Dating Online - Quite an Experience

Dating online has changed the dating world for quite a number of single people. With so many dating websites out there, it's not hard to find one to meet your particular needs. Just like in real life, the tricky part is finding the right person to connect with.

About six months ago, I found myself dating online. I met some nice guys but it seemed that those guys I wanted to see again didn't necessarily feel the same way. Those who pursued me were the ones I had weeded out the moment I saw their screen name or the picture that screamed, "I'm a 44-year-old dude living in my mom's basement!" One particularly obnoxious guy took me out for Japanese, was rude to the server and then told me that he would leave the tip if I paid for dinner. Still, I knew that there were people who found love by dating online. Two of my best friends met on eHarmony and they are perfect together. If they could find each other, there was hope for me too.

In my determination, I kept at it. Maybe it was time to shake things up and try a different dating site. After spending too much time creating my new profile at Yahoo Personals, my new profile was online. Then I saw his picture. He had long hair and thoughtful eyes, the kind that look like they are smiling at you all by themselves. But it was his crooked smile that I recognized. He was a boyfriend from years before. I couldn't even remember how it had ended all those years ago, so I couldn't guess whether he would want to talk to me. But he was here too and anything was possible. It only took a few days before I noticed that he had viewed my online profile. Trying to be coy, I made myself private so he wouldn't notice me looking at him.

Day after day, he visited my profile. Finally, I couldn't take the suspense anymore. The time had come to send him a message. Imagine my surprise when his only response was "Thanks, I liked your message." Of course, I soon learned that this was a canned response from the dating website, which was all that a non-paying member had the ability to send. In just a few days, there was email in my mailbox from him--a real email rather than a canned response. He purchased a membership and told me that he had to see me again.

Dating online was a great experience for me, in the end. I was able to reconnect with an old flame and not a single week has gone by that we haven't spent most of our time together. He might have been anyone, not necessarily someone I once knew. The only difference is that the comfort level was there; the memories were there. After all these years, we met each other again but this time, it was thanks to Internet dating.