in the Dark – where they get to the know the person before actually seeing them and deciding whether the personality matches their looks. That is fun because sometimes they get on to well and when he is revealed he is nothing like he comes across.
Then there is Dinner Date, where they go to someone’s house and have a meal cooked for them. It’s interesting to see how they get on and who they choose at the end. I always think I could write a great story for that and maybe I should.
I’ve only been on one blind, way back in 1973. Although I can’t remember what we talked about, I can guarantee it wasn’t what I overheard from one couple on First Dates – so what’s your best poo story – everyone’s got one. Really?
We wouldn’t have spoken about sex either, as many do on these programmes. Neither would they use foul language to try and impress. I don’t know why I watch First Dates, because it makes me feel old. But I do and it gives me a giggle!
My brother’s friend, who I knew well, said that his work mate was feeling low because his girlfriend had moved away. Would I come and meet him on a blind date?
I was very young and the fact that he was on the rebound didn’t enter my head. So I went, and we had a great time. He was very good looking and really nice, too. In fact he later said he fancied me straight away, as well. It lasted 6 months until he moved on leaving me lamenting my first ever love.
A blind date a heard from somewhere was about Clair, from Edinburgh who said her sister and ex partner were invited to a wedding of mutual friend. A friend of groom had no one to go with, so the ex partner suggested she might like to go with him. So they met up first to make sure they liked one another and decided that they would attend together. They got on so well that they left the wedding early to be together and a year later got married.
Not everything goes as planned, as writer Jenn Deese told me. When she was 21, her local bar man set her up with a blind date and gave her the address of where to meet him. When she got there it was a nursing home and she assumed her date was a member of staff.
In the lobby, she gave his name and round the corner arrived a wheelchair with an 89 year old man in it, complete with oxygen tank and IV bags. His voice came through a box as he confirmed he was her date.
To give Jenn her due, even at that young age, she did not want to hurt his feelings. She wheeled him down to the local park and they sat by the pond for over an hour. He turned out to be the great grand father of her friend who was in on the joke. Jenn remembers that he was actually a nice man and told her some interesting stories as they people watched together.
So blind dates can be fun, even if they go wrong, as they make incredibly interesting tales – and television programmes it seems.
Karen J. Mossman 