Now What?! Date night preparation

Picture this scenario: A man asks a woman he has seen a couple of times previously to meet for impromptu drinks on a Saturday afternoon. Both have been doing yard work all morning but agree to meet in a couple of hours.

The man wraps up his yard work, goes inside, fixes a sandwich, and falls asleep in front of the TV. After about an hour, he wakes up and hops in the shower, decides he likes the stubble so doesn’t shave but pats on some aftershave. He has a tough wardrobe decision to make between jeans and shorts but lands on shorts since it’s a bit warm out. He grabs his keys, phone, and a stick of gum and he’s on his way.

Meanwhile, the woman reacts to the new plans a bit differently. She abandons the rest of her yard work, knowing that she will need every minute to look “Saturday afternoon casual.” She rushes in to take a shower, but hers is a bit more involved (not only the basics of shampooing and scrubbing the body, but also shaving thoroughly).

Post-shower is the plucking and lotioning. Even though she pondered wardrobe options in the shower, she still finds herself in front of her clothes with all sorts of questions. Will this shirt show too much cleavage? Will this top make me look prudish? Is this dress too short? Are these shorts too baggy?

Once she's selected the clothes, it’s time to accessorize. She doesn’t want to overdo it but has to pick the jewelry that will compliment her outfit. When it comes to shoes, there are many considerations. The outfit, the venue, the height of her date, and whether she has an updated pedicure. Which leads to a different layer of preparation.

(Disclaimer: these are gender generalizations, and as such are by no means universally true. But they frequently have been my truths in actual experiences.)

This extra layer of preparation is part of my thought process. Often for women, making sure your nails and toes are properly manicured (even if that just means no chipped polish and filed) is important. You don’t want chipped polish if you are wearing sandals, after all.

Our female dater isn't done yet, even though her clothes, fragrance, jewelry, and shoes are all set. Now she needs to do her hair. For ladies like myself, with long thick hair, the blow-dry and styling process can be a little involved. Hair down – even though the heat and humidity could produce a frazzled look after five minutes outside of the car? Or maybe a ponytail (which gives the illusion of effortlessness – sometimes a good thing)?

Now we've arrived at the makeup application  but the fan must be on, because application while sweating is counterproductive.

After one last look, she is good to go. She grabs a crossbody purse that matches her shoes to carry her keys, phone, and gum.

Men have a whole different set of concerns and strains when it does to dating, and my scenario clearly involves generalizations. But for most women, the scenario I've presented explains the difficulty with impromptu dating. If you are fortunate enough to be able to roll from yard work to happy – more power to you! Unfortunately, I am not so lucky.