Blind Date: Melissa and Neenah find common ground

Neenah, 31, says:

The whole lead-up, I was just so excited. I had zero expectations as opposed to a regular date where you’ve probably been talking for a while and naturally have an idea/expectation for how it will go — there was none of that. I arrived first and sat down. When my date arrived I was like “oh my, she’s really beautiful and tall” I felt bad being such a shorty but I don’t think she minded at all. I gave her a big cuddle then we both sat down and started chatting. I was really happy to be matched with a woman — we both were actually!

I had to laugh because we were basically dressed the same. I joked that she had copied my style because this is how I always dress.

We got along so well and we had so much in common. We both have kids and we spoke at length about how hard it is dating as single mums. We’ve both been single for a long time, so it was nice to have that in common as well.

There was nothing awkward about the date at all. We were chatting non-stop from start to finish. We didn’t even look at the time until about 9.30pm! Everything was perfect, the food, the drinks, the staff — everyone made us so comfortable.

Once we finished up at Double Rainbow, we decided to carry on. We went to The Court for another drink and continued chatting there. When the date was ending, we exchanged numbers and have been talking since which is awesome.

I haven’t really gone on a proper date with a woman before so this was perfect. It was such an awesome opportunity and I am so pleasantly surprised.

I’ll go through phases with the apps where I think to myself that I am ready to get out there and meet someone. I’ll use the app for a couple of days then remember how much I dislike them and delete it. Online dating can be really hard and time consuming for little return. So, knowing all of this, my co-worker pushed me to apply for blind date — they even helped me fill out the “about me” info.

I just thought, you know, why not? I’ll try something new and I’m really happy I gave it a go!

8/10

Melissa, 28, says:

I was so nervous before the date. I was hoping to get there first but ended up arriving second. I had no idea if I was meeting a man or a woman, so when I saw Neenah, I was like “wow, OK, she is gorgeous!”

I have never been on a blind date before so that really built up the nerves — coupled with the potential of it being a woman because I have never been on a proper date with one before. It was such a relief to know Neenah was in the same boat.

The date went so well. Neenah had a really calming energy. We were just chatting all night. I don’t think it could have gone any better. We had such much in common, both being mothers and both being single for some time now. Being single parents, we appreciate a lot of the same things and understand how hard it can be to juggle everything.

I have found in the past with dating, it can be quite hard aligning if they don’t have children. You can’t just drop everything and go out on a date — it takes planning and patience.

We enjoyed some food and drinks then had our photos taken. By that time, the restaurant was pretty full so people were looking over wondering what we were doing and I was like “oh my God, am I really doing this?”

I don’t think there were any awkward moments during the date at all. I’m a bit of a talker so I naturally fill the space if there is any.

Towards the end of the date, I asked if she wanted to continue on and she agreed so we headed out to another place for a drink and a dance.

When we were ready to go home, I put her in a taxi, we exchanged a numbers and a kiss. She messaged to let me know she got home safe — that was really nice. We’ve messaged since and plan to catch up again.

10/10