Q: Dear Love Jays,
How do you feel about online dating?
A: Dear Love Online,
If you asked me this question a couple of years ago I probably would have said something like, “why would you sign up for a site when you can just go hang out somewhere and meet someone?” When you are in college, or in any type of school you are exposed to new faces all of the time.I didn’t understand how hard it is to meet people, especially when you are working all day every day.
Technology has found a way to work itself into most aspects of our lives, why not let it play a role in the dating game? I think it’s okay to meet someone online, but I do think that it is important to practice the following technique:
- Make sure they are not a crazy person.
- Make sure they are who they say they are.
- Meet them in person (you don’t want to get Manti Te’od)
- Meet in a public place-a very very public place
- Go with your gut. Just because you meet someone through a site and everything lines up on paper does not mean you are going to have a magical connection in person. Know when to leave good enough alone.
Other than that, I think dating online will have a similar if not the same results as meeting someone at the local library. You will either like them and you will keep seeing each other or you wont. Just stay smart and be safe.
Love,
Miss J
Dear Internet Lovin’,
Technology has paved the way for humans to develop connections with friends or complete strangers in just about every way. It’s very easy to spend a couple of hours surfing through various different social media platforms and come across people who may catch our eye. If you love pictures or sharing thoughts in 140 characters or less, Twitter or Instagram #hashtags may connect you with people who have similar interests and hobbies. If those aren’t your thing, head on over to Facebook and scroll through your news feed or view a friends’ photo album hoping (intentionally or unintentionally) to stumble across one of their friends who “looks good”. If you haven’t done this at least once since creating an account, you’re lying.
What do all of these social media sites have in common? Each of them allow their users to directly communicate with one another; built-in messaging systems make introductions easy to whomever we see fit and give hope to those too afraid to speak with someone in person. And if you want to kick it up a notch, create a profile on one of the dozens of online dating sites.
Match.com. E-Harmony. Plenty of Fish. OkCupid. Zoosk. The list goes on.
The possibilities for meeting a potential love interest on the internet are virtually limitless and if you choose to go this route, I don’t see anything wrong. And neither should you or anyone else! The path to love is different for everyone and technology has only created more paths in finding it. As with everything on the internet, it’s important to exercise caution and a bit of common sense; the last thing you want is an appearance on the Katie Couric show explaining your Catfish story.
Sincerely,
Mr. J
Have a Question for the Love Jays?
[contact-form][contact-field label=’Submit Questions Anonymously Below: ‘ type=’textarea’/][/contact-form]
© LoveJays 2013