"Jason"

So I had a date Friday night with "Jason."

Jason is 29 and seemed like a really laid back guy. We have a lot in common in that we both had similar majors in undergrad and he also played hockey growing up. Well, I didn't play hockey growing up but I did figure skate, so the fact that I found SOMEONE who can ice skate is amazing in of itself. Not many lads are willing to take to the ice; wimps. Skating is something we first spoke about via our messages and connected with from the get go. He was also from New England where part of my family lives and I really liked that about him as well, since we could share that childhood memory of summers spent up north, and for him... well his whole life. Same thing, right? Yea.

After messaging back and forth a bit, we finally decided to get together and hit the ice, literally. I had just gotten my skates sharpened and needed to dull them down, so we decided to meet up for dinner and some skating afterwards. I kept going back and forth with this guy; we had a bit in common and I was really excited to meet someone who was willing to skate with me and do something out of the ordinary and not the usual just dinner or drinks. As the weekend closed in and the date got nearer and nearer, I became more and more nervous about the date and had forgotten about all those butterflies that are set loose inside your stomach.

Before the big day, I looked over his profile once more and a few things stood out to me which hadn't before; apparently he was 5'7", I'm 5'3.5", 5'4" on a good day. It hadn't occurred to me that he was a shorter guy, but I tried to not let this bother me. Also, it said he was a "smoker, but trying to quit."

How did I miss THAT one?! I am not a fan of smoking; no sirree. Have I tried to inhale a cigarette before? Yes. Did I continue with that? No. I get that maybe in college the whole "I'll have one if I'm drunk," bit, but upon entering the real world, I realized how disgusting it is. However, I was like, "Well, it says he's trying to quit; maybe he only smokes when drinking or like... one a day?"

I was too hopeful.

We met up at the near by mall at a restaurant I had only been once before and it was delic! First of all, they had one of my favorite beers on tap, and not only that, it was on happy hour special too! SCORE! Then, I ordered a bison burger for dinner and it may have been one of the best burgers ever!! SCORE! Overall, I was very satisfied with my hunger and drinking needs.

Oh right, my date. We met outside the restaurant and he was wearing a navy, college hoodie, jeans, and white sneakers. I thought this was odd; I get that we were going to go skating, but at least put on a polo for dinner. I had left all my stuff in my car but had taken the time to dress up for the date at least (sweater, jeans, and heels, in case anyone cares). Anyways, we proceed into the restaurant and are seated immediately. Dinner conversation was pretty good; I was pleasantly surprised by how well we conversed! It was much better than half of the dates I've been on, I can say that much. I liked how ambitious he was and driven, as well as and that he was interested in a bunch of different activities. He was really easy to talk to and I felt much more myself around him than I have with other dates. We talked so much that we ended up missing the ice skating session and decided to go down the street to grab some more drinks.

Thaaaat's when things went a bit south. While walking to the next place, he asked me if I minded if he smoked a cigarette as we walked down the street. I did mind, but said it was ok; we were outside so I figured it was better there than inside somewhere or something of the like. We got to our next destination and ordered some beers and continued to chat. Our conversations were going great but he was starting to remind me of one of my exes; no bueno. Then he asked me if I would want to go outside with him real quick while he smoked another cigarette.

Good googa mooga; another cigarette? I was like "No, I'll just sit inside; I don't mind." He went outside real quick and I just sat there thinking.... this is a problem. He came back inside and mentioned that he's trying to quit. My smart mouth got the best of me and I said "And how's that going for you?" If he is rude enough to smoke two cigarettes on our date, then I think I can be rude enough to ask how his quitting is going for him, cause clearly it's not going THAT well. We continued talking for another forty-five minutes or so and then decided to call it quits (the night, not the smoking, clearly).

As we were walking back to my car, he decided to light up, AGAIN, for the third time. At this point, I was thankful that the date was ending but a bit disappointed as well. I really did enjoy spending time with this guy  and if it weren't for the smoking, I'd definitely would want to see him again. Once we got back to my car, I said thank you and that I had a fun, great time, which I did minus the smoking. We said we'd keep in touch and parted ways.

I haven't heard from him since I last saw him Friday night. Maybe he's been busy smoking all those cigarettes. Ew.

Lesson learned: Speak your mind if you do mind. Smoking is a deal breaker, for me, and I shouldn't have said that I didn't mind the first time he lit up that cigarette.

Neeeext.