I’ve been saying over and over again that I need to get out more because I’m not being as social as I used to be. I still want to be cautious about where I’m going out since I’ve seen more and more friends get sick recently and I want to avoid that. But there are safer options that allow me to go out and do things but not be around a lot of people. I just haven’t been taking advantage of that. I’m trying to be better about making plans, but it’s not as easy for me as it used to be.
One great excuse I’ve had recently for getting out of my house more has been going on dates. I’m not dating as much as I was before the pandemic, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I’m being a lot pickier about who I meet and I’m also being more upfront about what I’m looking for and my standards. That may scare some guys off or make them not want to meet me, but I don’t mind that since I don’t want to keep wasting time. Even without as many dates as I used to have, I’m still pretty active on dating apps and making the effort to find those guys that I do want to meet up with. And I’m trying to be more flexible about where we meet since I typically go to the same few locations. But as long as the places they suggest are public and will have others around, I know that it should be somewhat safe. I do still give a friend all the information about where I will be, but I’m glad I’m allowing myself to be a bit more open-minded about where a first date might be.
Earlier this week, I had a first date somewhere I’ve never gone on a date and somewhere that I haven’t been in a very long time. LACMA is one of the bigger museums that is near me and I drive past it a lot. One of my first random drives at the start of the pandemic to just get out of my house was to go over by the museum since it’s pretty and I knew it would be a nice drive. I actually don’t remember the last time I had gone inside, but I feel pretty safe saying it’s been at least 10 years. So when the guy I was going to meet up with suggested it, I thought it sounded like a great idea.
We met after work and the museum was pretty empty because it was a member’s only night (and he is a member). It was nice to not feel crowded with a bunch of people and able to take our time looking at the different galleries. And there was a lot of really interesting art.
One of the first exhibits we went to was all about early computer and digital art. Some of the art was about text and some was computer drawings. It was really interesting to see how digital art started out and how it changed so quickly even when technology was still in its infancy. There were also some videos of early computer animation and the different techniques those artists used to make it work. We went through most of the galleries and a lot of the other sections were more traditional collections with paintings and pottery. I know the other galleries had themes to them, but to me I felt like they blended together a bit and I just was having a nice time walking around and looking at the different pieces.
I think I forgot how nice it can be just walking around a museum. I haven’t done that in a long time, way before the pandemic started. And there are so many museum options around LA that I should check out. Most of them are ones I haven’t been to at all, and I should look into when they have free nights or other specials so I can get a list together and not have to worry if I’m having money stress at that time. I know those free nights can be more crowded, but that might be something I just have to force myself to be ok with.
I should be more proactive about going out and doing things on my own, but I’m glad I had a date that got me out of my usual routine and helped me remember that there are so many things in LA that I should be taking advantage of.
You Might Also Like
Enjoying Valentine’s Day (or Celebrating The Love I Do Have In My Life)
More Pandemic Dating Stories (or I Can’t Wait Until I Have More Normal Dating Problems)
Adventures In Online Dating (or My Luck Might Be Changing)
Even More Pandemic Dating Adventures (or Getting Out Of The House)
Still Figuring Out Dating During COVID (or Phone Calls, Video Chats, And Social Distances Meetups)
I’m An Aunt Again! (or Welcome To The World Presley!)
