Mystery Meet

This guy I met at a club seemed great, but when we went on a date, he made no eye contact. ZERO. Apparently, he needs lots of alcohol to be normal. My friend just went out with a guy who took her to the equivalent of Subway for Hawaiian food. They sat in plastic chairs, ordered from a counter, and looked out at a parking lot and a porn store. How do we stay in the dating game without becoming bitterly annoyed?

--Underwhelmed

A date, as a way to get to know somebody, is really fun -- for anybody who enjoys a police interrogation with two-for-one well drinks. Group dating is a much better idea. There's a site called Ignighter.com where you and some friends post a group profile and go out with other groups of friends. Or, you can arrange this sort of thing yourself. With your friends there, you won't be so nervous, you won't have to hold up half the conversation, and you'll get a clearer picture of a guy by seeing him with his friends. Should a group date be a bust, it's like you and your friends all went to some lame party, not like you alone once again failed to find everlasting love. If you must go on a first date solo, meet for drinks -- for an hour and a half, tops. Basically, keep it cheap, short, and local -- which'll ease the pain should it take a Hobbesian turn toward "nasty, brutish, and short." (Do your best to laugh if that also describes your date.)