In anticipation of the August 1 churning start date I signed up for an online dating site. Online dating is nutty. I understand that it is an efficient way to meet people but it seems like a way to avoid dating while at the same time obsess about dating. There is winking. And messaging. And rating. And chatting. Uploading photos. Taking quizzes. It is a complete time-suck and there is so much you can do before you actually meet the person in real life. It seems like an easy trap for people with obsessive personalities, like yours truly, to fall into - that results in spending way too much time thinking about a virtual stranger.
But most of all, it makes me feel slightly inadequate. I swear - every person's post I read highlights the fact that they're a "fuckin' world traveler". (Picture me saying that like Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny.) I don't travel very much. Who am I kidding, I don't travel at all. My lack of frequent flier miles makes me feel like I don't belong in the world of online dating. I feel like my cultural capital rating doesn't score high enough on the scale to warrant dating a dude who had a pizza party on the Great Wall of China. (Okay, I made that last part up.)
Is it weird that I just want to get down to the meeting of people? Maybe it stems from my lack of patience or my desire to be direct. I want to meet in person. I don't want to waste time chatting and overusing emoticons. To me: there is something off-putting about a guy who wants to chat for a while before going on a date. Is it inappropriate to meet up right away? Am I a scary, non-traveled chick who doesn't "get" online dating?
I wish there was a quiz called, "Are you a Serial Killer?" Because if a straight dude in my desired age range passed that quiz I think I'd email him and say, "Hey. I see you aren't a serial killer. Awesome. Want to get a cup of coffee? I need to go on one date a week and I need to fill my quota."
