Dating Diaries Update

Editor’s note: In an effort to protect the privacy of our diarists’ dates, our updates are on a slight time delay.

Valentine’s Day has passed, but our daters are still hoping Cupid aims his arrow their way.

Kate Searby is still smitten with the producer she met at Tryst. “He has a really big heart,” says Kate. “I don’t think he thinks I’m silly for being interested in human rights. He’s really adventurous. We have that in common. He’s an interested, compassionate person. I really enjoy spending time with him. I think we have amazing chemistry. Everything feels really comfortable. At the same time, we haven’t had any talks about being exclusive. As much as I like him, I’m not sure I’m ready to go there.”

Kate might not be ready to go there, but she did end things with the guy from California because of her feelings for the producer.

Max Schwartz was recognized at Wonderland for being on Dating Diaries. “She asked about how the process works,” says Max. “People are always curious about how it affects my dating life. She seemed nice, but then she went off on this tirade about how she doesn’t date and how she hates it, so I decided not to ask her for her number.”

Max did have a more successful date with a woman he’d met at a house party: “I saw her twice in one week, actually, I had fun both times. She’s laid-back in ways that I haven’t always found people to be here in DC. We seemed to have a good rapport. She’s interested in similar things. She’s cute and she’s not taller than me. And she seems to have a preference for wearing flats. Beyond that, I still don’t know her that well. I’m just interested in knowing more.”

And Max does want to see what happens with the chemistry: “I was surprised that after the hanging-out/talking/dinner chemistry was so good, the good-night chemistry wasn’t better. That could just be how she is, or that could be something else. That’s a question for next time.”

Through her Craigslist posting on dating and the economy, Dana Neil met a guy she really clicked with. Early on, they realized that there was a dating deal breaker—she loves dogs and he doesn’t. They called it quits, but then he e-mailed and the two went out again on a recent Friday night. “It was really fun,” says Dana. “It was bitter cold and he waiting for me with an Irish coffee. He said it was so cold that he wanted to make sure I started off warm. He helped me off with my coat and was very gentlemanly. We were chatting, and an appetizer showed up. He had already ordered it. We were at an Irish pub, and they had a singer. We sang and clapped. We had a really good time. We seemed to be in sync with a lot of stuff.”

He suggested that Dana call or e-mail him, and she took the challenge. The two went out again just a few days later. “We went to dinner and had a really nice time,” says Dana. “A few days later, he called and said he hadn’t dropped off the face of the earth. He had gotten food poisoning on our date. He said we’re never going back to that restaurant. That’s always a good sign, but I felt bad.”

Michael Amesquita and Choir Girl had a good first official date. They went to the National Museum of Crime & Punishment and then dinner nearby. Michael had put in a lot of work on the date, creating a jigsaw puzzle with clues about what they were going to do beforehand. “Relationships are a lot of work,” says Michael. “Not that you’re supposed to entertain someone for 30 years, but you want to keep it interesting and exciting. You want to show that you’re going to take the time to keep it interesting right from the first date.”

Choir Girl joined Michael and some friends out for his birthday, and they’ve hung out since their date. But when Michael asked her to be his Valentine, she said she had plans with her girlfriends, and he’s uncertain what to think now.

Despite Dana’s bad experience with CrazyBlindDate.com, Sally Colson Cline accepted the challenge and signed up for it. Unfortunately, she hasn’t gotten a call yet.

After their breakup, Lucas Wall had brunch with Justin. “I’m trying to see if I’m in the emotional mindset to maintain a friendship with him,” says Lucas. “We just caught up. There are still some things I think I want to talk about to gain more closure on the relationship. I didn’t bring them up because I thought it would be awkward. I didn’t want to dive right into that. When we broke up, we did talk about trying to stay friends. I think in theory it’s a good idea. We’ll see if it really works.”

A few months ago, Jenn Heilman met a guy through speed dating. “After speed dating, he said we should get together, but then he never followed through,” says Jenn. “The he found me on Match.com. I was trying to give him the benefit of the doubt. I thought maybe he’d gotten busy. We talked about getting together, and then I didn’t hear from him until after we were supposed to meet up. Then he was very indecisive about where and when to do something. I don’t like that, especially when he’s the one who suggested we get together. I took the reigns, and he suggested Saturday. I told him I was free after five and that we could meet in Dupont. I never heard from him. I don’t know what his problem is. I got an e-mail from him, and he apologized for being a flake. I think he knew he had screwed up, but I was impressed he did write.”