Apparently I wasn't his cup of hot chocolate

My first face-to-face meeting this go-around was actually with the last guy to respond to my first CL ad. I'm quickly learning that everyone has their own ideas about how this process should look. There are guys who respond to ads with long, thoughtful e-mails who never seem to move past that step; there are guys who want to spend some time in the give-and-take phase, using e-mail or phone conversations before ever meeting; and there are the guys who'd rather minimize the conversation at the front end just get to meeting you already.

This guy is in the final category. Short and sweet messages were the norm from "Math Geek":

Hi there, I'm not exactly sure if we would be a good match but I thought to try anyway. I posted my own ad with a couple of pictures. Let me know if you're interested :)

So, rule-follower that I am, I knew I had to respond. I followed the link to his ad to learn that he
1) used to be in the Navy,
2) is working on his masters degree in mathematics, and
3) he thinks he's handsome (photos confirm that he's a pretty good looking guy).

I think - "Hey! We have something in common - I have a degree in math." He calls himself smart but not a bookworm. Me too! I know my ad isn't perfect, but what the heck makes him wonder if we're a good match or not? I mean, really! Who wouldn't think I'm a great catch? Ahem.

So I respond and asked what it is that makes him unsure.

It wasn't that I seemed unsure by what you had written, but you didn't have a picture attached with your ad so I was leaving that question up to you. Do you have a picture?

Oh right. He wants to know what I look like. Of course. That's reasonable. I send him a photo. He says I seem cute and asks me to call or text him. But I don't actually know his name, and there's something about calling someone who's name I don't know that doesn't set well with me. Call it a quirk, but it's just not going to happen. I tell him that and give him my number. He texts within hours. And we make plans to meet within the hour. Whew! That was quick!

It's an easy meet - we're going to have coffee/tea/hot chocolate at the bookstore midway between our homes. (Or ... midway between the general areas where we've told each other we live.)

Short and sweet. We say hello. We order drinks (I get chai; he gets hot chocolate because he gave up coffee for tea, then tea for hot chocolate). We sit down. I start the conversation. I ask him about school. I ask about his research (it's math - I know math; I could follow him if he wanted to share. He doesn't.) 10 minutes later, he asks me what my plans are for the rest of the day. I don't really have any and ask his. He's headed to Target to buy Drano for his clogged sink. Apparently, he's doing that right now. As in, immediately. He stands, limply shakes my hand, and tells me it was nice to meet me.

Fastest date in the world! And it's cool, since I wasn't really feeling him either - and maybe you really can know something like that in 10 minutes. But sheesh! Let me get through more than half of my drink, why don't you? And I know I didn't say anything offensive because I hardly said anything at all. Oh well. One down. How many to go?