Ah, dates. I love them and hate them.

I love the preparation. The getting dressed up, the butterflies (with online dates, there's the added excitement that comes from not knowing whether he'll be the man you've been corresponding with, or a hideous troll).

It's the hope, which almost always turns to disappointment, that hurts and has taken its toll on me.

Mostly, my dates turn out to be awful, and they make me feel unbearably sad.

But then… then there are the incredible dates. Rare, beautiful things that somehow keep that little romantic flame burning.

Read about my dating ups and downs as ELLE’s Undateable in ELLE each month and pick up the February issue to see what happened when I met the country’s most popular online daters.

My three all time great dates

1 - He called me the night before our Oxo Tower date to cancel.

‘Look, sorry, I won’t be able to make it tomorrow. Work stuff…’

I was mentally planning a toast and Temazepam night in when I heard, ‘… so I was wondering if it would be OK if I flew you to Milan instead?’

2 - He told me to wear the dress he’d bought me and be ready for 10am when a car would pick me up.

I was driven to a field. Nick was already there, wearing a tux. He pointed to two horses, tacked, tethered, ready to go. ‘Pick one, we’re going for a ride,’ he said. It was my birthday and he had remembered my fantasy about riding cross country in a Chanel frock and full make-up.

3 - The date that lasted three days with the man from Texas.

I knew the minute I met him that this would have the lifespan of a burning match, but for once in my life I didn’t care, and I didn’t look ten years into the future.

It was like being in the worst sort of Rom Com, which is really the best kind.

My three all time worst dates (to date)

1 - I spent a day and a fortune getting ready – I could ill afford either.

I was feeling fragile and ecstatic in equal measure, as I had fallen hard for James. He didn’t turn up. I called and called and he eventually picked up. He sounded sleepy and stoned and went, ‘Oh, shit, was it tonight?’

2 - A beautiful man from Match. I was in love, based on three pictures and a week’s worth of witty dialogue.

We met in Eat in Farringdon, and the first thing he did was reach into his shirt and pull out a giant gold crucifix. ‘How do you feel about God, Lisa,’ he said?’

3 - ‘Another drink?’ Lenny said and went to the bar. Half an hour later, I eventually gave up our seats and went to look for him.

He was standing at the bar deep in conversation with a beautiful girl. They just looked right together I could practically see little cartoon hearts whizzing about their heads.

I sent him a text: ‘Go for it’ and feeling bitter and noble at the same time, left the bar. They’re still together, which annoys me. What if I hadn’t insisted we go to that pub?

Follow Lisa on Twitter @ELLEUndateable