Online Dating
At this point, we’ve all heard about online dating websites. After moving to northern California in 2008, I didn’t really have many friends here. The only person I knew was Nic and she was all the way in San Jose and then moved. So needless to say, I didn’t really go out much. I knew I wanted some sort of companionship/relationship so I resorted to online dating websites. I was at a place where I wasn’t able to afford paid dating websites like Match.com and eHarmony so I used free dating websites. I talked to a few people (okay, quite a bit of people) but was always too afraid to meet anyone in person. I think it all has to do with my self confidence and the fact that I didn’t feel comfortable because I knew I was overweight. I would stop using it for months at a time and then start again thinking I would be able to do it and wasn’t able to.
However, last year I started talking to someone and I finally convinced myself to meet him in person. I was so nervous and thought I was going to have a heart attack. I met him on September 24 for coffee and we had a great time. It was funny though because on my way to meet him, I saw the California Lottery billboard that said “Breathe. Breathe. Breathe.” and I think that I forgot to breathe while I was driving over to meet him. The date went well and we continued to talk for a while after that, however, things did not progress which I’m fine with. Meeting him and taking that step actually was a huge step for me and my confidence. I have yet to meet another person and actually I rarely use the dating websites at the moment, but I definitely am not giving up on it.
I think that anyone who is/was in the position I am should definitely consider using online dating. Just be careful! I made sure to tell my parents and my best friend where I would be (location, time, etc), showed pictures, gave them his name, and what not. You can’t be too cautious… we’ve all heard the horror stories when it comes to that. But if you are open to it, I think it can be successful. My cousin met his wife on Match.com and they now have 2 children. I think it can work for you if you want it to work.
What do you think about online dating? Have you used it? Would you use it?
