The Great Ankle Weight

He looked like his profile picture, but it was taken from the shins up.

Illustration by Kim Salt

We “met” via an online dating website I joined because I aspired to change my permanent Facebook relationship status of “single” and offer a sliver of hope to my mother, who desperately wanted grandchildren.

Within a few weeks, Jeffrey responded to my profile. He said he preferred tall women — I’m 6’0” — and wrote a witty remark about a photo I posted of me in China. We started off emailing each other, which morphed into texting, and him asking permission to cook for me. He praised his own culinary skills and mentioned the hodgepodge of cookbooks ranging from bread making to French pastries populating his bookshelf. With my non-discrimination of any carb and perpetual sweet tooth, I found Jeffrey worth a drive for a lunchtime date.

I remained highly selective with the guys I met in person for my own safety. Yet his offer enticed me and certainly elevated my typical first dates that often took place in coffeehouses or bars.

We agreed to meet at Jeffrey’s workplace …