Craig's List of Women

I decided if I was going to do online dating, a traditional online dating site like match.com or that other one that escapes me at the moment may be too commercial for dating a wide variety of people. So I started my online dating search on www.craigslist.org. Now, many people have said that this is the worst place to meet people, but I'm hoping for some diamond's in the wrath. I figure by only replying to posts, its a little less absurd since I can pick and choose.

So far, I've sent 7 emails and received 2 responses. Interestingly, both responses were from posts that were more looking for some fun times in the city than a relationship per say. This is probably one of those things that will build my character, but also puts a damper on a "date" themed evening.

The first woman to message me back, lets call her "Girl A", included some pics, but the email was quite brief. The shortness of the message put me off gaurd a bit, guess it felt more like an interrogation. Anyway, being curious, I googled her name and her facebook profile came up. Her picture was one of the ones she sent me, but in the other pictures she looked quite different. Now, I know people want to post pictures where they look attractive, but this girl looked straight up different. This puts me off a bit. I mean do people really think that when they finally meet up the other person will suddenly have a change in taste? Doubtfull. To me it suggests that the woman doesn't think she looks good enough to get someone worth dating, or isn't happy with her looks. Now there is nothing wrong with that, but there is with misleading people. A lot of people aren't happy with their looks (myself included), but that doesn't mean you need to be sneaky about it. What else would they be sneaking about?

The other response I got back really surprised me. I got a pic, and it turns out she is of a different race than myself. I've never dated someone of another race, mostly because I think I have a harder time connecting with other racial identities. I'm not naive enough to think that my social circle is well diversified, quite the contrary actually. I'm definately guilty of self-segregation. But like I said in my first post: this is partially an experiment, so I might as well see if we get along. Who knows? Maybe we'll get along really well. I'm rather excited about it now, actually.

Online Dating

I think a most interesting place for me to start is dating online. Now, a lot of people (including myself) find this creepy, desperate, and just.... wrong? But the truth is for all the weirdo's and creeps out there, everybody knows somebody that it worked for, so I guess it can't be that bad.

In addition, I want to avoid dating people who I know, or who know my friends. This reason is two fold. First, since I want to go on dates to get to know people, dating all of my friend's friends could be a disaster, and look bad for me and my friends. Second, asking a friend or associate out right out of the blue could cause awkward repercussions if the mis-understand your advance, or aren't interested.

That being said, its my goal to date people who none of my friends or associates know. As such, starting online may not be a bad idea. I'd like to get the ball rolling as soon as possible so that I don't disappoint you, my loyal readers.

So off to the internet it is!

Welcome Singles

Hello and welcome. This blog is to track my experiences in the dating scene in Philadelphia, PA. I've started it partially as an experiment, and partially as a way to reflect upon the adventures I have decided to embrace. I am going to keep the posts as anonymous as possible, as I think thats only fair to me and the other parties involved. I'm a single mid-twenties male living in Philly, and decided after a long-term break up and some close friends moving away, it was time to start dating. Not just like oh, "now I'm available" dating, but tossing out the bullshit and straight up taking women out to dinner and all that jazz. I enjoy going on dates, but think I don't go on enough of them, kind of like how you always feel like you should eat sushi more often. I'm not out to mess with anyone, or be cruel, or talk trash about people on the internet, but I'm out to chronicle something that I think will be interesting, and something I should reflect on. I know what I am looking for in women, but someone once told me its a good idea to date someone you think is wrong for you. We're not talking about relationships, just a single, honest, laid back date. So that being said I'm not going to be too picky in who I go out with, so long as they are good company, why not give it a try? If I find the right person for me in the process, great, if not, at least I'll have had some good (hopefully) and interesting (probably) experiences for it. Ultimately I'm searching for a long term, involved relationship, but for now I think I'll enjoy not having one for a while, and maybe make some new friends in the process.

So here it goes, Philly. I'm going to give it a go. I predict the hardest part for me will be not getting discouraged, so if you found this for whatever reason please feel free to comment, as even constructive criticism makes me think about things more.