DATE 22 – THE DINOSAUR ONE
Updated: Feb 26, 2020
I got completely lost on my way to Crystal Palace in rush hour. Worse, it started to rain just as I finally arrived. Worse still, it suddenly occurred to me that meeting a man I didn’t know, from an online dating site, in a park, in the dark, in an unfamiliar area, probably wasn’t my best idea.
Just to be clear though, it wasn’t just any old park….. it was an outdoor dinosaur museum park with life size dinosaur models. This is not quite as odd as it sounds given his role as a dinosaur-tooth researcher at a London University (and a part-time policeman who rocks the bald head and beard combo incidentally).
So I called him up and we met at the station instead. I then insisted he show me his police badge which alleviated my fears as I figured it was unlikely I’d be attacked by a policeman.
We wandered down the dirt track into the unlit park and strained to see the extinct reptiles. He gave me a running commentary on dinosaurs and a particularly detailed narrative of how archaeologists had mistakenly reconstructed the Iguanodon with a pointy nose but how apparently that fossil part was in fact a thumb. This was a nice distraction from the awful rain which was ruining my helmet hair.
Once I could absorb no more dinosaur trivia (or rain water), I suggested we head back to civilisation for a drink. In the light, and off the topic of dinosaurs, he came across as a fairly sweet geekosaurus. Whether he will want to see me again, time will tell. I might brush up on Jurassic Park just in case.
23 February 2017