The interesting thing about online dating is that you can like people and they can like you back – at least your profiles and/or you can message any time.

I am taking the approach of someone liking me – either before or after I like them – before deciding to reach out. Sometimes they reach out and I ignore it or respond – depends on what I see in the profile. While I know the profile is a written interpretation of person and usually an idealized version of the themselves, I think a bit of their humor, pretensions, desires and other parts of who they are do come out.

The game designer flagged me and I thought he looked interesting. Another tech guy so we should have sometime to talk about.

We agree to meet on the holiday – he has to work but I don’t, so lunch is doable for me. Usually it isn’t doable for me in between all my meetings – especially if there is transit involved.

So we exchange a few notes about place and time. They are all crappy little lunch restaurants in the Financial district. But I can get a salad.

Once again I am way too early. I have to figure out how to negotiate public transit to arrive a little early, not time-wasting early.

I walk around the neighborhood, checking out what’s around. Because it is a holiday almost everything is closed so there really isn’t much to explore and I am too far down Market for the good shopping.

I wait outside the restaurant and eventually see him coming down the street. Tall. Typical software engineer gait. He is super casual – jeans/tshirt. I am in the standby skirt and tights with a cute patterned shirt. It’s a cute outfit rather than a sexy outfit. More appropriate for lunch in what is essentially a food court style restaurant.

We chat a little as we get in line. I get a salad, pay my own way. He comes here a lot and has his own bowl for the soup. I am not sure what to make of that. Frugal? Eco-conscious?

We go upstairs to the completely empty dining area. We are early and have beat the little bit of lunch crowd that might be out on this working holiday.

We struggle through the typical first date chatter  – where are you from originally? What do you do? Talk about the job. I find I am having a hard time looking him in the eye. He is a bit intense or I am distracted. I keep looking over his shoulder. His work sounds interesting and his side thing – his hobby – designing a game and now making a video/animation of the story is super cool sounding but there is no spark here – at least not romantically.

I am thinking that he is not really my type.

The salad is terrible.

At an hour,  we get up, he mentions that I need to get on my way to my busy day.

Why do I have such a hard time seeing the signs and ending the conversation when it needs to be done?

Then when they go to end it, I feel rushed or taken by surprise even though I was thinking the same thing?

We go out and he gives me a hug good bye. I tell him I have no work today so am going shopping. He asks what for and I answer truthfully that I am off to Victorias Secret. Awkward laughter and then goodbyes are said.

I go off and buy bras.