Monday, July 07, 2008

July 7, 1998: Our first conversation

It was a Tuesday evening and I just finished an appointment near Southdale Mall in Edina.

Since I didn’t have a cellular phone at the time I stopped in to the nearest Kinko’s where they allowed free access to a phone. I needed to make a call to a gal I met over the telephone via the WLTE date line. This was a time where the internet wasn’t quite as ubiquitous as it is today. That said, I wasn’t familiar with the concept of “online dating”.

Since my work place at the time had that light-music radio station playing all day, I had heard ads for this telephone dating service. How it worked was one basically answered multiple choice questions by using the push-buttons on your phone. From there, the date line would construct a profile and match it with a mate who resembles your preferences. It was hardly the “29 dimensions of compatibility” required by E-harmony but then again I wasn’t exactly looking for a potential spouse.

Up to that point, I had gone on dates with nine different women through the WLTE date line. However, I only went on more than one date with just one of those gals (she was the one who bore an uncanny resemblance to Molly Ringwald). I guess I had no reason to think that #10 would be any different. It’s not that I had become cynical or anything. My whole thought process was to meet new people….but be open to possibilities.

After chatting with this sweet young lady for about a half hour, we decided to meet Saturday the 11th at the Chili’s restaurant near her home in Brooklyn Park. To be honest, this blind date thing had become old hat to me. I really wasn’t nervous at all leading up to it. Of course, there might have been a little more anxiety had I known that exactly two years later I would be walking down the aisle with this young lady.

So, how did the first date with the future Mrs. Carlson turn out? Check back on the 11th!!

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