A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Olive Garden … or a Quick Satirical Synopsis of a Blind Date

Every now and then my name crops up on one or more of the dating sites that I used to belong to and I receive correspondence asking if we can chat, go out for coffee, or…  Here is a quick tale from last night:

Brian and I had been corresponding for several weeks; talked a few times on the phone and he asked me to join him for dinner at the “Olive Garden”. Since my student was going out for dinner, I agreed to meet him and asked him what he would be wearing. He told me he would have on a western shirt and Levi’s. We agreed to meet at 6:00pm.

As I pulled into the parking lot, a Ford 150 truck pulled in across from me and a man wearing a western shirt and Levi’s got out and headed to the restaurant. I yelled, “Brian” – and he turned around but did not stop. I figured he thought he heard his name; didn’t see me, and continued on his way.

When I entered the restaurant the three hostesses told me that they had just seated my partner and he was waiting for me. I told them it was a blind date and I didn’t know what he looked like, so one of the hostesses said she would take me to his table, which she did. She pointed him out to me and left.

I went up to the table, put out my hand, and said, “Hi, I am Judi.” He shook my hand – and then shook his head. “I don’t know any Judi,” he said. I said, “Are you Brian?” He said “no”. But…he invited me to sit down with him since it was a blind date and I didn’t know for sure whom I was going to meet. (In after-thought, I wondered if he thought I was an over-age hooker.) I thanked him; declined his offer, and went back to the three hostesses, whom I left rolling on the floor with laughter.

What are the chances that two men, alone, wearing the same garb, would walk into a restaurant at the same time? Oh well! It gave me a chuckle and the hostesses will probably get more information from their patrons when they say they are “waiting for someone!”