You want to seem smart but not condescending. Funny but not obnoxious. Politics, religion, and past partners are all off the table. There are so many rules! This is why a lot of guys get nervous on a first date and end up blowing it. Not to worry, we spoke with a few relationship experts about the most common mistakes guys make on a first date, and how to avoid them.

Here are eight things you need to consider when dating an older man. If you find it odd that his favourite bands are Genesis and ELO, then you will need to.

I’m Erin Carson, staff reporter, resident young-enough person, refrigerdating correspondent , curator of oddities and the one most likely to leave you on “read. This week, a reader wants to know what the deal is with video chatting before meeting in person. Let me fix my hair real quick and we’ll get to it. I have no idea. But yeah, sometimes people ask to video chat or hop on the phone before going out on a date. Let me walk you through a few reasons why that might be, and why it also might not be as weird as it seems.

For one, let’s talk about the weird part. Look, anything’s weird if you think about it too much. Have you looked at a seal recently?