NO PAY, NO GAIN
Today’s contributor advises on her ultimate dating deal breaker
I had been casually talking to this guy for a few months, but he had yet to make his move. He finally got the balls to ask me out when he saw another guy flirting with me. As if his hesitation weren’t enough, I should’ve known he was a snoozer when he asked via e-mail. My married boss was continuously bugging me about my single status, so I figured I’d give it a shot.
He took me to an Americanized Mexican chain for dinner—the kind you can pretty much find on every block. I made a mental note in my snob handbook as to why a native New Yorker couldn’t find something unique. C’mon, you gotta impress on the first date.
The conversation was painfully boring. All he cared about were my encounters with celebrities at my job in cable television. Maybe if I retorted with, “you work in finance—ever met Suze Orman?” he would have realized how obnoxious he sounded.
I was relieved when the bill finally came. The waitress put it near me, so I checked it out. Seventeen dollars—my, he was really shelling out the big bucks for me. I was completely shocked when my ever-so-chivalrous date decided to put eleven on the table.
I’m not a stickler for gender roles, but if a guy isn’t gracious enough to fork over seventeen dollars to impress a girl, he’s probably a jerk. From now on, if a guy doesn’t at least offer to pay, there’s no second date. Bottom line.
