From the original article on July 19, 2007. Author: Chateau Heartiste.
First dates should almost always be simple affairs over drinks or tea. No dinners, no nights out on the town, no extravagant expenditures. You want to keep expectations at bay and create a comfortable zone of unzipped-lipped, nimble-tongued, playful jive. The two of you are reading each other like schematics to the bank vault and external logistics only gets in the way of those lingering looks and wily wordplay.
Second dates open up to more creative interpretation. If the first date has gone well, (but not so well that you closed the deal), the second date should amp the attraction with a mix of venues and locations that help build a foundation of shared experiences. You want to be in motion with her; give your bodies more room for expression and your senses more opportunities for stimulation. With that in mind, here are my reviews of some common Date 2 locations in DC.
Cheesy, trite, and very effective. You don’t have to blow away your date with originality if the ambience is perfect as is. And the Lincoln Memorial, on the steps at midnight under a summer moon, shrouded in the glow of the reflecting pool, sets an unbeatable mood for encouraging closeness. After the early night drinks, surprise her with a car trip to the Lincoln. There’s plenty of parking nearby late at night.
Unless your date can do triple sow cows and the Blades of Glory “crotch scissors”, skating with her means you’ll have plenty of chances to demonstrate your male protector role by holding her when she stumbles or letting her grab onto your arm for support as she struggles to find her balance. The crowd will always work in your favor; whether the rink is filled with canoodling couples that enhance the romantic mood or kids skating recklessly around you that provide an energetic boost and lots of humorous material, you can’t go wrong here. In the summer, there is an outdoor jazz festival at the sculpture garden. Drinks at the patio bar are overpriced.
Playing pool with her means lots of good-natured teasing. Plus, most girls are not good at pool and will need you to show them how to properly hold the stick and shoot. You can only do this from behind. That is intimate body contact on the sly. The best places are small basement-level pool halls that double as dive bars. Bedrock Billiards and Kokopoolis come to mind. Stay away from auditorium sized pool halls, as they are too impersonal. Also, don’t bother with tiny bars that have only one pool table — what usually winds up happening is that other guys wait around to play next and you and your date get jostled all night by drunks trying to navigate the tight spaces between the table and the walls. Cautionary note: If your date is a shark (there seem to be an inordinate amount of DC girls who know how to shoot stick) then be sure not to let the ego-bruising show. Just tell her you let her win this time.
If your date is one of those freaky chicks you picked up at DC9, take her to this sex toy shop on Conn Ave in Dupont. Pretend to be walking down the street to a different location when you two just happened upon this dirty little place and oh, wow, wouldn’t it be cool to see what kinds of creepy things they sell in here! Once inside, act like you never saw this stuff before. [Examining glow in the dark clit tickler] “What the heck is this? Do you stir pasta with it??” Don’t loiter, it’ll start to seem skeevy. If she was really into it, take her across the street to the gay Lambda bookstore next to Kramerbooks for a good laugh. While browsing the educational material, ask her, “Do lesbians really do this?” This will smoke her out as a possible bisexual. Tailor your game accordingly.
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