I had a date last week with someone I met on-line. Those of you have followed my blog for some time know of my ambivalence regarding on-line dating and this latest experience reinforced those feelings. She was a perfectly nice person, but we didn’t seem to click when it came time to sit at a table with each other. The lack of context that you have going into these dates is one of the things that frustrates me about the whole on-line scene. All either of us has to go on are a few e-mail messages that occur in a sort of digital vacuum that is devoid of mannerisms, body language, all of our subconscious ways of describing ourselves to the people around us. Of course, that’s probably also the biggest advantage of on-line dating. Another person’s impression of me might be dramatically different if they meet me first through e-mail rather than in person. And I’m not just referring to my disability, although that’s definitely part of my personal context that doesn’t really come across on-line. Whether or not that part of me is significant when another person is forming an opinion of me, I’m still not sure.
But I do know that if I ever get a new iPod, I’m totally loading it up with Knight Rider episodes! Now if only iTunes would start distributing reruns of Manimal, all would be right with the universe.
