Online dating is pretty commonplace now, but it’s so slow, you guys. You know, you have to get on the Internet, look at people’s profiles, send a message, wait to get a message back, decide to meet, and then pick a time and a place. I mean, that whole process could take hours — days even! What if you are hankering to meet your true love right this second?
Don’t worry because geo-location dating is here to save the day! Sites like Cupid Radar and Match.com can match you with people based on your current location. For example, if you’re at Starbucks and notice a lot of cute single guys around, you can log on to a site like Cupid Radar, and it will show you other subscribers who are at or near your current spot. You can send them a quick message, which they’ll receive instantly, and they can message you back. (The messaging happens through the site, so the stranger doesn’t receive your phone number or personal info.) I imagine the messages going something like this: “Hey, you’re here! I’m here, too! Let’s fall in love, OK? OK!” If you’re both game, you can decide to meet up in an instant — you’ll no longer be lonely at Starbucks!
It takes online dating to a whole new level, and it certainly fits with our society’s need for instant gratification. It could be a good way to meet up with someone of similar interests — if you’re both hanging out at a bookstore, you may be standing just inches away from someone who shares your love of 18th-century mystery novels. And a lot of those dating sites send you matches that live far away; it might be nice to be matched with people you know you can meet immediately.
I can’t see myself signing up for geo-location dating, though. First of all, it feels a little creepy. I guess both parties have knowingly signed up for it, but something about it seems stalkerish to me. The idea of a guy I don’t know being able to text me from across the room feels a little too close for comfort. Secondly, I’m not sure that I’d want a potential date to just pop out at me from around the corner. What if I ran to Target on an errand, post workout? Not my best look, folks. We don’t need any potential boyfriend seeing what I look like after kickboxing until at least three or four dates in. And also, if this site is just going to match me with someone who’s a few feet away, why would I pay for this service when I could just go up and talk to a guy for free? People, if you’re at a bookstore and you see someone without a wedding ring flipping through your favorite novel, go up and say hello. You don’t need to engineer the meeting through your paid dating service. Technology is lovely, but we shouldn’t let it completely take away our social skills.
Anyway, I’m not sure it’s for me, but I could definitely see some pros and cons to geo-location dating. What do you all think? Have you heard of this? Have you tried it? Have you been instantly matched with the love of your life who happened to be sitting just a few feet away?
