HIGH LIFE : What Would You Do on Your ‘Dream’ Date?

Cruising in an expensive car, a candlelight dinner and a hand-in-hand stroll on the beach. . . . These are the romantic niceties that make that “dream” date perfect.

But whether you’ve chosen to hang out at the mall, eat some fast food and catch a movie, or if you’ve decided to blow your allowance and fly to Hawaii, catch some rays and waves and enjoy a luau, remember: It’s not the perfect date unless you’re with the perfect person.

Here are some responses to this week’s hot topic: “What would you and your boyfriend or girlfriend do on a ‘dream’ date?”

“I’d fly a hot-air balloon to a nearby island for a candlelight picnic. Then a sail boat would take us to Mexico to go hang gliding.”

--Pam Carrick, 16,

sophomore, Bethel Baptist

“My boyfriend and I would go to the fun zone in Balboa, then go shopping. We’d top it off with a fancy dinner and a walk along the beach.”

--Valerie Damato, 15,

sophomore, Bethel Baptist

“Walk on the moonlit beach and curl up by a fire.”

--Kindra Larson, 17,

junior, Dana Hills

“Take a boat to Catalina in the morning and go shopping, eat lunch, ride bikes and lie out on the beach. Then we go dancing all night and catch a late boat to the mainland.”

--Jennifer Cooke, 17,

senior, Esperanza

“Motorcycle riding with my boyfriend.”

--Tanya Stanfield, 17,

junior, Foothill

“The ideal dream date is when my girlfriend gets to stay out past 11 p.m. and I don’t have to pay.”

--Jonathon Stone, 17,

junior, Foothill

“Go to a deserted beach for a whole day and night, sleeping under the stars and listening to the waves hit the shore.”

--Tawnya Tinsman, 18,

senior, Fountain Valley

“I would like a limo to pick me up and my boyfriend would come up to the door with a single red rose and kiss me on the cheek. Then take me to an isolated part of the beach for a romantic dinner.”

--Jennifer Jarrard, 17,

junior, Kennedy

“I would pick her up in a convertible Rolls-Royce, take her to an expensive candlelight dinner with champagne and end it with a romantic stroll on the beach.”

--Ray Townsend, 18,

junior, Kennedy

“My dream date would be to go to a park where there are very few people and have a picnic. Then we would take a balloon ride up into the stars, come back and walk home.”

--Lisa Mendel, 15,

freshman, Laguna Hills

“A dream date for me would be a drive along the coast in a BMW convertible with my girlfriend on a warm, clear, sunny summer day. We would stop for a gourmet picnic in Newport, then board a yacht and spend the day out on the ocean. After returning in the evening, we’d have a candlelight dinner. It would be a day of just sharing time with her.”

--David Ashcraft, 18,

senior, Laguna Hills

“He’d better spend a lot of money on me. . . . He owes me that much. Especially on dinner!”

--Eddeane Casares, 15,

freshman, Loara

“It really wouldn’t matter as long as I’m with the one I love. And no, I’m not insane.”

--Linda Hsu, 15,

freshman, Loara

“We would go to a secluded area in the desert, have a barbecue, then watch the sun set.”

--Paul Oldham, 18, senior,

and Maria Diaz, 17, junior,

Mater Dei

“Fly a helicopter to Catalina, eat dinner there then (come back and) go to Disneyland all night and spend the weekend in Tahiti.”

--Mark Ramstack, 18,

senior, Mater Dei

“We would be on a deserted island with nothing around but the lapping of the waves. We would only eat exotic fruits by a serene waterfall and wear nothing but leaves. We would laze around on the beach together and at night stroll under the moonlight. Our date would end when the helicopter arrived to take us home.”

--Deanne Kopanke, 17,

junior, Orange

“I would take my date to the mountains to a cabin near a lake. On a romantic evening with a full moon, stars and everything else, we would go on the lake in a rowboat and finish the evening with a candlelight dinner.”

--Mike Helmbrecht, 18,

senior, Orange

“I’d go down to Jamaica and have a cabana on the beach that was kind of isolated, but we could walk to a central place and get all kinds of neat tropical fruits and stuff.”

--Kristen Hirsch, 17,

junior, Rosary

“I’d fly with my date to Canada and then take a helicopter to a mountain full of snow and ski on the untouched powder.”

--Shannon Doran, 16,

junior, Rosary

“He would pick me up in a limo and we would go to a movie and have a picnic dinner on the beach. Later, we would go cruising on the freeway and in Hollywood. If we were old enough, we would go clubbing.”

--Danielle Dodge, 15,

freshman, Santa Margarita

“It would be fun to go to dinner and then to the beach for a bonfire or go dancing at a friend’s party.”

--Julie Hoegi, 15,

freshman, Santa Margarita

“We would rent a limousine to go to the airport and then hire a helicopter and then go to the Hotel del Coronado. We would have a dinner and then take a walk.”

--Cary Oliver, 17, senior,

Southern California Christian

“We would fly to the island of Kauai. We would go to a nice restaurant for dinner. We would go in a limousine or a red 450-SL Mercedes with gold trim. He would be in a tuxedo and I would be in a semiformal. After dinner, we would take a nice stroll down the beach.”

--Roberta Hannon, 17, senior,

Southern California Christian

“We would go to eat Italian food in Italy. Then we would fly to Paris for a hot-air balloon ride over the wine country. Then we would jet back to Rio de Janeiro for the Carnaval.”

--Steve Renzi, 18,

senior, Villa Park

“We would go to an island on the South Pacific. We would dine in the jungle with all the wild animals and drink out of coconuts. We would wear leaves as clothes and sleep in the moonlight.”

--Linda Broadway, 18,

and Dan Kara, 18,

seniors, Villa Park

“I just broke up with my girlfriend, but I would have taken her to Lawry’s restaurant in Beverly Hills and then we’d end up at the Madonna Inn in the Cave Room for a nightcap.”

--Jason Poquette, 18,

senior, Whittier Christian

Next Week’s Hot Topic: “What would be your ‘ultimate’ summer job?

Hot Topic responses gathered by Roxane Dyrud (Bethel Baptist), Chris Bergerud (Dana Hills), Michele Mitchell (Esperanza), Joanna Brooks (Foothill), Kristin Hardeman (Fountain Valley), Soojin Kang (Kennedy), Jane Kim (Loara), Tanya Diaz (Mater Dei), Monica Neal (Orange), Amy Burke (Rosary), Megan Bendtzen (Santa Margarita), Chi Mai (Southern California Christian), Shanne Ho (Villa Park), Lara Voloshin (Whittier Christian).