Ditching bad dates

Sometimes you need to get out of a bad date fast.

Sure, you could ask your friend to call you at a specific time to check up on you, but if he forgets, you'll be stuck with Mr. Boring or Ms. Stuck up for the entirety of the date.

Instead of wallowing, you could plan ahead.

That's part of the pitch for PopularityDialer.com, which will call your cell phone at a time you designate. (The other part of the pitch is that taking lots of (fake) phone calls will make you popular. I think that just makes you lame.) The automated voice will prompt you to carry on a conversation, and then, if you so choose, you have an instant out. Calls you can choose to receive include: a male voice, a female voice, a call from "your boss" or a call from a cousin in need.

Many daters have back-up plans, albeit probably not this outrageous, in the event a date sours. Some daters suddenly "feel sick" or fake a phone call that informs of a family emergency.

I tend to just suffer through bad dates because I'm afraid of hurting the guy's feelings. But many people have other ways.

Have you ever ditched a bad date? What was your excuse? Did you feel bad about it?