Thursday Thirteen - Worst First Date Foods

Time for my second go at a "Thursday Thirteen" countdown. It is a very fun meme that leaves all the creativity up to you!

Last time, I shared my thirteen favorite musical artists. This time, I want to share a list that I have been talking about (and laughing about) for most of my life - the worst foods to eat on a first date. Since I have re-entered the dating world, I have begun to remember many of these foods, as well as their potential date-ruining qualities. By the way, this list applies to men, women, heterosexual or homosexual. I see these as universally prohibited. Feel free to let me know what you think!

1. Tacos - not only do they give you bad breath, but the insides drop all over your shirt
   
2. Spaghetti, Linguini, or any messy pasta
3. A big bowl of Udon Soup - slurping up those noodles could destroy any date
4. Falafel sandwich - there is no way to eat this without it falling apart, and all over yourself.
   
5. Big pieces of maki - small rolls are okay, but anything that requires two bites, or stuffing the whole thing into your mouth, is not recommended.
   
6. Anything cooked in fresh garlic - this will be haunting you all night, and no amount of gum or mints will help.
7. Fresh onions on a sandwich - same as above. However, if both parties partake of the onion, it may indeed cancel itself out.
   
8. Refried beans, black beans, chili, etc. - I don't know about you, but these make me so bloated that I would probably be worried about an embarrassing situation all night.
9. Corn on the cob - between the juicy eating, the dripping down your wrists, the pieces getting stuck in your teeth, and the subsequent tooth-picking, this is just a big no-no.
   
10. Beef ribs- pork ribs, which I no longer eat, are at least a little more manageable. However, beef ribs are ALWAYS messy. They coat your face in BBQ sauce, and even if you cut them up, they still wreak havoc on your face and clothing.
    
11. Ethiopian food - this is so much fun for a later date, but first date? Eating with your hands is probably not a good idea. Plus, there is no way to wash the food out from under your nails for a few days.
    
12. Milkshakes - for those of us who are lactose-intolerant, this would make our tummies too upset to have a good time.
13. Too Much Alcohol - please don't drink too much, do something that you would regret, or lose control. Much better to enjoy the moment with a clear head.
    

Well, what am I missing?

The Joys of JDating - An update on my social life...

Well, it looks like JDate has struck again! You may not know this, but many single Jews have had tremendous luck finding partners on the Jewish dating website, JDate.com. In my four years of the rabbinate, I have already officiated at a number of weddings for couples who met on JDate.

Personally, I have had some interesting successes. The last relationship (which you have heard about before) was a product of a JDate match. And we were together for four years (and I am more than pleased that we are no longer together... but that is another story for another time...)! Not bad, eh?

Well, my steady readers may remember that I had recently decided to re-enter the dating scene. I felt ready to start meeting guys again, if only to start getting my feet wet in the proverbial sea of dating (there are always other fish in said sea). Of course, right after I decided to start dating again, I also decided to aggressively pursue surgery on my back. Thus, the big dating plans didn't really happen.

Well, fast forward to two weeks ago - I met a great, new guy on JDate!! Here I am, actively healing from spinal surgery, and I had a date! Crazy, right? I can't even explain to you why I agreed to it, but I just felt that it was the right thing.

Granted, my grandmother died in the middle of the first date..... That's great first date conversation material right there...

But that is neither here nor there.

We have had three dates so far, each one even better than the last. I might really be getting attached to this one.

Over the next few posts, I will tell you more about him, and share with you some of my fears and concerns over dating again (oy, I don't want to get hurt again).

Wish me luck!!!

So, You Wanna Hear About My Date?? Teehee!

You guys are so great! It means so much to me that you wanna hear about my date :)

It was, in one word.....AWESOME!!

I seriously had no expectations going in. I mean, here I am, dating again after nearly five years. I have very little dating experience as an adult, so I figured, as you know, that it was good just to get out there. Time to start honing my dating skills (small talk, appropriately timed laughter, batting my eyelashes, the gift of my rapt attention...)!

Well, the date was so much easier than that! This guy, we will call him "Q," was such a gentleman. We went out for wine - coincidentally, he chose a place RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET from my synagogue! He has all five boroughs of NYC at his disposal, and he chooses a place right by work... crazy! He is a therapist, a good listener, and has a fascinating history. It felt so comfortable talking to him - as if we had known each other longer than just an hour or two.

Well, we met up at 9:30 pm, and, before we knew it, it was nearly 1am. The time just flew by! We decided it was probably time to get going, so we walked a bit down the street. Ready for the romantic part? He asked if he could kiss me goodnight - wow! It was very sweet; nevertheless, it was admittedly strange kissing someone new after all this time of being with one guy. Do you know what I mean?

Other highlights:
- He said that I have pretty, warm eyes :)
- He was struck by how easy it was to talk to me (I felt the same way!)
- No one from the temple walked by - phew!
- I tried a new kind of wine from South Africa - yummy!
- He wants to see me again - woohoo!!
- He LOVED hearing about my work as a rabbi (that can really scare the guys off...)

Well, even if nothing were to come of this, it was still such a nice feeling. I felt attractive, desirable, and much more confident in myself. What a great leap back into the dating world!!

Wish me luck!!!

Well, folks, you send a message out to the universe, and the universe answers! I have a date tonight! What are the chances??!? In the few days since I posted that I felt "ready" to begin dating again, I met someone online, and we are meeting up for drinks tonight. I don't expect much, considering how out of practice I feel; however, you never know!

I really appreciate all of the kind words of encouragement that you have sent me over the past few days. I will definitely try to be myself... I will be proud of who I am AND what I do... I will be relaxed (oy!), charming (please!), and smiley (teehee!). Wonder if we can fit in a little karaoke on the side :)

I look forward to updating you all later - wish me luck!

A ReAwakening?

Some of you know that I went through a pretty difficult breakup back in December 2006. We had been together for 4 years, and I really thought that "this was it." Turns out - he wasn't really able to handle my rabbi-ness, and I was continually apologizing for keeping him waiting all the time that I was at my job (how cruel of me to have my own life....).... So, the past few months have allowed me to heal, to rebuild my self-image, and to feel more and more proud of who I am. In this process, I have had no interest in dating anyone new.

Anywho, all the sudden, I have felt a change.

Suddenly, I feel ready to embark on the dating road. I'm not entirely sure what that means, but it is exciting to be entertaining the idea of meeting someone new. Yeah, it's quite a scary proposition (oy, the perils of dating), but I am ready to go back out there. I think that I am THAT MUCH more sure of who I am (though self-awareness is always a work-in-progress), and thus, that much more ready to be myself WITH someone else.

Kinda cool, eh?

Any words of wisdom from all of my blog-friends?

(PS - the art above is by Jan Rae)