#NerdsUnite: My name is Alicia and I'm doing 50 dates in 50 states (Oklahoma)

<editorsnote> Nerds, meet my buddy Alicia. She's about to embark on a 50 dates in 50 states dating documentary. She's here today to talk about her views on life, love, and all things through her nerdy little eyes. I only have one more thing left to say ... HIT IT ALICIA!! </editorsnote>

#TalkNerdyToMeLover's Alicia Ostarello

In the right venue, even a date with whom you know you’re not going to have a second date, let alone marry, can be rad. A venue like that comes around once a year to a city near most everyone in the country: the state fair.

Oklahoma does the fair right, though when my date, Derek, told me to meet him by the giant lumberjack, I wasn’t so sure as I am now. While standing on the boot of a very large statue (the second tribute to Paul Bunyan we’ve seen on this trip, now that I type about it), Derek came over to greet me, and into the fair we went.

A nice guy, Derek was a hipster stuck in a southern town. He raised chickens, had his own home, and I believe was working on brewing his own beer. Why he hadn’t headed for the hipster haven of the Pacific Northwest was beyond me. Regardless, he was congenial, nice, and not a challenge to chat with.

One Skyway ride, one Linkin Park-laden spinny ride, two fried pickles, three fried Oreos, one giant fried garlic mashed potato and one six-point beer were followed by the petting of a fawn who nibbled my skirt, some baby goats and a depressed-looking wallaby; soon after, Derek and I decided to say goodbye. He was a nice guy for all intents and purposes, and though we interacted well with one another, it was clear we made fabulous friends and nothing more (he even said so himself).

Date venue? Not bad. Not bad at all. We high-fived and agreed it was probably one of the best times either of us have ever had at the fair. Derek did drunk text me a few nights after the date to tell me about the bon fire he’d built in his back yard, along with photographs. Never sure what to do in those situations, I responded with “ha” and haven’t heard from him since. 

#nerdsunite

Alicia Ostarello has combined her talents in talking to strangers with degrees in English and Sociology and is currently taking a road trip across the country with one goal in mind: to go on a first date in every single state. Follow her trip and the documentary film being produced about it, 50/50: A Dating Documentary on Facebook at facebook.com/5050ADatingDocumentary.