We decided to experiment a bit this Valentine’s Day with some Onward State staff dates. We created a compatibility test and used a complex algorithm to match up staff members. The following is the story of Meghin and Shawn’s adventure.

Meghin:

For starters, I decided to go on the “Onward Date” because I have nobody to spend my Valentine’s Day with here at Penn State. My boyfriend is 1,600 miles away, stationed in Texas, and there is no way he could get away with coming all the way up here. He granted me permission to go on this date as long as he got to hear all the juicy details. So here I am, typing it all out.

What are the odds that I would get paired up with another 717-er, who went to the high school that not only had the same mascot as ours, but the same school colors!? How scandalous. I ended up going on a wonderful date with Shawn. We had our not-so-romantic date in…Malcom Moran’s Comm 409 class.

I didn’t get much out of class that day. Moran told a story about a tragic bus accident at Notre Dame years ago, and he also said something about nuns, but I don’t really remember. I was zoned out, but I did learn that as a journalist, you’re not  supposed to accept gifts from the people you’re doing a story about.

So how did being in class play into our date? Well, not very well. Basically, it was somewhat hard to have a date in that class when a.) your date sits on the complete opposite side of the room as you, b.) Moran is going on and on about the code structure for journalists.

However, we were still able to meet up afterwards and laugh about the class. I also handed him some homemade funfetti cupcakes with fun-colored frosting. I mean, really, it’s not a date unless you have food! And that was that. I hope he enjoyed those cupcakes!

Shawn:

Okay, so maybe 11:15 a.m. on a Thursday isn’t the most romantic time for a date. And perhaps it wasn’t too cute to have it during a journalism ethics class in 117 Thomas either. I just thought that thinking ethically was a natural turn-on.

Unfortunately, this is one of those rare classes with an assigned seating chart. Conventional dating etiquette would encourage those on a date to actually sit next to each other. I think sitting two rows away from someone just helps ease the sexual tension.

Anyway, the lighting in 117 Thomas was immaculate, but the fact that there were about 20 other students in the class hindered the romantic atmosphere a bit. At the very least, the professor’s jokes were on point. When you decide to have a date during class, you can only hope that the professor adds more humor than usual into his lecture.

The best part of this “Onward Date” was the cupcakes Meghin gave me after class. It was a lovely gesture for my stomach and a horrible one for my waistline: the true essence of Valentine’s Day.