Date Lab Is a personality


match enough? Amanda Russell, 23, business operations associate Xavier Atizol, 24, accountant


DATING HISTORY AS A TV SHOW ... Xavier: It’d basically be a mix between “Freaks & Geeks,” “Boy Meets World” and “(500) Days of Summer.” The fi rst few seasons would be pretty uneventful, and the main character wouldn’t have much luck until he found the right girl. Things would be great for some time until he gets dropped on his head and wonders how he’s going to fi nd another girl. The end is currently unwritten. Amanda: “How I Met Your Mother” crossed with “The O.C.” and set in a small college town. Hilarity and drama ensue, and everyone has another beer.


INTERVIEWS BY CHRISTINA BREDA ANTONIADES


7:30 p.m., Fire and Sage, Downtown Xavier: I beat her to the restaurant by about 15 minutes. The hostess asked me if I wanted to go to the bar, but I decided against that. I didn’t want to be sitting at the bar having a drink when she came in, maybe give off the wrong impression. Amanda: I took the Metro in and got there early. I went straight to the hostess and said, “I’m here with The Washington Post.” Xavier: I walked up and introduced myself. I thought she was very cute. She was well-dressed, and even though she was wearing heels, she was a little shorter than me. Physically, I like girls that wear glasses, and she wears glasses. I was attracted to her. Amanda: He [looked] very nice and put-together. He’s attractive. [But] he’s defi nitely not my type. I usually go for more athletic-looking, generally


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military or rugby players. [They] work out a lot — not “Jersey Shore,” but they play a lot of pickup sports, that kind of thing. [But] I wouldn’t instantly put anyone in the friend zone just based on how they look. Xavier: They led us to our table and we sat down. The fi rst thing we started talking about was why we signed up. I let her know one of my motivations for doing Date Lab is [that] a friend of mine and I have a list of 101 things to do before we die, and “go on a blind date” was one of those. My friend had just run a marathon and crossed that off his list, so I was feeling kind of sluggish. Amanda: Anyone with a list of things to do before he dies is probably pretty interesting. We got a couple of drinks, and we talk[ed] about what we do, where we went to school, where we live. I don’t think we ordered an appetizer for about an hour, although I have to admit I was starving. Once you get into a really good conversation, it’s tough to think about that stuff. Xavier: We touched a little bit on travel. I feel like most people that I talk to or meet are these incredibly well-


6 THE WASHINGTON POST MAGAZINE | DECEMBER 26, 2010


BRAG A LITTLE ... Xavier: I’m generally pretty upbeat and do my best to keep a conversation going while avoiding tired old cliches like “What do you do?” As long as you’re comfortable, so am I. Amanda: I’m smart with a sharp sense of humor. I love to explore and have adventures but also enjoy watching Netfl ix in bed. I’m ambitious and up for anything! A great body doesn’t hurt.


YOUR TYPE ... Xavier: I’d go for the Tina Fey type. Wit is an absolute must. Pretty, brunette, in good enough shape without working out. (I’m pretty thin, so it helps if I’m not the smaller one.) A little nerdy, not uptight, and comfortable making fun of each other. I like a girl that wears sundresses, rides bikes, has some sort of talent (doesn’t matter what it is) and is intelligent enough to use good grammar and spell correctly. Amanda: Clean-cut, college-educated, athletic and well-traveled, and have tended to be unexpectedly intellectual rugby players and military. I’d like to meet more of the grad student/young professional type, though!


traveled people. I’ve gotten around a bit, but not quite as much. But she wasn’t this uptight pretentious-type person. She was really easy to talk to. Amanda: We didn’t get too in-depth on values or beliefs or anything like that. [But] we had a pretty interesting back-and-forth. About an hour and


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