Online dating?

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  • shady1987dre
    shady1987dre Posts: 186 Member
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    Sooo...I think I might be ready to start dating agin, has anyone had any luck with online dating? If so what sites??

    plentyoffish.com Meet my current GF there. Having our two year anniversary in August.
  • LizHowerton
    LizHowerton Posts: 329 Member
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    I met my honey on plentyoffish and it's been six wonderful years now, plus a ring, a house and a baby. He's my perfect match. But I met a lot of weirdos before I met him. I was actually logging on to delete my profile after a particularly horrific encounter when I saw his cute dimples smiling at me from the screen. I am SO GLAD I gave it one last shot!

    However, I agree with ashlinmarie 100% about the rules of engagement. I always met my "dates" during the day, in public. They did not know my phone number and they did not pick me or drive me home. No alcohol was involved ... EVER. And I always told a friend where I was going and when I would be back. Just in case. Because you never know.


    OMG -- This is the same thing as me -- I was about to delete my account, and had just been on there deleting messages, but for some reason I gave him a chance!!!


    My husband and I met through plentyoffish . And completely agree, on the advice. There are some nice guys, that just didn't click with, some nuttos, just be safe, meet in public and go with your gut feeling. I feel very fortunate to have met my hubby, we got married in April of this year. Good luck!
  • deniseearheart
    deniseearheart Posts: 919 Member
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    yahoo personals I met someone wonderful and was with him 4 years ...
  • JodiSW
    JodiSW Posts: 193 Member
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    I'm brand new here and this is my first post...about internet dating! Ha!

    All I can say is do it! I did it after I my divorce and had a blast! And six months ago I started dating someone exclusively that I met on Match. Here's my observations.

    Safety: Yes. Do tell people where you're going to be, with whom, and meet in public. But honestly, I'm guessing the odds that you're going to be murdered by someone you meet online are probably less than the danger of being murdered by someone you met in a bar or at a random event. At least there's some sort of paper trail. In the couple of years I did it (and I was going out a few times a week) I met LOTS of interesting and nice people. Only a few weirdos and not weird in the sense that I felt they were dangerous. Just a little...off...in their social skills.

    Eharmony: My experience on this site was lame and I don't recommend it. You have to pay and you can't look at other members' profiles. You have to answer a kajillion questions and then they send you who they think is a match. I was pretty particular on my answers and would only get a couple of matches every few days and was never interested in any of them. I never dated a single person from this site.

    Match: Match was great. Lot of nice people, the search features are wonderful and people have to pay with a credit card so there is definitely a safety feature built in that there's a financial paper trail on the users.

    OK Cupid: Free and lots of fun! People are a little more open and edgier (in a good way) than match.

    Plenty of Fish: Hmmmm...I went out with some nice people here but the mobile app always felt like I was surfing through mug shots. Lots of pictures that people took of themselves in the mirror with their cell phone...first thing in the morning...before they brushed their hair.
  • scorpiomfs
    scorpiomfs Posts: 167 Member
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    i met my prince on yahoo messanger in a city room. My girlfriend and i were on mic bashing men. He sent me a message and said : all men are not like that. It peaked my intrest and i heard him out . It will be 4 years together in Feb.
  • LilacDreamer
    LilacDreamer Posts: 1,365 Member
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    I had bad experiences in general. I dated a fella there for 4 months only to realize halfway through that he was on probation for statutory rape but I looked past that (for some reason, not sure why now). His mother forced him to break up with me (he was 24 years old). Let's just say I'm better off without it. Luckily my friend introduced me to my current boyfriend, a good man who loves me. But if I were to ever date again, I won't be using a dating site. I'd rather go on being single then date the crazy people on OkCupid. :/

    Not everyone is crazy on OkCupid....as I mentioned, I met my husband on there and we've been together (and living together) for 4 years, and married for 2.

    There ARE crazies everywhere...but not everyone falls into that category.
  • EmilyLStuart
    EmilyLStuart Posts: 172
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    I am on POF and after a couple weeks of being overwhelmed by crazies, rednecks, and wanna be gangstas, I realized I could hide my profile. That way, I can browse the guys but they can not see me until I contact them first. It is soooo much better this way! I am not sure if you can hide your profile on other sites, though.

    Unfortunately, online dating has sucked for me but I am in a very small area. Ive browsed bigger cities and there were a plethora of potential candidates...good luck to you!
  • cschu544
    cschu544 Posts: 320 Member
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    I had some bad experiences on plenty of fish as well. I gave it up, I figure I'll meet someone when I'm ready. I think the first step is going out more and being in situations where I can actually meet people..
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,248 Member
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    I met my husband online almost 13 years ago on a site that no longer exists.

    Really, it's no different than any other way of meeting people, except you get to weed out the weirdos before you have any (or much) contact with them. And you have the opportunity to meet people you might not ordinarily meet in everyday life. My husband lived in another state. The chances of me just casually bumping into him at the grocery store would have been pretty slim. :laugh:
  • LilacDreamer
    LilacDreamer Posts: 1,365 Member
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    I met my husband online almost 13 years ago on a site that no longer exists.

    Really, it's no different than any other way of meeting people, except you get to weed out the weirdos before you have any (or much) contact with them. And you have the opportunity to meet people you might not ordinarily meet in everyday life. My husband lived in another state. The chances of me just casually bumping into him at the grocery store would have been pretty slim. :laugh:

    Exactly. I was on Okcupid for 2 years and had talked to a lot of idiots and weirdos. On the day I met my husband, I was actually going to delete my profile because I was tired of OkC. Then I saw his picture and it looked hilarious...so clicked his profile and read his profile. He was really funny and random.

    He lived in New jersey and I lived in New york. I had only been to New jersey a few times (one of my cousins lives there) and as I found, he had only been to NY a few times...so the odds of us ever meeting were it not for Okcupid were incredibly slim.

    Infact it feels like everything had to fall in line for us to actually meet....for example. the fact that i went looking through the "new people to meet" section of the website instead of deleting my profile right away as I intended. it was all very, very odd and kind of exciting. :)
  • Erisad
    Erisad Posts: 1,580
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    I had bad experiences in general. I dated a fella there for 4 months only to realize halfway through that he was on probation for statutory rape but I looked past that (for some reason, not sure why now). His mother forced him to break up with me (he was 24 years old). Let's just say I'm better off without it. Luckily my friend introduced me to my current boyfriend, a good man who loves me. But if I were to ever date again, I won't be using a dating site. I'd rather go on being single then date the crazy people on OkCupid. :/

    Not everyone is crazy on OkCupid....as I mentioned, I met my husband on there and we've been together (and living together) for 4 years, and married for 2.

    There ARE crazies everywhere...but not everyone falls into that category.

    I know. I just have a bad taste in my mouth after realizing that they allow convicted rapists on the websites. They should publish a criminal history with it just so you know what you're getting into. My best friend met her husband on there but I guess she got lucky and I only attracted the creepy *kitten* who wanted to send me pictures of their genitals. In any event, I have a good man now so it doesn't matter. :)
  • PamelaB43
    PamelaB43 Posts: 50 Member
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    I agree with you not my thing either. I had tried it and met lots of creeps. Some people have lots of luck. I didnt and it was a total waste of my time. I met a couple nice guys but no conection. The rest just seemed like they wanted sex and that was pretty much it. I say be careful as people lie but then again people can lie to you if you meet them at a bar as well. It just is not for me but to each their own.
  • AbbeyRysMom
    AbbeyRysMom Posts: 101 Member
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    Never did a site, but I met my husband on the internet when I was 12!! He was 13, lol. He found me though AOL search, i lived in his area and we had a common interest. Turned out, we lived a block away from each other and I went to school with a good friend of his. We started dating when I was 14 and he was 16, and now we've been married for almost 8 years, wih 2 kiddos. It can happen!
  • PamelaB43
    PamelaB43 Posts: 50 Member
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    Dating sites are ****. That's just my own thought and opinion. Good luck.


    I must say I 100% agree with you I had some bad experiences and huge waste of my time but some people have luck.
  • Jb8885
    Jb8885 Posts: 126
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    I'm currently single but I met a few great guys off match.com and one of my friends is getting married to an awesome guy from eharmony. there's also been some really cool people on here that are nice to converse with :) Good luck and happy dating!
  • vingogly
    vingogly Posts: 1,785 Member
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    You'll also meet weirdos in bars, or in the grocery store. For that matter, you can meet plenty of weirdos in church.

    I've known people over the years who have married folks they met through online dating sites, through services, and through personal ads. My advice is: make sure you meet in a neutral and public location until you're convinced the person is safe. Weird is one thing, dangerous is another. Not to make you paranoid, but the BTK serial killer was president of the congregational council at his local Lutheran church, and a Cub Scout leader.
  • Muldactus
    Muldactus Posts: 6,972 Member
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    I met my SO on OKCupid.com, and I have to say that I believe it's a bit better than POF (which I've also used). We introduced her best friend to OKCupid, and she met someone that she's already falling madly in love with.

    OKCupid has a number of question that you answer and attach a priority to. Assuming you answer your questions publically, you can compare your answers with those of a particular suitor and get an idea of how compatible you are in areas that are important to you. A lot of the questions are just weird ("If you take a left-handed glove and turn it inside out, does it fit on the left hand or the right hand?"), but a lot of the questions are good for weeding out people who's priorities, likes or beliefs are completely different than your own. You can also rate the question's level of importance to you - anywhere from not at all important (I don't care how someone answers about the glove), to Manditory (If they don't agree with me on XX then it's not someone I'm going to be compatible with or happy with).

    Some advice for anyone trying it:

    Be honest and open in your profile about what you're wanting. If you're not interested in a serious relationship, SAY SO. If you're not interested in a hookup, or a FWB situation, SAY SO - and mention that you won't respond to messages looking for that. If there's a specific thing you're after, mention it - a common one women mention is something like "I'm 5'-8" and I love to wear heels, so if you're shorter than 6'-0", I'm not going to be interested". Some of those things can seem a bit shallow, but if it's what you need/want to be happy, then mention it.

    If you have pets that you intend to keep, mention them - there are people allergic to them, and it's nice to know that up front. Conversely, if you're the one who's allergic, mention that.

    Give an idea of the types of things you enjoy doing. It sucks to get into a conversation with someone and really start to like them, then find out they're a COMPLETE homebody and never leave the house when you're the type of person who enjoys taking international trips once or twice a year.

    Don't assume anything - about your own profile or anyone elses. If it's important to you, mention it. If the answer to a question has a strong meaning or value to you, write a comment on it explaining it.


    I did the online dating thing for almost 3 years before I found the wonderful lady that I'm with now. It CAN work, but it can also take time. Sometimes it goes well, just not well enough. Sometimes it goes...... eh. Sometimes it goes badly. If you're interested in giving it a try, talk to someone who's tried it and get advice, suggestions, or ask questions. I imagine most of us would be perfectly willing to listen and give what advice we can - myself included. Feel free to add me and ask.

    -Sterling
  • laceyslady
    laceyslady Posts: 88 Member
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    I met the love of my life on match.com 9 years ago.
    you have to be very careful and use lots of common sence when
    meeting someone form the internet the first time. make it public and
    day time!
    good luck
  • danger_kitteh
    danger_kitteh Posts: 301 Member
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    Met my husband 12 years ago online through an HTML based chat site. We've been married 10 years :)
  • BandedTriaRN
    BandedTriaRN Posts: 303
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    I met my husband on a now defunct chat site in 1993 and we married one year later. Best thing that ever happened to me but there are a LOT of insane people out there so be careful, only meet in public, etc, etc. Good luck:)

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