I have a friend in the dating scene who (like most of us) uses e-mail, texts, Facebook, carrier pigeons, and every other modern convenience to communicate with prospective suitors. (Okay, maybe not carrier pigeons.)
Recently, she told me about a guy she met at a friend's birthday party. (So quaint!) They hit it off, and immediately started communicating over Facebook, the Internet's premiere spot for baby photos and personality quizzes. He wrote her about making plans, she responded, and he ended up taking days to get back to her. Don't misunderstand--he was interested in going out with her. But under the safe, Snuggie-like cocoon of social networking, the guy got lazy. So very, very lazy. And it hit me-- social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace have created some seriously lazy daters.
In the olden days, if you wanted to ask a gal out for a malted beverage or a screening of the latest Ann Margaret picture, you had to actually walk over to the phone and physically "dial" the numbers on your giant rotary phone. Guys today think it's perfectly fine to set up a date over e-mail, text, or Twitter status message. (What, you've never been asked out in 140 characters or less?) And maybe you're fine with that. E-mail, Facebook messages, and the like are a great way to get to know someone. But apparently dating etiquette gets thrown out the window in the virtual world. The "wait three days to call" rule has been adapted to "wait a week to e-mail her." E-mail is casual, right? Everyone takes time to get back to their Facebook messages. What's the big deal? Ironic that these instantaneous methods of communication have breed so much laziness.
There are so many choices for getting in touch these days. Guys can set up a coffee date over e-mail with their iPhone while also IMing with a friend and watching Dexter at the same time. So why can't they just pick up the phone? If a guy isn't using his minutes on you, he's probably not worth the time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to update my Twitter followers on the status of this delicious sandwich I'm eating.
Recently, she told me about a guy she met at a friend's birthday party. (So quaint!) They hit it off, and immediately started communicating over Facebook, the Internet's premiere spot for baby photos and personality quizzes. He wrote her about making plans, she responded, and he ended up taking days to get back to her. Don't misunderstand--he was interested in going out with her. But under the safe, Snuggie-like cocoon of social networking, the guy got lazy. So very, very lazy. And it hit me-- social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace have created some seriously lazy daters.
In the olden days, if you wanted to ask a gal out for a malted beverage or a screening of the latest Ann Margaret picture, you had to actually walk over to the phone and physically "dial" the numbers on your giant rotary phone. Guys today think it's perfectly fine to set up a date over e-mail, text, or Twitter status message. (What, you've never been asked out in 140 characters or less?) And maybe you're fine with that. E-mail, Facebook messages, and the like are a great way to get to know someone. But apparently dating etiquette gets thrown out the window in the virtual world. The "wait three days to call" rule has been adapted to "wait a week to e-mail her." E-mail is casual, right? Everyone takes time to get back to their Facebook messages. What's the big deal? Ironic that these instantaneous methods of communication have breed so much laziness.
There are so many choices for getting in touch these days. Guys can set up a coffee date over e-mail with their iPhone while also IMing with a friend and watching Dexter at the same time. So why can't they just pick up the phone? If a guy isn't using his minutes on you, he's probably not worth the time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to update my Twitter followers on the status of this delicious sandwich I'm eating.
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