December 31, 2006 10:41pm

Happy New Year! It's the last few hours of 2006.

My biggest challenge with every new year is remembering to write a new number on checks.

Okay, I wasn't going to say anything......

but......

I had a date last night.

Yes, a real date. A real live date. Like the kind of date that real grown-ups go on. Not like in high school where someone says "Will you go out with me?" and it means that you are boyfriend/girlfriend, but no actual dating occurs right away. And not the kind of dating where you're friends for a long time and then suddenly have a long passionate kiss while fireworks go off in the background.

This was a real date with someone I don't know very well.

Eharmony dude #2 to be exact.

Before I go into the details, I just want to note that on Dick Clark's/Ryan Seacrest's New Years Rockin Eve, many people in Times Square are standing there holding these large, red phallic looking objects. WTF is up with that?

Anyway, now the good stuff....

We had talked on the phone a few times and we were both eager to meet in person for a while now. So we decided that Saturday would be the day. He offered to drive down near where I am in NJ (he lives about an hour and a half north of me in NJ), but I wanted to meet halfway because if I didn't like him I would feel bad that he came so far.

He mapped out where halfway would be and suggested that we meet at the Menlo Park mall in Edison, NJ. I met him at Barnes and Noble at 5:00 last night. He greeted me with a hug. I was starving, so we went next door to the Cheesecake Factory. Of course, it was an hour wait. That gave us time to talk, though. Conversation was great. He laughed at all my jokes. Asked lots of questions about me. Dinner was great.

Then we went for a walk in the mall and to get some coffee. Sat at Starbucks and talked for a while longer. We got kicked out when the mall closed. He walked me to my truck.

And he ain't a bad kisser either. :-)

Ok, he did say something really sweet. He said the he thinks I am a beautiful and amazing woman and he wants to get to know me better.

And, like I said, ain't a bad kisser either. I gave him one good one. He came back for 3 more, but just got pecks.

Oh I'm so good!