Missing the point

I don't pick these apart just to be nasty; I have lots of ways to amuse myself. But online dating can be frustrating and it kind of helps to vent about it on my blog. Also, I harbor a tiny hope that someone might read one of these and maybe get something out of it - a way to respond constructively or, if they recognize similarly oblivious behavior in themself, stop doing it.

So today I logged into OKC for the first time in over a month and I'm trying to get caught up on my messages. Here's one that drives me crazy - I've received a variation of this from many people. My comments are interspersed parenthetically in the pasted quoted text.

"that you have a fantasy about filling out a list of things and magically a prefect match will appear is so true! Thanks for putting it into perspective. (How did I put 'it' into perspective? What?)

I do like what you say about yourself. Good job for that... it isn't easy is it? (I spent 15 minutes writing my profile.)

I know you aren't looking for someone my age, but that doesn't mean we can't talk does it? (Yes, that's what that means, it exactly means that I DO NOT WANT emails from men in their 50s. Oh but, you REALLY want to talk to me? And that should count more than what I want? Fun!.)

I like your mind and I'd like to visit with you from time to time. (Like Santa?) I like making new friends and learning new perspectives. Maybe you'll read my profile and find it interesting enough to send me a note. (No.) That would be nice. (Still no.)

Thanks for coming back and saying what you did. It matters to me. (What? Are you drunk already?)

Best Regards"
 
But really - I explicitly say in my profile what age range I want, and my first paragraph was about how I fantasize about making a list of what I want and getting exactly that...so this guy reads that, sympathizes with the sentiment, and then says to himself 'I'm exactly the opposite of what she says she wants, and she also says she wants exactly what's on her list, I SHOULD TOTALLY EMAIL HER AND OFFER TO COME VISIT.' What does that even mean? He lives in the same urban area I do.
 
Also...why is someone emotionally touched by a complete stranger's dating profile? Is this a thing?

Hot guy morphs into sad sack

I got a message from this guy:

But no, he rapidly turned into this guy:

"Hey, I really enjoyed reading your profile. I work in (city) and I would like to... screw it. No woman worth going after ever responds. Sorry I bothered you. "

I guess he was right, because I never wrote him back.

SO creepy!!

Today I received one of the creepiest message/dating profile combinations in a while. I think this guy goes into my top 5 all time worsts for his special combination of offensive, creepy, and creepier statements. Seriously, he is even better than the guy who asked me if I LIKE horses - you know, in an intimate way (I don't. I don't even mention horses in my profile. So weird.)

I was lying in bed, contemplating a nap, when my phone beeped to tell me that I had an message in OKCupid. I opened up the message and read it and immediately thought, what? What? I got up and went to my laptop so I could get the full impact. Here is his message:

Subject: Hmmmm

Smart, pretty and fit. Plus you like to cook and play video games.


I'm trying to figure out if you intimidate men or are just really picky. Maybe you just haven't bumped into the right one. Dunno.

I think I'd like to be someone who knew you. Maybe even got close to. I bet you're pretty awesome to be around. Drop me a line if you think the same.
 
Translation:
 

 
Alarm bells! What is wrong with you? his message says. Why are you 34 and still single, crazy bish? Now, I get it, once you're in your 30s people do start to wonder where you have gone astray. They sometimes find a way to slip it into a first or second date question. BUT - I have never had one email me yet and say 'so, what's the catch?'. It cracks me up though because when people do eventually ask I'm like, oh ok, are you happily married now? What are you doing on a dating site? Oh, you're single too? SO WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU, AHOLE? TELL ME NAO PLS.
 
My real answer, of course, is complicated. I didn't have any interest in settling down or getting married up until a few years ago. I did have relationships. Also, I'm kind of an odd duck, and I want an equally odd duck to pal around with. I think this is perfectly ok. Oh, also? Parents died in my late 20s and early 30s (not at the same time, hence the age ambiguity). If you're single and your parents get cancer you tend not to date much, or at least I didn't. None of these are things I want to reveal in my very first interaction with a guy - life stuff like that can usually wait until, like, I decide if I even want to know you. Or, you know, unless you read my blog. Maybe I'm intimidating, maybe I'm picky (which is *nice guy* speak for not interested in 'nice guys like him'), or maybe life just works out differently for everyone.
 
But that's only one of two problems with his message. He wants to be someone who KNEW me? Past tense? WTF does that even mean? Is he plotting my demise? Is he so self-pitying that he's already decided that if we met, I wouldn't keep him? He's probably right about that second part. I hate self-defeating crap. Seriously. I would totally make this guy cry within an hour and then he'd try to kill me in some completely wussy way.
 
So, of course, I checked out his profile. Sometimes it's fun to play 'crazy or whiny', you know?
 
Stats: 44, straight male, white, 5'10, profile pic is a vaguely shadowy head and shoulders shot, professional chef.
 
Now for the good stuff. I'm just excerpting sentences because he really goes ON.
 
"I am looking to date someone special. I am a romantic at heart and will always be. I spoil her and love romancing her."
 
Ok. He wants us to know he's romantic.
 
"I'm not from Texas and don't intend to spend the rest of my life here. It's nice and all, but I'd pick up and move with you if you wanted to get the hell out of here."
 
Okaaaay.
 
"I want you to be the first thing on my mind in the morning and the last thing I think about at night. I have learned that it's not about where you live or how much money you make but it's the "who" you live with and how you spend your time.


I've never been married. Why not? Because the right one hasn't met me yet."

She hasn't met HIM yet? This guy really phrases things oddly. Is he waiting for her to show up at his place with a UHaul so they can move together? I'm starting to suspect that he has met several someones who seemed right for him but who escaped, screaming, from his clutches.

"Love can't be "that" hard. Everybody else seems to be doing it. Why can't I? "

Well, you seem pretty preoccupied talking about how romantic you want to be instead of actually discussing who you are and what qualities you're looking for.

"I am a fantastic masseuse!


Also good at remembering what you tell me. I actually "listen" to what you tell me. Unique, huh? "
 
Now he just sounds bitter and assy.
 
"I can cook fancy, but love simple. I love cooking for that special girl and making her favorite dishes. Pair the dinner with a bottle or three of our favorite wines, and the evening is on it's way. If you don't cook, that's fine, I'll take care of it. If you do cook, then I am happy to watch and learn, or cook together.


I even serve breakfast in bed."

Wow, he offers great services. I wonder if anyone survives their stay at Chez Creepy.

He spends a lot of time thinking about:

"...why it takes so long to find a girl who will just let me love and take care of her. Seriously, I am the best boyfriend you can get, ever. Try me. :P"

I WILL BRUSH YOUR HAIR. I WILL DRESS YOU AND FEED YOU AND HOLD YOU AND CALL YOU FRED. ZOMG. LET ME LOVE YOU. WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU.

On a typical Friday night he is:

"Relaxing or working. Never can tell. Love both. But if I had a special someone, then I would be spending it with her."

Does she have a choice? I was reading this and it just kept getting worse and worse, and all I could think of is this:

Here is the GRAND FINALE to his profile of win:

"The most private thing I’m willing to admit:


I was in your bedroom last night watching you sleep.:)"
 

 
 
Seriously? Who freaking says that? How messed up do you have to be to not know that is a horribly frightening thing to say? Stalker jokes are not funny in online dating. Ever. If your profile looks like this and you make a joke like that, odds are, you're not really joking. You think this behavior is romantic and cute, whereas most women think this behavior, if it happens, is cause for a restraining order.
 
So I decided to look at the rest of his pictures. His first one was ok, but too shadowy. The second one? I might have nightmares about. I'm all for posting a variety of angles or whatever, dressed up and dressed down, to show what you look like. But if you post 3 pics that you took of yourself please make sure one of them isn't after you've just had food poisoning. I know, it sounds evil, but this is ME. Believe me when I say I'm actually toning down my reaction. Oh, keep in mind, he was attracted to my profile because I'm 'fit', and he said in part of his profile that he wants someone who is height/weight proportional. I get it, I mean, we all like what we like and I want to be attracted to my partner too....
 

 
So, all I'm going to say about this is: On a dating site, please don't post a picture that causes the viewer to wonder if it's a pimple or a cold sore. Choose a different picture to post. Unless you always have it, in which case, thank you for the refreshing pictoral honesty.

Updated: I forgot, there was more. Holy crap.

"You should message me if


You are interesting, kind of quirky. If you have a good sense of humor and like to laugh. You like romance. You only want the best boyfriend you've ever had. You are affectionate and even a bit spontaneous. You don't currently have a husband or boyfriend. You are height to weight proportionate. Not a vegan.

You like a guy that actually opens the door for you.I'm not your typical "guy". I don't live for sports.

I love physical contact and plenty of alone time with my girl."
 
Alone. Just me, my girl, and my handy tarp, duct tape, and knife.

Dating through your ages

So, I'm still dating. I'm in my mid-30s and I've never found anyone I felt like I could put up with for long enough to want to marry (at least not anyone I was also willing to also have sex with). As you get older (not old, older, as in older than you used to be which is totally normal and happens to all of us) things change. You don't think the same way about dating unless you are a perpetual child and refuse to evolve/mature/grow the fuck up. If you are, I'm sorry, and please recognize that while growth and change are hard they are super worth it and sometimes come with prizes and/or cake.

Here are some handy illustrations of what dating is like when you are:

(I greyed out the important bits so this is SFW)

Hormones, amirite? I was a bit friskier than the average bear. Haha.

The uncertainty and mutual insecurity is half the fun.

You have very little interest in wasting time, and you realize by now that 99% of guys (if you are a hetero female) are clearly not a good match. You are able to rapidly weed them out and, every time you ignore your own instints, something goes horribly wrong. You realize that it's more important to worry about whether or not you like them than to waste time worrying if they like you. You force yourself to do it even though you don't want to because staying home with your cat, video games, and snack food of choice is so seductively appealing that you realize you are getting into a spiral that will end with you never ever leaving the house. Which, while it is a perfectly valid life choice, doesn't sound like the most fulfilling way to spend the next 40 or so years. I feel like I somehow got off track here at the end? The whole 'I'm going to die a hermit' thing may just be me.

An online dating guide for men

If you are dating or thinking of dating, especially online, here are some tips that will help you. After all the experiences my girlfriends and I have had I decided that instead of continuing to complain and make fun of the ridiculous and self-defeating behaviors of male online daters it would be more constructive to just tell you how to step your game up. (Note: I will still make fun. With drawings.)

1) You have got to smile in your profile picture. Think about it - when you look at our pictures you usually notice our pretty smiles, right? Guys will message me and compliment my smile and then I go look at their profile and am irritated to find some lame super serious face. Really? You can't figure out that most people are more attractive when they smile, yet you are online dating? What's that, you feel self-conscious when you smile? Get over it. Seriously. You are selling yourself online, 50% of your attractive power lies in your picture. Do not think that your sensitive thinker face or stone-faced 'I'm so hard' pic are appealing. You look like an asshole or a serial killer - and if you've read the Venn Diagram of Dating, you know that at least one of those won't get you to the little red dot of happiness. They won't even get you an email response. If your serious thinker image is important to you use those for supplemental pix but smile in your main one. If you really ARE a serial killer, thank you for being stupid enough to make it completely obvious by wearing an expression that says you want to eat my face with some bbq sauce.

2) If you are married: Please stop dating. Get off the dating sites. No one wins by you being on there. If your wife doesn't want to have sex with you you should probably focus on fixing that. See also: Find the little man in the boat, he is your friend and ally.

3) Do not start immediately telling your female companion that you are meant to be together, perfect for each other, etc - especially if you have not even met yet. This is not how to get a first date. This is a really good way to get blocked and possibly get on a creepy potential stalker watch list. Do not say it on a first date, either. We find this instant desperate attachment just as squicky as most guys do if a girl tries it on them.

4) Do not propose marriage in your first email. This should be obvious but, based on my experiences, apparently needs to be said. Even if you are kidding it will most likely not get you anywhere good. Other jokes that don't go over well in a first email: Offering to let her cook for you. Jokes that make you sound like an asshole aren't that funny.

5) If a girl does not respond to your first message please do not assume that she didn't receive it or needs more encouragement to respond to you. She didn't answer because you look like a serial killer or, possibly, she just wasn't into you. It happens. Don't try to escalate the action by sending more and more personal contact information. It's not like we are sitting there thinking 'oooh, I really like this guy but answering his email is just SO HARD. I'm so hot. I hope he sends me his phone number and address so I can call him and/or just come over for sex.' (Note: Does not apply to Craig's List ads. Things like that actually happen there. This is specific to actual dating sites.)

6) Stop lying about your height. There is no point to this behavior. According to an OKCupid study height is one of the biggest misrepresentations of men online. Most female online daters already knew this. Men, seriously, no one likes details that are fudged. If you are 5'11 you do not need to say you are 6'1 - this is a pointless lie. Here is a small tip: women know how to do math. I promise. If I am 5'3 and wearing 1.5 inch heels - and yes, even girls who say they are bad at math do this little formula instinctively - and you claim to be 5'6, I WILL NOTICE IF I AM TOWERING OVER YOU. If me + shoes = 5'4.5 > your height, you are not 5'6. Also, if I am taller than you  and you have smaller hands than I do, you might be a little person. It's ok to be a little person. It is not ok to lie about it. Also not ok? Lying about your weight/body type. Don't say 'average' if you know you are overweight. Someone out there will like you for you. Just be yourself and, even if you feel like you are getting fewer first dates, they will be more productive ones.

7) Plan the first date. This is your JOB. If you cannot be bothered to plan the first date then you are too fucking lazy to be dating. We know it gets tiring. We know that the emails, messages, first phone calls, and constant disappointment are a lot of work - because we are doing it too. Every time we go on a first date there is a lot of outfit planning, makeup, smelling nice, etc that goes into it. Sack up and plan it. Even if it's just coffee/drinks - the recommended quick first date of the online dater - do the work and suggest some locations, dates, and times. If you want to sit back and let the girl plan every other date after that, fine, that's up to you guys if you make it that far. Also if the first date IS just coffee and you've both agreed to have a second date, the second date kind of counts in the you need to plan it category, since it is at that point the first real date. If you and the girl are both looking for a long term relationship and you cannot be bothered to plan 1.5 dates in the beginning it is a giant red flag about your energy level, intellect, excitement about the girl, or actual interest in working on a relationship.

8) Don't yell at her. If your first email exchange shows that she is not the girl for you, a big ole ranty email won't accomplish anything. If you are the type of person who is EVER tempted to go off on women on dating sites then you really, really need to spend some time with yourself and a good therapist. This is not normal. If you want to yell at a girl because she isn't into you, or because girls have so many silly rules, or you think all women are superficial sluts, or because you think they hate your job, you need some help. Any woman who gets these bizarre yelly emails knows exactly what it means about what you would be like in a relationship.

9) Respect her communication boundaries. If your first email to her is an invitation to talk on the phone, and she says she wants to email once or twice first, relax. If you want to meet before she does, have sex before she does, etc, you have got to be able to respect her boundaries. If you can't do that in the beginning it is really clear you won't be doing it later. I'm not saying that it's ok to get sucked into 3 weeks of emails; online dating, like any other initial relationship, should have an escalating pattern of communication and intimacy and should lead fairly quickly to a first meeting so that the two of you can establish if there is any real life chemistry. The point here is that your first 3 messages shouldn't be pressuring her to comunicate outside the intial 'safety' of the dating site. Remember, the woman you are talking to has many many guys emailing her, some of whom are complete assholes and/or serial killers, and she is trying to make sure that you don't fall into those categories. Yes you are excited about her and want to get to know her but be appreciative of that slight difference in context. Also, if you are too lazy to write 1-3 decent emails in an ONLINE DATING SITE you might want to try singles bars.

10) Read. Her. Profile. There is a reason that dating sites have those giant profile sections and are not just lists of pictures for you to choose from, and that reason is that women are actual people with preferences, wants, desires, and thoughts. We are not just faces attached to empty heads and blow up doll bodies. If you want that SHOP ELSEWHERE. Sorry to get so shouty about that but the whole point of having picture + self description is so that you can get an idea of what someone is like and what they are looking for to help figure out if it is a good match. I spent a whole 15 minutes writing my ridiculously clever profile, do not just email me and ask me to describe myself. I already DID. So when 15 guys email me in one week to ask me questions that are answered in my profile I think, hmmm, gosh I want these winners. (No, really, I don't. I ignore). If you don't read her profile she thinks that you are a) functionally illiterate b) just looking for sex c) too lazy to spend 5 mins reading basic information d) too stupid to understand her. You can imagine how attractive that isn't. If you do read her profile please pay attention to what she says she wants and ask yourself, honestly, if you think she won't notice/care that you are 15 years older than she says she wants. If a woman sets an age range most are willing to go 2-3 years outside it but not more than a decade. If she wanted an older dude she would say so, so please, please stop trying.

Please stop

The joy of dating sites - among other things - is the fact that you can message or wink at someone and if they are interested, they respond, but if they are not interested they can just politely ignore it. Most people understand this and just move on. Occasionally you'll get a real wacko who will berate you for not answering - because tying to force people to like you usually ends well - but 98% of the time it works out decently for everyone. If someone has really put a lot of time/effort into their message and I'm not into it, I might send back something polite but usually I hate to encourage someone if there is no chance. As most women have realized by now, some guys will take literally anything as encouragement.

Like this guy. Every time I've tried online dating I've had someone like this at least once. This guy takes your silence to mean 'please message me more, your attempts to woo me will eventually win me over IF YOU JUST KEEP AT IT.' I have no idea what he would do if I DID respond; possibly hunt me down and saw off my leg so he could hump it at home or, depending on how crazy he is, maybe lose interest entirely (yay)! More often than not, however, communicating just causes the crazy to escalate. As much as I enjoy a good confrontation, feeling as I do that it cleans out the pipes, I tend not to do so with clearly unstable males online who have access to my picture.

Anyway. Message #1 (remember, my OKC profile says You should message me if... "You aren't batshit crazy"). Also, I talk about bacon flavored popcorn, because if you've had it, you would too. This message isn't so bad:

"Bacon Flavored Popcorn!
Jul. 14, 2010 – 2:18pm No friggin' way!

I've heard of chocolate covered bacon but popcorn. Where do you get it? Do you have to meet some guy behind a convenient store? Hook me up!

:D,
(boy name)"

Slightly amusing, but the profile picture is creepy, not cute, and oddly lit. Like maybe his camera filter has been rinsed recently in blood (scary!). His profile is also really weird, and not in a fun way. So I ignore him.

2 days later, message 2:

"Watchadoin?
Jul. 16, 2010 – 10:18pm :)

(boy name)

I'm not Batshit Crazy. I know because I've dated Batshit Crazy and I'm not it. lol."

Thus proving that self-awareness is not a life skill he has managed to pick up along the way. More ignoring.

Yesterday, I updated my You Should Message Me section to add, underneath Not Batshit Crazy, the following: "You are an alpha male" and "You are not easily confused", because I am tired of the emails asking me what batshit crazy is.

Today I received message 3 from this poor misguided dude:

"So far I should still message you.
Jul. 20, 2010 – 7:56pm Batshit crazy. Nope
Alpha male. Check (but not type A)
And what was the last one? Uhh, wait, lemme look it up... Darn.

How 'bout two of three. :shrug:

;)
(boy name) "

AGAIN WITH THE MASSIVE FAILURE. You are batshit crazy if you continue to message a woman who is clearly, unequivocally, and adamantly ignoring the shit out of you. You are obviously confused if you think emailing her again is going to work. It won't.

I do not want to talk to you. I think it is horrible that I might have to respond to you to tell you that I don't want to talk to you. That feels all wrong and squicky and I don't want you to think that leg stealing/humping would be the next logical step in our non-relationship.

Please, just stop. Do not inflict your crazy on me because at some point I will be tempted to respond with MY crazy, which is a thing that you do not want.

Best email ever

The OKCupid dating site has a section in your profile that says 'You should message me if...' and you fill in the blank. I wrote 'You should message me if you're not batshit crazy', thinking, if anyone doesn't get that they really should not be contacting me. This is an email I received an hour after setting up my profile. I've copied and pasted it so please don't think I'm exaggerating, it was exactly this:

"hey
Jul. 13, 2010 – 11:30pm Babe what the hell is batshit crazy?? lmao. If you weren't hot I'd think your crazy hehe. jk :-)"

I'm hot AND crazy, and I know the difference between your and you're.

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