70 Dates in 70 Days
Indie Girl Tracker
Bye bye Halifax and hello St. John's.
Indie Girl is now in St. John’s, Newfoundland, the last stop on her Cross-Canada Dating Frenzy! Will there be love found at the Screech-In? Will she finally meet her man on The Rock? Read all about it here!
St. John’s Aug. 8 p.m. – When I got back from my afternoon date with the Easy Rider Survivor, me and the Bar Manager exchanged a few texts and then I never heard from him again….not even a “safe travels” text. I guess it’s easy come, easy go on the Rock.
Easy Rider Survivor
St. John’s Aug. 8 – I had one last date that was already set up long before I met the Bar Manager. Canceling would have been in poor taste and besides, the Bar Manager was busy with his marathon stag. My date was a divorcé, who just found out he has a brain tumor.
Suffice to say, he’s got a new lease on life. With that in mind, he wanted to take me around the Rock on his motorcycle. But I don’t do bikes. For some reason, he kinda seemed bummed I ixnayed the whole Easy Rider idea. I’m guessing he was under the impression that a woman on a cross-country dating frenzy would be a little more adventurous. Nope.
So we drove out to Portugal Cove in his car and had lovely lunch at this quaint little harbour-front cafe. He’s a pretty cool guy and I wish him all the best. Check out his blog: http://kpomroy.blogspot.com/. This is where he chronicles the trials and tribulations of living with “Achmed the Dead Brain Tumor.” It’s pretty inspiring to read such humorous insights on such a lofty subject. I’m glad I got a chance to meet him.
St. John’s, Aug. 7 – Well, 67 days into my trip, I finally had my first and only hot date. The Bar Manager booked the night off work to take me out for dinner. Even though I was nursing a low-grade hangover, I was still pretty damn happy to see him standing there in the hotel lobby waiting for me.
He treated me to dinner at Portobello’s restaurant, which has an amazing view of the harbour. No disrespect to the first 30-some-odd guys who took me out for dinner, but it was the best dining experience I’ve had on this trip. And not because the food was great, which it was, but because we were genuinely into each other. The man is a total doll and funny too – he can roll with whatever you throw at him, and that kind of back and forth is rare – trust me, I know what I speak of. On top of it all, he’s a gentleman.
After dinner, we hung out in my hotel room and watched TV and he didn’t put the pounce on me (someone raised this boy right!). Anyway, he left relatively early because he had a big stag to attend to the next day. And I’ve never been one to try and stand in the way of male bonding. So we said our good nights with the hopes of seeing each other again before I headed back to the other side of the country.
Getting showered with roses at the Masonic Temple
St. John’s Aug 6 – Tara and I headed to the Masonic Temple for a little dinner and theatre. We caught “Our Celtic Spirit…Written in Crayon,” an interactive musical production put on by local theatre group Spirit of Newfoundland. Me thinks someone must have tipped off the waitstaff about Tara and my mission because waiters would periodically give us origami roses made from paper towel. Random, but very sweet nonetheless.
The show was great, but it was really more of a precursor to another tour of George Street, – which started with a text to that cute bar manager that I met on Tuesday and ended at 3 in the morning. Tara took off early though. She wasn’t up for an all-nighter. Apparently, I was because I hung out with my blue-eyed Bar Manager right till last-call. Which is so not my style. But what can I say? The man is funny, sweet, cute and attentive, (notice I didn’t use the dreaded “nice” word?). And to boot, he has an adorable accent! Needless to say, I’m really looking forward to our first official date.
Beginning of Signal Hill
St. John’s Aug. 5 – My new BFF, (Tara the Love Diva) and I started the day with a hike up Signal Hill. Words can’t describe the view from this trail and my amateur photography certainly wouldn’t do it any justice either. So you just have to take my word of it: it’s spectacular. I’d even go so far as to say that Newfoundland is more beautiful than Ireland and that’s saying a lot!
After our hike, we took in a little bit of the Regatta Festival, the oldest boat racing event in North America. Then I hooked up with another date that Tara had arranged for me. This one was a fellow-journalist in his 40s. He packed us a picnic basket full of goodies and took me to Cape Spear. It was perfect: wine, cheese, smoked salmon, baguette and dark chocolate.
While we had a lovely time talking shop, taking in the view and sipping vino, I think it’s safe to say there was zero romantic chemistry between us. But I still thoroughly enjoyed myself – kinda hard not to when people are so hospitable and the views are so breathtaking. I love this town!
Lucky # 42
St. John’s, Aug. 4 – Any night that starts out with Tara Lehman (of D8 Night fame) is bound to be a fruitful one. We went down to the closing night of the George Street Festival to catch a bit of the Masterless Men set. After that, I had a little something I wanted to take care of.
See, one of the publicists from the Newfoundland tourism board told me she had a cute single friend that she was going to try and set me up with. She sent a pic, and oh my god, her friend is so bloody cute, it’s ridiculous. I was in. He was out.
She kept making polite excuses for him, but it was clear that he had no desire to hook up with a woman on a cross-country dating frenzy. So I let it go, but not before finding out where this gun-shy cutie works. Then I did what any refined lady with a proper upbringing would do: I ambushed him at his place of work. I didn’t think it was possible, but he’s even cuter in real life. Tara made the introductions and we took it from there. We, talked, laughed, flirted, posed for pictures and then I gave him my number and left it at that. Yes, after 41 dates, I finally met a guy I would actually want to kiss. God bless the Rock!
Tara & Sarah
St. John’s, Aug. 3 – I’m down to the last province now. Thankfully, I’ve hooked up with a local who is determined to send me off with a “bang!” Her name is Tara Lehman, a.k.a the Love Diva. She promotes various singles events through her company, D8 Night., a first of its kind in St. John’s. Now, I’m not sure if everyone on the Rock is this hospitable, but the woman seriously went out of her way to make me feel welcome.
First of all, she met me at the airport with a gift basket that included a gift certificate to Our Pleasure, a sexual health store (here’s hoping I get a chance to use some of my loot from there sometime soon). She also arranged for a driver from First Class Limo & Express Shuttle to pick me up and drop me off at my B&B, the gorgeous Leaside Manor.
After I checked in, we were off to the Duke of Duckworth pub for some of the best fish ‘n’ chips in all of Newfoundland. Then we strolled through George Street (bar capital of Canada), before parting ways. But only because I had to get ready for my first date, which she set up for me last week. Did I mention she’s awesome?
Cape Spear
Anyway, he was a nice guy who took me to every sight he could while it was still daylight out, including Cape Spear, the easternmost point in Canada. Then we checked out Signal Hill, the national historic site where the first transatlantic transmission was received in 1901. We also hit a little hole-in-the-wall pub that was chock-a-block with every kind of memorabilia imaginable.
After our tour, we grabbed something to eat before calling it a night. He’s a great guy and he certainly seems to have his life together. But I don’t think there was any romantic chemistry between us. No biggy though because I don’t think I could have asked for a sweeter introduction to the Rock.
After a long day of drinking on St. Margaret's Bay
Halifax, Aug. 2 – My last date ended up having a bit of an edge to him, which was actually a nice surprise. It’s not like I was expecting him to be the Ned Flanders of Nova Scotia or anything, but lets just say he’s a man who loves his emoticons and he’s not afraid to use ’em. I lost count of how many smiley faces he included in his emails to me. It turns out, though, he’s just a really positive dude who knows his way around the “shift” key.
He’s also a journalism student during the school year. But in the summer, he’s a full-time sea kayaking tour guide for Sea Sun Kayak Adventures. So naturally, it just made sense to start our date on the water.
While it was truly beautiful out there on St. Margaret’s Bay, I was too bagged to paddle against the current. I think the pace of this journey was/is finally starting to catch up with me. I wasn’t the only one who threw in the towel. His sister, who also signed up for the the six-man tour, didn’t have it in her to finish the trip. So we headed back to shore and let my date complete the tour without us. Then, we proceeded to spend the afternoon drinking on the marina lounge patio. Like I always say: that’s my kind of boating!
When my date got back from his half-day tour, the two of us went out for dinner. But there’s just something about drinking in the sun that totally drains you. And my date was just as knackered as me, so we basically yawned our way through dinner. He was a super cool guy – total buddy material tho.
So, I didn’t fall in love with a man, but I did fall in love with a city. I mean I saw Sloan at the local coffee shop for Christ’s Sake! Didn’t ask if they were single. I was with my date at the time – would have been in poor taste, no?
Surf's Up in Halifax - Who knew?
Halifax, July 31 – I went to a dinner party at a friend’s place. While I was interested in experiencing a slice of Haligonian family life with my friend and her neighbours, I had ulterior motives. I was hoping to find an eligible bachelor for my surfing date the following morning – something I had lined up through One Life Surf School & Spa in Lawrencetown Beach. Now, you’d think finding a single guy up for an free afternoon of fun and sun would be easy enough, yes?
Nope.
By the end of the dinner party, it was obvious none of my fellow guests were down for riding some waves. Technically speaking, there was actually only one eligible bachelor in attendance, and he seemed to go suspiciously quiet every time the subject came up. Clearly, he wasn’t into spending his Saturday morning wiping out. So my girlfriend got down to business and starting working the phone. I think she put a call out to everyone she knew in the greater Halifax region.
Nada.
Tough town.
Anywho, not one to fight fate, I didn’t stress out about it and decided to take the lesson by myself. Maybe striking out at every turn was some sort of divine intervention. I mean if I’m meant to bump into Mr. Right on the beach, then a filler date would only cramp my style, right?
Well, we’ll see…..
Halifax, Aug 1 a.m. – As planned, I got up early and took my first ever surfing lesson sans date. Which was probably best – the wetsuit is not my most flattering look (in fact, I’ve seen prettier packed sausages in the meat section at my local supermarket).
And predictably, I didn’t come close to standing up, but my One Life Surf School instructor is a total pro when it comes to reading people’s limitations. Even though she’s a young free, fearless spirit herself, she seemed to get that my fearless years are long behind me now. So we just basically bounced around in the water, while I lazily rode the board lying down. I have to say, it was totally invigorating getting tossed about by the Atlantic. I seriously, loved every minute of it. I highly recommend checking out this surf school to anyone passing through Halifax.
And while I didn’t catch any waves per se, word on the beach was I did catch the attention of a hot 20-year-old surfer. Flattering, but not quite what I’m looking for. To be honest, my shuttle driver was more along the lines of what I’d be into (he’s all of 30). But as he explained to me on the ride out to the beach, he’s currently in a “complicated” situation. Gotta love the Facebook generation.
So for those of you keeping count, I’ve only got eight more nights to find Mr. Right. But you won’t catch me panicking (goes against my Deepak Chopra teachings). Besides, I have faith in Halifax. I’ve got one more date here this afternoon with an obscenely positive sea kayaking tour guide. Who knows? His optimistic outlook on life might be contagious.
And then tomorrow, I take my search to St. John’s!
A muggy girl's night out
Halifax, July 28 p.m., – With only a couple of dates lined up for the week, I decided a girl’s night out was in order. So I hooked up with an old friend, who recently moved here from Vancouver. After a lovely firewood pizza at Morris East, we hit the town looking for some single guys. While we didn’t have too much luck in that department, we did manage to chat up a couple of pilots. One was definitely married – though I noticed he kept his ring hand conveniently hidden under the table almost the entire time. Not sure about the other one. It didn’t matter anyway, we weren’t even flirting – just making friendly conversation. And really, the best part of the night was the girl talk, something I’ve been starved for since Toronto (where I met up with some gals from Lavalife).
Halifax, July 29 – I put the man-hunt on hold to help my aforementioned friend celebrate her birthday. We did karaoke night at Bearly’s, a local Road House blues-type bar. Before I took to the stage, my pal pointed out that you can make an absolute ass of yourself in this town and no one judges you for it. So with that in mind, I got up to the mike and totally massacred the Crüe’s “Without You” – which was a shout-out to no one in particular, as I still haven’t found the One yet. But we’re not going to go there right now. I’ve still got 11 nights to find him. And I have faith in the men of Halifax.
Halifax, July 30 – I had a Lavalife date with a nice quiet, IT guy from Halifax. He took me out for some hearty grub. Which I needed desperately – I had a bit of the ole gut rot brought on by my low-grade hangover (can’t do karaoke without liquid courage after all). As predicted, it was just the booze sponge I needed to lull me into a sweet little 10-hour recuperation sleep. I don’t think I’ll see buddy again. But I think he was just happy for the company on an otherwise non-eventful Thursday night. So we left it at that. And I wish him all the luck in the world.
