TIFU by Unintentionally Revealing My Childhood Blankie Obsession to a Date

This blunder takes us back to my grad school days, but its roots stretch back to when I was a toddler. As a kid, I had this blanket, right? Not just any blanket, but THE blanket. It was blue, had cartoon dinosaurs on it, and I named it 'Dino'. Dino was my fortress of solitude, my cape of courage - you get the picture.

Fast forward to grad school. I've kept Dino all these years, tucked away in a special box under my bed. It's my little secret, a piece of childhood I couldn't part with. I never thought it would be a big deal, until...

Enter Sarah, a girl I'd been seeing for a few weeks. She's cool, smart, the whole package. One night, she stays over, and things are going great. We're cuddling in bed, and she decides to playfully rummage under my bed. She finds the box and, thinking it's something mysterious and exciting, opens it. Out comes Dino, in all its faded, frayed glory.

At first, she thinks it's sweet, a cute memento. But then, I make the mistake of confessing my ongoing attachment to Dino. How I sometimes still snuggle with it when I'm feeling down or sick. The mood shifts. There's this awkward silence where she's clearly reevaluating her life choices.

Trying to save face, I quickly stuff Dino back into its box and shove it under the bed. But the damage is done. The rest of the night is filled with polite conversation and forced smiles. She left the next morning, and our budding romance kind of fizzled out after that.

I didn't give up Dino, though. And now, years later, married with a kid, Dino has found a new role as my son's favorite "adventure cape." My wife knows about Dino's past and thinks it's endearing. But sometimes, when I see my son running around with Dino, I feel that old comfort calling to me.

TL;DR: Revealed my childhood blanket obsession on a date, leading to awkwardness and a fizzled romance, but Dino lives on as a superhero cape.