Yo, Yenta!
I’ve been IMing a very nice woman for a few weeks and we’ve made a date. I would like to buy her a small gift for our first meeting, but I don’t want to scare her off (coming on too strong has been a problem for me in the past.) What would be an appropriate present?

– Hopeful in Miami, FL

Yo, Hopeful!: I’m dying to know what you’ve brought in the past that scares off women. A dog-hair sweater? A bottle of rotgut tequila and a sequined thong? The key to your secret underground lair where you play Dungeons and Dragons?

Unless you know from your chats that she collects Hello Kitty memorabilia or has decorated her kitchen in an owl motif-in which case you could get away with something inexpensive, easy to find and thoughtful-you should just stick to flowers. Did I say a dozen roses? Of course not-that would seem presumptuous and lecherous. And stay away from carnations-they come across as cheap. A posey arrangement that smells nice but doesn’t take up the entire table is perfect.

Ask a florist to tie up some irises, freesias and gerber daisies with a simple ribbon-it shouldn’t cost more than fifteen bucks. It will say “Hi. I like what I know about you so far. Let’s see where this first date goes.” The rest is up to you, tiger.