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Dear Dish-It: What's A Real Date Like?

Dear Dish-it,

I have never been on a date and I was wondering what a REAL date was like. I have only seen or heard of TV ones. What is a date actually like?

hippie girl

Dear hippie girl,

Even though Hollywood (meaning TV shows and movies) tends to make reality seem better than it really is (you know, with candles and roses and romance), some of the dates you’ve probably seen on your fave TV shows or in books you’ve read are likely close to what some “real dates” kids your age might be going on are like.

The truth is, a date is what you (and the person you’re dating) make it. If you wanna make it formal, then you might go to a restaurant for dinner or to the theatre to a watch a movie or a show. Many dates are a lot more casual than that, though, especially when you’re a kid and need to rely on your mom or dad – or the bus – to get to where you’re going. A casual date could be meeting up at the park or a local hangout for a slice of pizza or, if your parents are cool with it, chilling at your house or your date’s place and watching a DVD or playing video games.

Another dating option that’s a little more casual (and takes a lot more of the pressure off) is doing something in a group. You may go to an event together that you know your friends will be at, like a school dance or a basketball game. The reality is, most kids in elementary or middle school aren’t likely to go on a date just the two of them; if they do, I’m guessing their parents will want to come along!