Published November 20, 2003, in issue #0246 of The Hook

BY COURTENEY STUART

The Background

Jeremy's a 26-year-old studying to get his teacher's certification. Live music, road trips, and eating out top his list of favorite activities, and his expectations of another person are pretty straight-forward: In addition to someone with drive and a sense of humor, Jeremy said he needs someone who's not fixated on height-- he's 5'3" and reports that some women have ruled him out before they've even met him.

Chloe, a 26-year-old fourth-year med student of Asian/Filipino/Spanish descent, is not one of those women. After hearing Jeremy's description, she was enthusiastic. "I've dated guys that height before," she said, "and I actually prefer it." Because she's 5'2", she says, things like dancing tend to work better with someone not too tall.

The real question: Will they see eye to eye on romance?

The Date

Who can forget Josh and Emily (later unmasked as Joy and Trevor)? After their Blind Date Challenge back in 2002 at Glaze 'n' Blaze, the date continued-- and, actually, continues still: They married about four months later. Can magic strike twice? We call it the Ghost effect (though, of course, there are no pottery wheels at Glaze 'n' Blaze), and Matchmaker had to find out. Jeremy and Chloe met for a late afternoon date at Glaze 'n' Blaze and then headed to Sheben in the Vinegar Hill Shopping Center for a fine South African dinner.

Jeremy: I was the second to arrive. I walked into Glaze 'n' Blaze about 4:35pm, and Chloe had been there for about 15 minutes.

Chloe: I sat, crossed and uncrossed my legs, twiddled my thumbs. Then, I looked for a mug I could paint. I checked my watch again. He was 10 minutes late, but this didn't bother me. I figured if he didn't show up, I could still paint a pretty mug for myself. The artist/supervisor at Glaze 'n' Blaze suggested I wait a few more minutes, but I wanted to go ahead and start painting.

Were you nervous?

Jeremy: Yeah, kinda.

Chloe: No. I had paint, my mug, and a free night. I haven't had a free night in a long time.

Did you find your date physically attractive?

Jeremy: I thought she was very attractive. I felt that she had a sophisticated elegance. When I walked into Glaze 'n' Blaze, she immediately introduced herself, and I was impressed by her confidence. But she was also very easygoing. This continued through the night.

Chloe: Unfortunately, no. But he's a very kind person. You can tell from his soft eyes and quiet demeanor. He also has a friendly, easy smile.

Anything else about the first impression?

Jeremy: I liked her style. It was formal without being overly formal. She was wearing a denim shirt with a black and brown dress with gold print all over the dress, and brown shoes. She had on a simple but nice necklace with blue stones, and a jacket with what appeared to be an eastern design on the back.

Chloe: He seemed very nervous, and when most people are nervous, they are less like themselves and more how they think you want them to be. I wasn't sure if the person I was meeting was really who he was.

So what did you paint?

Jeremy: I painted a coffee mug with primarily blue, green, and yellow overlapping each other. She painted on a latté mug using a red wine and a baby-blue color. It looked neater than mine. Chloe mentioned that the colors on the mug were the colors she wanted in a future home. She also realized toward the end of her painting that they were the colors of the blankets in the nursery at UVA hospital.

Chloe: I realized after finishing my project that the colors I picked-- wine red and sky blue-- were the same colors I see every day at the hospital, on the blankets in which we swaddle the babies. Yet, I think I was the only one who found this strangely funny. My sense of humor is kind of twisted, though.

Now to Sheben...

Jeremy: I had the shepherd's pie. It was pretty good, better than shepherd's pie that I had had in the past. We shared some bread pudding. I definitely liked the bread pudding. The waitress was really nice, and she checked on us enough without being too overbearing.

Chloe: I was driving that night, and it was pouring rain, so I opted not to drink. So I'm a prude. But if I drink even half a beer, I get the "Asian glow." My face turns classic beet red. I had their spicy skewered shrimp with mashed potatoes and vegetables. By the way, the shrimp is very spicy. The service was courteous, complete. Excellent.

How about the conversation?

Jeremy: We mostly talked about her time in medical school and about our interests in writing and reading. I think she was worried that she was boring me with her stories about medical school, but I found her conversation to be interesting.

Chloe: I felt as though the flow was stilted. He was very quiet, which is how he usually is. He told me this and even apologized for it. I found that I was using my job interviewing skills a lot. At one point, I was tired of small talk, so I sat quietly with him. That was fine, too.

Did you have a lot in common?

Jeremy: Well, we both like to travel, although she's been to Europe, and I'd like to go to Europe. We both like Southern literature, and we both like to write. She likes to write poetry, and I like to write short or creative fiction. We both have family that we're very close to, and we were both raised in a Catholic household. We both have loyal dogs that are of German Shepherd descent. We both also liked Inspector Gadget as kids.

Chloe: Yes. We both majored in English in college, and we both have dogs. My dog is a German Shepherd named Brain, and his dog is a German Shepherd-Retriever mix named Ziggy. We must have talked about dogs for at least a half hour. We just adore them.

Anything particularly impressive or interesting about your date?

Jeremy: I was really fascinated when she was talking about the Louvre in Paris. Makes me want to go there even more.

Chloe: He told about driving down the coast of southern California with a girl recently. Their car was a stick-shift, which he didn't know how to drive, so the girl had to drive the whole eight-hour trip. He felt bad, but he made up for it by massaging her feet. And no, he did not massage my feet that night, and I didn't expect him to; I just thought that was a pleasant story, and that more people should massage their partner's feet.

How did it end?

Jeremy: We exchanged pleasantries, shook hands, and ran out to our respective cars in the rain. I did mention to her that I'd be interested in hanging out with her in the future, so she gave me her number.

Chloe: We shook hands and made plans to meet again, but with my schedule, who knows. I'm not being elusive. My friends can attest to my disappearing acts, whether due to work or... work. I explained to him about my frenzied job interview schedule for the next three months, and, fortunately, he was very kind and understood this.

Did you have fun?

Jeremy: Even though I was nervous, yeah, I had a good time. It's always nice to get out and meet new people.

Chloe: Sure.

Would you go out again?

Jeremy: Hopefully so. I guess we'll have to see.

Chloe: I'm not sure.

How would you rate the date?

Jeremy: I would give it an 8-9. The only reason it didn't get a 10 is because I should have been more relaxed, but you live and learn, right?

Chloe: 6

Okay, so it doesn't sound like wedding bells will chime for a second time, but hey, you can't win 'em all! Plus, if Chloe and Jeremy get together to try out their new mugs, who knows the Ghost effect might yet take hold!

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PHOTO BY JEN FARIELLO

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