Train Spotting....

So, one issue I have about having a blog is I have a horrible memory.  I so easily and readily forget the nuances that I would love to convey to you all about all of the things I post, particularly about dating.  However,  I think sitting there with a notepad and pen would just be in bad form...however, I shall try my best.I had a date last night with the young lady I have dubbed "The Actress". You may recall her as the young lady who mentioned that all of her long term relationships have been with women.We agreed to meet downtown, and I was early!  She was a few moments late, but no big deal. She is a few years older than me, Egyptian, with the awesomest hair.  Was born in Saudi Arabia, but moved to the states at a young age.  She has lived in a variety of cities/states, and was raised Muslim, although she is no longer a practicing Muslim and identifies as non-religious.  Also a dog owner. She definitely struck me as a reformed wild child.  Spent a large segment of her life primarily dating women, but then began dating men.We agreed to meet downtown.  The moment I saw her, I was immediately taken by her hair.  It was jet black, and super curly , with blue highlights.  We had agreed to get tea and chat.  We also said that if that went well, we'd do dinner, and if not, we'd simply part ways. I will say that later on, I did ask her if I could touch her hair.  It was bouncy and soft.  Ahh....So we headed to Argo tea. She'd never been, so I talked her thought all the options.Argo tea is my date spot.  Way better than Starbucks...since I don't drink coffee.  I'll do Starbucks, but yeah, I love Argo tea.  It has a great atmosphere that's easy for talking and such.  After getting our drinks, we grabbed a table in the back, and dove into conversation.Conversation came easy.  She was very easy to talk with, and we talked over a myriad of topics.  That is a big plus in my book.  We talked our travels, our jobs, past relationships, and we talked at length about what it was like growing up as a female in a Muslim household, which is something I find interesting.So, after maybe about an hour or so at Argo, she said 'Would you like to get some food?"  and I said "Absolutely!"So, next we wandered a bit, trying to figure out what to do for dinner.  I was kind of at a loss when I saw "Protein Bar", which is one of my favorite healthy eateries.  I asked her how she felt about trying it, and she said "I love Protein Bar...let's do it!"  As we were approaching Protein Bar, we actually ran into one of my Jiu Jitsu training partners.  We exchanged quick hellos (it was windy and cold) and we headed in.Protein Bar was about 10 minutes from closing, so we ordered up salads and smoothies to go.  So, from there, we were faced with a very fundamental question:  Where were we going to eat our food?It was both cold and windy, and it felt like the temperature was steadily dropping.  So we walked as we continued chatting.  After a few blocks, I said "There's a 24 hour Dunkin Donuts a few blocks away.  We'll buy 2 donuts, and eat our salads"  and she was totally game.  However, on the way to Dunkin, we came across an underground Metra station, and I had a stroke of genius.  I remembered there being tables and chairs in the station.And I remembered wrong!!!There were chairs, but no tables.  Hmm...I then said "Hey!  Ogilvie Station has a food court with tables and chairs...how late does it stay open??"  So, we googled, and found that we had more than enough time to utilize the facilities at Ogilvie Transportation Station.  Due to the cold weather, we hopped a cab, and was at Ogilvie in a few minutes.So we ventured inside, to a nice warm food court full of open businesses and people.  We sat, and ate our salads, while talking about our relationship "deal breakers".  We probably sat and talked for another 90 minutes or so, which was good, and fun.So, as it was getting late, we decided to call it a wrap.  I walked her to the Taxi Cab bank, where we exchanged a hug, and agreed that we should get together again.Well, it was a positive date.  I enjoyed the company.  She is definitely an engaging character, and I feel like someone who rivals me in life experience.  I'm assuming that there will be a date #2, and we will have to see how it goes.