When dating TMF earlier this year, it became obvious that my “desert survivalist/exercise enthusiast” wardrobe wasn’t going to cut it.
On our 3rd date – dinner at a sushi restaurant – I felt like a complete schmuck when I showed up wearing a fleece with jeans and Merrell boots, while she was dressed to kill in all black, with pearls and full makeup. She looked beautiful and glamorous. I looked like I was ready to go hiking.
So I upgraded my wardrobe.
I bought 2 pairs of dark washed jeans, a black sport coat, two button down dress shirts, a lightweight sweater, a dressy henley shirt, black dress shoes and some decent socks.
Now when I go on dates, I can dress to kill.
Coincidentally, as I completed my new mini-wardrobe, I stopped having dates.
Part of this is because I’ve become more discriminating. I’ve limited my online dating pool to women who live within 10 miles. By doing this, I’ve eliminated every decent sized city and town that borders Raleigh. This severely reduced my candidate pool from several a day to one or two a week.
Having being duped twice in one weekend by “fake photos“, I now take a more careful look when reviewing profile photos. There’s no point in going on a date with someone who I won’t be attracted to. That’s eliminated at least 50% of the people I would have matched with.
Lastly, I’ve decided that if a women I’m texting with becomes unresponsive or doesn’t respond when I suggest meeting, I will ask a second time for a date and then unmatched if she doesn’t respond within a few days. I’m not chasing anyone who isn’t interested in dating me.
I’m keeping my eye open for real life opportunities to meet women offline.
- I finally met my 4:30 AM girlfriend this week, but learned she was married, so she’s out.
- There’s a woman I see at the pool occasionally who seems cute and definitely meets my criteria for fitness and body type. I’ll probably ask her out the next time I see her.
- On my dog walks, I haven’t run into any potential dates, but I keep looking.
I have this idea that I may start hanging out at the local coffee shop occasionally to see if I can met anyone. But I’m waiting for the weather to be warm enough that I can sit outside, draw and enjoy the weather while I’m there. Right now, it’s still a bit too chilly most days, windy and/or raining.
All that said, I’m actually pleased to have upgraded my wardrobe a bit. My clothes all fit me well. I look good in them and I’m ready for any occasion now.
