by Doug Radunich

STAFF WRITER

Everyone knows that being set up on a blind date or blind double-date can end up being a great experience -- perhaps even leading to a long-lasting relationship.

However, if you've had some of the experiences I've had, you know that there are those exceptions out there. In my case, it seems like when my married friends are trying to find someone for me, they don't really pay attention to things like the current dating status or emotional standing of the other person. They just figure, "Hey, if he's single and she's single, why shouldn't they get along?"

Unfortunately, it doesn't always work that way. Not to sound like a total pessimist, but some of the experiences I've had recently have made me figure that blind dates work out about as often as you hit a jackpot in Wendover.

The most recent setup was on a Friday night last month, and it was with the cousin of my friend's wife. I had been assured that this girl didn't have many friends and was looking for someone to go places with on Friday and Saturday nights. We met at my friend's apartment, ordered a pizza, played that crowd-pleasing electronic category game "Catch Phrase," and watched episodes of our favorite show "The Office" on DVD.

Me and my potential girlfriend seemed to hit it off great, and she acted like she was more than willing to give me her phone number at the end of the night. She also mentioned that I could call her anytime, and that we should definitely hang out again. My friend's wife also assured me that "she seemed really into me."

However, I called this girl the following Monday and left a message, and she never called me back. I asked my friend what was up on Thursday, and he said he had "some good news and some bad news." We all know what that means. He said the bad news was that she told him she was already seriously dating a guy through Facebook (an online social networking site, your kids would know), though this guy lived in Ohio and she had never met him face to face.

How can you "seriously" date someone you've never met in person? I guess she just never told my friend or his wife because they seemed so excited about setting the two of us up. I asked my friend what the "good news" was. He replied, "She did say that she really, really likes you."

Great, I thought. Apparently she didn't like me enough to pick me over a guy she'd never really met 2,000 miles away.

I have plenty more blind-date horror stories going way back, but writing about all of them would take up this entire paper. Looking back, I think if people are going to set you up on a date, they should at least do their research on the person and find out if they're already dating someone, if they're even willing to meet a potential dating partner, or if they're just plain nuts. Plus, it would be nice if friends told the honest truth about how their friend feels about you after the blind date, instead to having to lie to avoid hurting any feelings.

Sure, more blind dates with disastrous consequences may still be in my future, but I guess once you find the right person through it, you'll be more than happy that the previous setups didn't work out.

dougrad@tooeletranscript.com