Inexpensive Ways to Date

You meet that special someone and you want to wow him or her. But you've just graduated college and are strapped for cash. Or, you have chosen a noble occupation that doesn't pay a lot. How do you date someone without a lot of cash on hand?

There are lots of alternatives! Especially at this time of year when it's colder out.

When I met my significant other, eleven years ago, I still remember how funny it was that we couldn't find an open cafe in the ski town where we were living on one of our first dates. So, we ended up at the local gas station foraging for something besides ramen noodles. We ended up buying two cans of spaghetti and going back to his place to cook them before his roommates got home. We lit candles and played soft music and ate Japanese-style: sitting at the coffee table with pillows under us. We had planned on going out to dinner and then renting a movie. None of that worked out, but it let me know that I'd found a low maintenance guy just right for me....

But back to the point. It really doesn't have to cost a fortune to go out on a date.

Ideas:

• One idea is to actually stay home and get out the old, dusty board-games and turn on your favorite music.

Personally, these date nights for me are great: they foster intimacy, you don't have to fight crowds, and the old-fashioned fun is a great throwback to simpler times and a welcome break from all of our technology.

• Don't know what to get your mother-in-law who has everything? Why not try making something for her, together?

My partner and I made a gingerbread house one year. We bought a kit at the store (arts and crafts stores will especially have them, but so do many grocery stores) and got all sticky trying to glue the pieces to the gingerbread with liquified confectioner's sugar. When we took it to her, she loved it and talked about it for about a month while she and everyone else around tried to eat the candy.

• Of course, there's the tried and true "cook a meal" together. But add a twist. Get some wine, and nibble on some appetizers. Then try a recipe that neither of you have ever tried.

Here's a really good one: this last summer, my partner and I tried "Roasted Corn Sopes with Tomatillo Salsa". I found it in this book called The Hippy Gourmet's Quick and Simple Cookbook for Healthy Eating." Even though I knew about Latin cooking, I had never actually cooked with tomatillos and for sure I had never made "sopes". (I'll share my version in a later post.)

One of us focused on the corn and tomatillos part, and the other focused on making the sopes. (And for the record, the fresher these ingredients are, the more heavenly the recipe.) When we sat down to enjoy the meal, it seemed to taste even better knowing that we both put a lot of work and love into it.

• If you feel like getting out of the house, hop by a local bookstore when an author is doing a book-signing. You'll get to hear excerpts from the newest book the author has written and you get some culture, too. Often, bookstores have a cafe next to them, so another idea would be to get some hot chocolate and go for a stroll either in the bookstore itself or outside.
• If you are looking for an arts scene, many museums have "free days".

Do a search for the particular museum you are interested in online. They will have their schedule and free days listed. Every so often, they have art "openings" and provide appetizers and wine. We love going to these. We get all dressed up and head for the arts center. We discuss art and try to interpret all the artwork.

• Still another idea is attend a college lecture.

No, this isn't the kind where you bring a notebook and study for a final grade. This is just for fun. If there's a local college near you, they usually advertise in a local paper about lectures and exhibits that are open to the public. Often these are lectures done by published professors or by visiting faculty. In any case, do take advantage of this if the topic is of interest to you. Recently, a nearby college hosted Fidel Castro's daughter as a guest-lecturer. It was interesting to say the least!

There are still more ideas for inexpensive dating - just use your imagination!