How Tall Are You? Ahem!

This dating nightmare involved a man who said he was 6'4" - who asked me to wear heels! ( I know, I know, should have been a huge red flag). I mentioned that I rarely wore heels to work because I do a lot of walking but he really felt he would be more comfortable with a woman who was closer to his height.

I arrived at the restaurant before him and shortly afterward received a call that he was stuck in traffic. No problem. A saw the mother of a friend sitting at the bar, waiting to meet her first time date, from Senior Singles or something like that.

I remember thinking, "Thankfully, I am not THAT old yet and can still do regular dating sites!" I was anxious to see how well this eHarmony date would go.

I joined my friend's mother for a glass of wine while he continued to call me every 10 minutes or so to update me on the traffic situation and the torrential thunderstorm.

Finally, he calls to say that he is in the parking lot and will be walking in the door within 30 seconds. The door opens as my friend's mother and I strain to see him. The person entering was wearing an overcoat and one of those fisherman hats like the guy on MASH wore, rain still running off his hat. and considerably shorter so that was not him. We both let out a sigh of relief when this short man smiles at me and says, with his arms outstretched, much like George on Seinfeld would do...

" SURPRISE!" he shouts as the rain continued to roll off his hat and onto the lense of his out of date eyewear.

I kid you not, he was MAYBE 4'6" !!!!!

"SURPRISE!!!! SURPRISE?!! I don't know whether to kick you or pick you up - you told me you were 6'4" - you asked me to wear heels!"

"Yeah well..... sorry" he said as he started mumbling something about being dyslexic, " I might be the shortest man in the room I can be with the tallest woman!"

I agreed to have dinner and allow him to explain.

Over our salad he explained that he grew up wealthy, very wealthy.... "we had hired help, I never bothered to learn their names, they were just grunt workers to me".

I tried to explain to him that his attitude was so very wrong...........it was going nowhere.

He told me he had one daughter that he had not seen in years.... said when she was 15 months old he was feeding her breakfast and she was not cooperating, blowing food at him, and he knew then he "was done, done for life". I was shocked to hear that come out of his mouth.

He continued on to say that he walked out the door that morning, 34+ years ago and has not seen her since or attempted to see her, but he did the "loving dad thing and provided for her through a trust".

With tears in my eyes, I asked him HOW he could possibly feel that way.........he said, "Calm down, it's not like I'm a horrible human being, I'd never desert a dog or anything like that!"

Date over............ I stood up, tossed my napkin in his lap as the couple at the next table clapped and cheered.

Hopefully, he was one of a kind but I fear there are more like him out there.

Strike one for eHarmony!