Date Lab: With a side of ‘Gangnam Style’

About the daters ...

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(Courtesy of the daters/ ) -

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Brag a little ...

Jose: I have a positive look at life, love kids, and I do enjoy dancing salsa and merengue dancing.

Amanda: Fun, not materialistic, very outgoing, interested in helping my partner have a good time and grow to be his best person. I am also good at balancing my life. So while I work full time and am in school part time, all of my friends say I do the most of any person they know: volunteer in my community, serve on student government and throw great barbecues.

Your type ...

Jose: Brunette or blonde small/petite girl who does not take life too seriously and has a great smile.

Amanda: Physically: Thinner to cut, but not huge. A little hipster, or trendy. Emotionally: Talk about feelings and aspirations. Goals: They should be somewhat altruistic or based on a sense of calling.

Your idea of funny ...

Jose: I find most Will Ferrell and Adam Sandler movies funny. Basically, non-sophisticated funny.

Amanda: Laugh at themselves. Do silly things in public, like play tag.

Interests to share ...

Jose: Likes to go out and see movies, loves to dance, enjoys being around kids, can be a kid at heart, likes sports and is close to her family.

Amanda: Biking, yoga, economic justice, optimism, travel to Latin America.

About the date ...

7:30 p.m., Eventide, Clarendon

Amanda: I got the name of where we were eating, and I was like [unenthusiastically], “Oh, okay cool.” I’m not really a Clarendon person. I saw the guy’s name was Jose, and I was like, “Yeah, he’s Latino!” I like Spanish, and I like Latino culture a lot. I was biking up the street from where I work and got [to the restaurant] just two minutes late.

Jose:The hostess came over and told me Amanda was here. When we first met, she said, “Hola” in Spanish, and I said, “Hi, how are you?” I’ll admit, she wouldn’t be the girl who would catch my eye.

Amanda:He was, you know, well-dressed, but ... I was like, [lukewarm] Yeah, maybe. He’s not [physically my type], but it would have been surmountable if our personalities had got along.

Jose: I think I was caught off guard when she spoke to me in Spanish. She was like, “Oh, I just came back [from Central America], so I’m still stuck on speaking Spanish.” Throughout the night she’d speak Spanish here and there, and I’d answer back in Spanish, but I normally talk in English to my friends and everyone. Where I teach is actually a Spanish immersion school, so I told her a little bit about that. She actually taught some English when she was traveling.

Amanda:It’s awesome that [he’s] into teaching.He’s dedicated to it. I couldn’t handle it; it’s a very tough job.He seems to be really motivated by working with kids and having his kids at school be successful. His goals and stuff are pretty cool; [Date Lab] didn’t match me up with someone who’s all about money or power, so they did a good job with that.

Jose:She loves to travel, and I have been traveling recently. But when I heard about hers, I was like, Whoa, she’s been all over the place. When I travel, basically it’s major cities and stuff, but she definitely goes outside the grid and has a ton of stories to share about it.