Last month my 21 year old daughter called to tell me she had met too many guys on Tinder, the online hookup site. She had been swiping right on every guy not knowing most guys also swipe right on every woman. During our conversation I learned she had no idea Tinder wasn’t a dating site.
I’ve tried the online dating sites with no luck. I’ve met women who don’t work, used pictures from 1992 and lied throughout their profile. Worse than that is my not vetting them properly and ending up on dreaded first dates with them.
I won’t lie, I’ve been on plenty of first and second dates with women I’ve met on legitimate dating sites like Match.com but nothing comes of them. My last date sums up pretty much my whole online dating experience. I met this one on OkCupid, and she described herself as “fun and smart.”
We decided to meet at a restaurant she claimed to never visit this Saturday. Soon after being seated I started picking up on blatant hints she had been there relatively recently. She knew everyone by first name. Why lie?
As the night progressed she became more and more comfortable and after about five drinks I witnessed the “fun” part of her she described. I never had a chance to witness the “smart” but I’m willing to bet her definition and mine are probably far apart.
Admittedly I have way too many experiences from online dating sites and vowed to never use them again after this weekend. Of the four major sites, OkCupid seems to be most rounded of all and believe me, I’ve tried all of them.
PlentyOfFish (POF) is the bottom of the barrel. If you’re using POF then my apologies, but it still doesn’t change the fact that it’s a dirty hookup site. Expect the people you meet to be very different in person. Moreover, expect to receive at least one filthy pic from people you meet here (guys and girls).
OkCupid, owned by Match, does a good job of combining the dirty parts of POF with some pretty decent questions designed to pair people. Although their matching system isn’t truly scientific, it does a good job of matching people. Best of all, it’s free.
Match proves that paying for a dating site doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better. Although the pay-for aspect rules out scummy people, it also means the people you meet expect more from you. When I used to subscribe to Match most of the women I talked with expected an instant connection and immediate dates.
Unfortunately I never made it through the 1,000 questions that eHarmony requires before you can actually meet people. After about 50 questions about my personality I became bored checking off A, B, C or D and cancelled my subscription. Honestly, I’m not sure I want to date anyone based purely on personality characteristics anyways.
Maybe my daughter has it right, she seems to be doing fine meeting guys for dating on Tinder. Though I only hear about a select few, I haven’t heard any stories that make me want to hurt any of them quite yet. Everyone has a story, what’s yours?
(Jeromy Patriquin is the President of Laptop & Computer Repair, Inc. You can read past articles or contact Jeromy at www.LocalComputerWiz.com.)