Danny: We talked about bands or musical artists that are guilty pleasures. Her guilty pleasure was Steely Dan; I guess I associate that more with middle-age men who drive Mazda Miatas. It was fun.
Alisha: I guess, for me, the conversation flowed so well from minute one. At no point was it ever awkward or boring. I would definitely say that there was decent chemistry.
Danny: She was very friendly and really easy to talk to. That’s kind of a rare trait. When you find something like that, of course you should definitely pursue it further. It was hard to gauge the chemistry, [because] she was [sitting] pretty far away from me. Also the debate was going on, and they were playing really loud techno music. I felt like I was in a laser tag arena. It was weird sitting there having pretty intense conversation and then you have Mitt Romney [and] techno music in the background.
Alisha: After we finished up dinner, I think we had an hour and a half until we needed to catch the Metro in our respective directions. So we left the restaurant and wandered down the street to Rocket Bar and played shuffleboard. At that point I think there was more flirtatious chemistry.
Danny: Getting out from behind a table into a more active environment where it feels more comfortable and casual, it was more conducive to flirting. It felt a lot more like a date after that. Then I realized it was just about midnight, and we both had to go catch the Metro. I was getting her number when the train came, so she just gave me her business card real quick. We had a kiss goodnight.
Alisha: A goodnight kiss kind of happened. I don’t think I had expectations [for a kiss], but it felt natural and nice.
Danny:It’s kind of hard to tell how much potential there is for the future just after one date. And another problem is that I’m going abroad [to Thailand]. Tomorrow. It’s just for a month, month and a half. [Break for Date Lab editor to weep silently.]
I’d say [I travel for work] maybe half the year. I felt a little guilty accepting the Date Lab offer. But I’ve had this job for a while now. You can’t let yourself feel guilty for going on dates; you’re human, you have every right to date as everyone else does. It just makes it harder when you’re coming and going from D.C.
Alisha: We joked early on in the date as we were talking about work and travel that [Date Lab] might have been successful in matching up two people who, if they were dating, might never actually see each other! I travel a fair bit, every other month or so. Usually my trips are two or three weeks, so it’s not that bad.
Danny: I’d say [the date] was a 4 [out of 5]. I think we’ll stay in touch. [If I weren’t going away], we’d definitely go on a second date.
Alisha: It was definitely a solid date, a 4.5. It was really good. We’re definitely not going to get together anytime soon. But we hope to be in touch after that and maybe get together when he gets back.
UPDATE: Alisha reached us a few days later: “Danny and I have exchanged a few e-mails since our date and agreed to get together when he’s back in the country in December. ... I know you guys love a good follow-up date plan. ;)” You bet we do. [Break for Date Lab editor to do a happy dance.]
So NOT the D.C. type?
Goth girls, Comic-Con nerds and anyone who wouldn’t be caught dead on the Hill: E-mail datelab@washpost.com.
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