Blind Date: Ryan and Pooja explore the Whitewater Center

Our Blind Date series is proudly presented by Criswell & Criswell Plastic Surgery. Husband and wife team, Drs. Bryan and Kara Criswell, know how important it is to find someone who brings out your best features. Here’s to finding the Criswell to your Criswell.

Happy new year! We’re back with another installment of the ever-popular Blind Date series.

• Ready to meet your match this year? Click here to apply for an upcoming date. It’s super easy!
• Editor’s note: Responses have been edited lightly for length and clarity.

This month, we paired Ryan and Pooja.

First, let’s meet Ryan: An experience designer who loves live music, comedy shows, traveling, volunteering and exploring new restaurants with friends.

• He describes himself as someone who’s “well-traveled and values diversity,” with an appreciation for deep conversation.

He’s looking for a partner who also enjoys travel, who’s intelligent and values a healthy, active lifestyle.

Then there’s Pooja, who works as a data analyst and likes hiking, traveling, brewery hopping and trying new restaurants.

She describes herself as “fun, friendly, and adventurous” and notes that she’s “somewhat obsessed with travel … and data!”

She says her ideal type is someone who “is easy to talk to, intelligent, loves to travel, and is open to dating someone outside of their culture. They should know what they want out of life and have some ambition.”

Based on their shared love of visiting new places and adventure, these two seemed like a great fit. And what better place to send them than the U.S. National Whitewater Center?

• Here’s how it went:

How do you typically meet your dates?

Ryan: Usually through dating apps like Hinge and Bumble, though I’d much rather meet somebody in real life through something like work or mutual friends.

Pooja: Usually through friends, or just meeting people as I’m out and about.

What was your date like?

Ryan: We met at the Whitewater Center. The plan was to go ice skating, but it ended up being 75 degrees, so we decided not to do that.

• Instead, we got a couple drinks and explored the place, and just chatted and got to know each other.

On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate the conversation?

Ryan: I’d say an eight. The conversation flowed naturally. It wasn’t just your typical first-date banter.

• She’s a really interesting person. We had a lot in common, especially with our love of travel.
• She’s definitely driven. She has her career established and owns her own home.

Pooja: I’d say probably an 8.5. We had a great conversation, and I feel like we had a lot of commonality with how we view the world.

• We clicked on a lot of different aspects of life and hung out for three or four hours.

On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your chemistry?

Ryan: I’d say maybe a seven.We definitely hit it off, but we both agreed it was more of a friendship vibe versus a romantic connection.

• We agreed we’d be down to meet up again.

Pooja: I’d say probably a seven or an eight. It was a great time, he’s a great person, but I don’t know about the romantic part.

On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate the date overall?

Ryan: I’d say maybe a seven.

Pooja: Probably an eight again. Overall, it was a great day. We got along really well. I definitely enjoyed it.

How did you leave it?

Ryan: We talked about hanging out as friends and getting a group of friends together.

• It was like: “You’re a really cool person. A good human.”

Pooja: We exchanged numbers so we can stay in touch. I can definitely see us getting together again as friends.

Editor’s note: The two ended up meeting up again. They grabbed drinks at the Two Buck Saloon.

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