Date Night

It’s TUESDAY!! And that means Date Night. Date Night is something that is sacrosanct in our house. It’s how I have lasted years through CFA studying, and years in a relationship in general with someone who works upwards of 70 hours/week. Every Tuesday, there is a recurring event in my google calendar, (shared with my fiancé), “Chris and Emily Date Night.”

Why Tuesday? To be honest, date night started at the very beginning of our relationship. Girls love to create their own rules to make sure they don’t seem too “available” or “easy.” My self-designated way of doing that? I told him I was only free on Tuesdays! It made me seem unattainable and super busy, it meant no sleepovers (duh I had work the next day), and it was a great way to get through the week. Both of us had busy schedules, I was teaching 3 classes/week at the gym and he was working 90 hours/week at the time. It was important to set aside time to see each other. Slowly, it became a tradition. Nowadays, if I have something else I need to do on a Tuesday, I ask in advance if we can switch date night to another night of the week. I love that it ensures that we see each other or make dedicated time for each other at least once.

When we moved in together, I didn’t think date night would be necessary anymore, but I was wrong. Even if we fall out of the habit for a few weeks because of work travel or other things, we can always feel the distance start to come between us. I guess that’s what living in New York means, everyone is so busy!

I know what you’re thinking… every week??? Don’t you run out of things to do? Isn’t it expensive?? No, and sometimes.

When we first started dating, I used to complain that Chris’s only date ideas were going out to dinner. Not that I don’t like dinner, hello, I LOVE food, but I like doing activities. A long time ago, I sent him a list of possible ideas. Now, I have a running list of date ideas in my Bullet Journal. Some still involve dinner, but at cool spots, like a Liberian restaurant, or a Japanese place that has a prix fixe menu set to old-school vinyl. And some involve actual activities like mini golf, bowling, pottery, and holiday markets.

Some of them are relatively cheap or free, like walking around a new neighborhood, and some of them are pricier, like seeing a Broadway show. And about half the time, they don’t involve going anywhere at all! One of my favorite date nights involves cooking dinner at home, watching Netflix (we STILL haven’t finished The Wire), and maybe walking across the street for ice cream after. The purpose of date night isn’t to spend money or explore new places (although the latter is a cool perk), it’s to spend time with each other and not get lost in the hustle and bustle of New York. It gives us a designated day of the week where I promise not to teach at the gym or go out with friends, and Chris promises to try and get home from work at a normal hour.

Most recently, we went to Dave & Busters. Taking the subway and the getting out at Times Square, especially amidst the Corona situation, is not usually something I would volunteer to do. The food was sub-par and the table was a little dirty when we got there. But the drinks were half off until 7:30 (helloooo $6 watermelon margarita!) and the quality time together was so much fun! We spent an hour after we ate just playing air hockey, ring toss, skeeball, corn hole, and various other games. I think we got a LOT of tickets, but it’s all virtual on the cards now, so I can’t be sure. We had so many credits left on our play cards, that we decided we’d need to go back another time and cash out on our winnings, then.

I always think of myself as a trendsetter, but Date Night has definitely caught on with some of our friends. I recently found out that two close friends of Chris’s have take the idea themselves, and they designated Wednesdays as date night. Having a weekday date night makes it low pressure (no need for an all-night Saturday marathon date) and it’s also easier to make reservations or get tickets to things. I hope to combine some of my “Date Night Ideas” with my “New York Bucket List” items soon, like going to the Guggenheim or seeing Alvin Ailey. Good thing there are 52 Tuesdays per year!

Do you have any awesome date ideas? Leave them below in the comments!

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OKCupid First Date-iversary

Today is my 2-year anniversary. Scratch that, my boyfriend thinks that today is our 2-year anniversary. If you ask me, it isn’t until August 1. But we can both agree that today is the 2-year anniversary of our first date. It’s in my Google calendar, which is shared with his Google calendar, and therefore, it is true.

It’s our anniversary of our first date, which also means it’s the anniversary of me meeting him since we met on OkCupid. That also means that before 2 years ago today, I had no idea that he existed. Maybe I knew a little bit through a few messages, but of course that doesn’t mean that he was who he said he was. Nev, Max, and way too many seasons of Catfish have taught us that.

On the night of our first date, I almost stood him up. Too much time watching Catfish, I guess. And To Catch a Predator. Damn you, Chris Hansen. But honestly, there are so many things that can go wrong on a first online date. You’ve never met the guy, you don’t know any of his friends to vouch for him, and you probably haven’t been able to stalk him too much online with very little information. (JK I knew this guy’s entire family tree before going out on a date with him… but I’m a pro). Anyway, point is, it’s a crap-shoot.

I was on OkCupid for 5 whole years before I met my 😊-boyfriend, which provided me with a lot of blog material. My bf won’t let me talk about him on here, and he won’t let me show his face, but he didn’t say I couldn’t talk about how I felt about him! For today, as a celebration of our anniversary/first-date-iversary, I am going to share with you a recounting of the moments on OkCupid leading up to our first date in stream of consciousness, since I was lucky enough to say “f*ck it,” and I met up with my ❤ two years ago today:

  • New message. And this one says more than “hey.”
  • *quick scan* Nothing sexually explicit, I’ll read on.
  • OMG he mentioned that I am a law student, did he actually read my profile? This might be good.
  • Sh*t what does my profile actually say? I better re-read that.
  • HAHA I’m funny. Ok, no wonder he messaged me.
  • Hmmm ok so my profile is a little bit out of date, I graduated law school two years ago. Should I tell him?
  • I guess I should at least write this guy back. He did read my profile.
  • We have written each other four times now. Maybe he just wants a pen pal?
  • I don’t have time for a freaking pen pal. I’m 28! Eff this guy.
  • But maybe I should take screen shots of his profile just in case. Then I can show my friends what he looks like without him knowing I go on his page every day.
  • He wrote me again! How many messages are we going to write??
  • He seems really nice. Should I ask him out? LOL jk def not. He’s probably a serial killer.
  • Yassss he asked me for my number.
  • Damnit but now I have to wait around and see if he texts me.
  • He’s probably not a serial killer. Unless he is…
  • Hold on, I never told him my name!!
  • Is he going to call me LawyerWithLegs if we meet IRL?
  • Ok, I usually don’t double-message but I should probably tell him my name before we meet.
  • He texted me! He sounded semi-normal.
  • He asked me out for this week. Crap. I’m busy every single day this week. I should have realized that before.
  • Wait, why isn’t HE busy every single day? This is NYC! Is he a loser?
  • I’m free Friday… but do I really want to waste a Friday night hanging out with some rando I’ve never met?
  • Alright fine. My dad asked me 3 years ago if I froze my eggs. I should probably try and date.
  • He’s free Friday. Hmmm, no grammar errors. That would have been an easy excuse for me to cancel.
  • Why is the subway 3 blocks from my apartment?? And why did I agree to go on a date in June?
  • Good thing I just spent 2 hours getting ready, I’m covered in sweat.
  • Ok I only spent 30 minutes getting ready. BUT STILL.
  • Why did I wear a dress with no back? I bet you can see the little droplets of sweat…
  • 1 block til the subway. I should have brought extra deodorant. No wonder I’m single.
  • Let me scroll through screen shots of his profile to brush up on conversation topics.
  • OMG I have nothing in common with this guy.
  • Should I text my friends for after-crash-and-burn-date-plans?
  • Hopefully we order drinks ASAP.
  • Thank goodness for those 3 glasses of wine I had while getting ready.
  • Maybe that’s why I’m so hot. Nvm I’m hot because it’s JUNE. I don’t date in June. This is against my cardinal rules.
  • I wonder if he online-stalked me. Good thing I’ve got my privacy settings on LOCK.
  • Obvi I online-stalked him. He doesn’t even have a Facebook. This is going to be bad. Really bad.
  • Did I remember to tell him I wasn’t a law student? OY VEY.
  • Oh well, here goes nothing. At the very least, it will make for some great Facebook statuses.

And the rest is history! Happy Anniversary to my best friend with the emoji face (see below for some punny photos). He told me he is weeks behind on my blog, even though I only post 1-2 times a week! Maybe he will see this by the end of Year #3. I’m glad I didn’t stand you up, I’m glad I double-messaged you my name, I’m glad you still met up with me even after learning I quit the practice of law (turns out I did tell him), and I’m glad you sat through an entire dinner with me without mentioning how sweaty I was when I showed up. xoxo

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