I’ve had similar but a lot shorter conversations with IRs too.
Lately I’ve been getting message from IRs about a month or two here or there way on the other side of the country from me.
Well, limiting your geographical area can limit one’s prospects too. When I advertised, I never did that (though attempting to indicate a Chicago area preference before finally consenting to go on the road).
I wouldn’t want to lead on some clueless dweeb. I might catch the cluelessness virus myself and then where would I be?