Date Lab A goodnight kiss means
he likes you, right? Emily Herson, 33, commercial real estate manager Franco Benazzo, 34, sales consultant
Happiest wHen ... Emily: Generally, I am a happy gal and always wear a bright smile on my face. Franco: I am always happy, whether it be at work, with friends or chilling at home alone with my pooch.
CHanCes you’d make a friend in a bar ... Emily: Chances are very good. I once had a flight delay, and instead of being upset, I walked in the bar and within half an hour had the whole bar doing shots together and hanging out, and I got a stranger to donate $1,000 toward my breast cancer walk.
Franco: 200 percent. I talk to anyone. You can meet new people, business referrals, girls — anything goes, and you won’t find out until you start talking.
your type ... Emily: Physically, I prefer dark hair with nice eyes, not too tall.
interviews by Christina breda antoniades
7:30 p.m., Bibiana Osteria- Enoteca, Downtown Franco: I was looking forward to [the date]. I was there first, [so] I said, “I’ll be at the bar.” emily: I’ve done online dating, but this scenario was much different, so it was definitely a little bit more exciting. [I] showed up at around 7:30. Franco: She’s not typically the type of girl I’d go out with from a physical standpoint. I’m typically more attracted to dark-haired [women] , like when you think of Latin or Italian- looking. [But] she’s cute, and she definitely had a confidence about her, which was sexy. emily: I’m 4-foot-11, and he’s not short, but I saw that he’s a good height for me. I typically do go for the Italian-type
He doesn’t smoke or drink, and he lives for punk music. Are you the
glasses-wearing girl he’s been looking for? Apply at
washingtonpost.com/ datelab. Find out what else we’re up to at
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look, so I was giggling to myself like, Okay, looks like they did a good job. Franco: You could definitely tell she was excited [and] a little nervous, too. She was like, “Let me get a drink, because I’m nervous.” That gave it away a little bit. They put us at a nice table, and we sat down. emily: Right away, it was really easygoing. We were looking at the [Date Lab photo] rules and joking around like, “Wouldn’t it be funny if we took some really risque pictures?” Franco: We ordered a bottle of wine, and then we ended up sharing an appetizer, and then we ordered the meal. She’s cool, because she kind of says what’s on her mind, and I do, too. I usually like to have fun during a conversation [and] not be too serious. So there was a lot of joking around and telling stories. emily: Honestly, it was a lot of first- date talk. You cover the family thing, the hobby thing, what do you do for a living. We definitely have a lot in common. Halfway through dinner
6 The WashingTon PosT Magazine | august 8, 2010
Emotionally, someone funny, smart, adventurous. Enjoys working out, enjoys traveling abroad, romantic, passionate, etc. Franco: I like shorter, petite women who take care of themselves and are motivated in all aspects of their life. Family-oriented. A girl who can hang with the guys but also enjoys romantic times alone.
we pretty much decided that we were going to go somewhere afterward. We were joking around about the photos. There was one point where I stood up and went around [the table] and sat down on his lap and took a photo. Franco: It was fun, but I definitely wasn’t expecting that. I don’t know if there was romantic [chemistry]. We were having a good time. emily: We were not really fretting over “are we a match?” [But] there was definitely that initial chemistry. We were giving each other the eye contact, like the kind-of-flirtatious looks, and suggesting that we’d like to see each other again. Franco: I’ve always tried to figure out
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