Date 1: Geeking out over beers

So I had my first OKC date last night with the boy with the classic movie character profile name. (I messaged him to say that he'd inspired me to watch the movie.)

We met up around 7 at a cute little ale house in Brooklyn Heights and ended up geeking out for a couple of hours over film, grad school applications (his), dissertations (mine), academic publishing...all things I try not to trot out on the first date, cause people tend to find that stuff boring. We had the obligatory conversation about how we got to New York, what we think of our respective neighborhoods, and the daily commute. (That seems to be a more standard thing to talk about around here, though I think it's actually way more boring, cause you know, show, don't tell, right?) After 1.5 rounds (we split his second one), I was pretty starving, so we wandered over to a falafel place down the street where he insisted on buying me a falafel. There was talk of going to museums together (he wants to learn more about art) and movies as we stood on a streetcorner. There was an awkward hug, and then we skipped off to our respective subway stops.

So, this is where I admit that I have no idea what I think about this one. On the one hand, movie-character-boy seems super smart in a totally unpretentious way. He admits when he doesn't know a lot about something and shows an interest in my take on things. He's super-courteous, perhaps a little shy even, but not in a way that makes me feel like I have to drive the conversation. He's not exactly super-hot, but not unattractive: thin, glasses, short hair, closely-cropped beard and mustache, and kind of on the young-looking side. If I had to place a bet, I would predict a comb-over in middle age. But that can be cute in a professorial kind of way, right? Anyway, I can't tell if it was first-date shyness, manners, or a lack of chemistry, but there was no flirty joking, spontaneous touching, or anything like that. Now that I think about it, I'm realizing that I really wasn't as playful or silly as I usually am with my friends. I'm really into this kid's brains, but I wonder what he'd be like on the dance floor. I'm kind of looking for both. So, should I give it another go? Perhaps in a more spontaneous atmosphere? I wouldn't want to get stuck in the museum-movie zone with him, unless it were understood that we were just going to be friends/activity partners. But on the other hand, I worry about drawing people out this way and making them think I'm really into them when I'm just being playful and getting a sense of what they're like in different situations. Hmmm...this might take some planning.

*update* Movie-boy just called about going out again on Friday and the movie he suggested is...wait for it...The Man Who Fell to Earth! Okay, I will stop being a judgmental beyotch now. Woohoo!