Internet Dating

Ok, I confess, I’m guilty as charged from dating on the internet. So are a lot of people, some absurd statistic of people use these services. In fact, at one point nearly two years ago before I met my boi, I was even somewhat of an on-line dating junkie. I had profiles on all sorts of sites, and I’m still getting update emails even when I think I cancelled all of them. I think the obsession stemmed from the fact that I really am a people person. I have always had an introspective quality to me, however, it has always been tempered by my personal experience of being surrounded by people. I find life to be entirely more enriching when you open up and make other people a part of it. So what better a service than on-line dating to be surrounded by other people with the ability to get to know them a lot better than you often would in person?

However, there were problems along the way. You end up going a lot of dates with absolute losers. There is a very good explanation for this as well. One of the main reasons is that a chunk of the “seeking” population does not have very good people skills and as such use on-line dating as a mask. There is also the chunk of people, who do not have very honorable intentions, play games, have depression, alcoholism, or are perhaps married or supposedly in a committed relationship, et cetera. One of the most difficult things to gage with on-line dating is what the other person’s true intentions are. You literally have to have a very good lie/missing information barometer in order to get the full picture before you determine whether or not this is a good or even safe person for you to meet in person. Unfortunately, being younger than I am now when I “dated” on-line, I can now clearly see where those errors in judgment were.

Values and etiquette, while perhaps different in some ways for on-line dating, should still be observed whenever seeking for a potential mate. The internet does not make something better just because it is now accessible in a billion different places. The same goes for people. I am not one qualified to criticize how you structure you sexual behavior and what type of relationship or experience you are looking for, however, no matter what your intentions, those should be made clearly so that you give the other person the right to decide if that is what is right for them. Behavior to the contrary is and should be considered sexual harassment.

You should always consider that there is going to be a flood of potentially unwanted behavior when you post your information on the internet. There is really nothing you can do about this other than discard it or use whatever reporting means there is. Just a personal comment to all the sick freaks that do this type of stuff, it’s not funny, sexy, or appropriate. You can bet that all of the creeps are going to come out of the closet on-line.

Speaking of coming out of the closet….. The internet can be one of the best places to do that for someone who is addressing their sexual orientation. This is for the major reason that the anonymity that the internet offers can be very freeing for someone who feels quite oppressed. Though, these people should be especially cautious.

The good of dating on line is that it opens up so many possibilities for communication that might not be possible otherwise. By overcoming scheduling, geographic problems, or locating minority populations so many people have really been able to expand their horizons.

On a personal note, my partner and I met on a very saucy website and we both just clicked and are a very happy committed couple. I realize that we are an exception in many ways to the typical on-line dating experience. When my boi emailed me those few times before we met, I really felt like he was being upfront with me. He’s been that way ever since, I expect that will always continue. I met the love of my life on-line. It wasn’t easy, but the good parts of on-line dating can really work for you with some discretion.