I'll be the first to admit that over the last year, I jumped into the online dating scene and found it infinitely easier meeting people this way. You name it, I've probably tried it once--Match, Connexion, the seedier sites like Adam4Adam and Manhunt, and even the Time Out New York singles issue. However, the inability of almost all of my friends to keep a straight face after hearing this shows that there is still definitely a stigma attached to the concept.
As a guy in their mid-20s, I grew up with the internet. We all remember AOL chat rooms, the socially inept people trolling them, and the attrociously bad grammar and spelling (how many times did you come across someone telling you they wanted to "suk ur big fat clock?") . The main assumption is that 15 years later, it's still the same game and that anybody who uses these sites isn't able to get laid on their own.
However, in a major metropolitan city like New York, online dating is almost essential. Imagine walking into a bar. Now imagine walking into a bar and being able to determine which people were looking for sex, and which people were open to a relationship. Of course, it's possible to lie on your profile (or simply be unaware of what you really want), but I've found that dating sites are a really effective way of weeding out the bullshit.
My dates are also far less of a trainwreck experience than they were when I was picking people up at clubs. I still know where all the fire exits are before sitting down at the restaurant or bar, and there's been more than one occasion where I've excused myself to use the bathroom and slipped out the back door. By and large though, I'm at least able to get through the night comfortably, and occasionally another date with that person happens.
However, I honestly believe that internet dating has worsened the already rampant Peter Pan syndrome in New York. It's not enough for there to be so many beautiful people in this city that I walk into work with a boner half the time. Now, dating has become like shopping for a car. At the click of a button, you can find out somebody's age, height, ethnicity, cock size, and whether they're a top or a bottom (if it's a gay site). Some people also have shirtless, or fully nude pictures on their page, so you get the goods without even having to buy them a drink. Sweet!
As much as I'd like to think otherwise, George Clooney isn't going to bang on my door and beg to take me out to dinner. There's inevitably going to be something about the person I'm dating that I find weird or pisses me off, and vice-versa. It's just a question of whether these issues matter in the big picture. To use two recent examples, having Paris Hilton and High School Musical on your iPod is something I can live with (although will definitely be worked on). Having rampant back hair is not.
Thus, the conundrum of online dating (and dating in general here). How do you search for the closest thing to perfection for your own life, while also maintaining a semi-realistic attitude?
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