When ‘Goodbye’ Is A Click Away

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I resigned from Internet dating with mixed feelings and tried hard to sidestep being upset. After all, this was a venture that I had chosen. Besides, I did meet some new friends, ones I can e-mail about the weather in Nebraska or their hopes for a Democratic president. And I'm sure all the find-your-true-love sites work for a sufficient number of folks or there wouldn't be so many sites or so many people hopping on the bandwagon. I just wonder about the others out there in cyberspace who made the same gutsy gamble and found themselves back on an identical starting square. Plenty of my Saturday nights are still spent alone, sometimes even surfing the Web, but not for a reasonable facsimile of love or with any illusions of a high-speed solution. And I'll continue to take my chances with dating, but I think I'll leave the computer in standby mode. I just like the odds better.

Thomas lives in Mt. Pleasant, Pa.

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Posted By: JLThomas @ 05/20/2008 7:26:12 AM

I've added an essay/thoughts blog if anyone is interested: jackieleethomas.wordpress.com
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Posted By: JL Thomas @ 05/19/2008 6:32:57 AM

Theresa,
I don't know what made me check this site this morning, but I was surprised to see such a recent comment.
I understand completely how you feel, and I also have those same thoughts...will I be alone forever? Am I somehow supposed to be alone? I don't have any answers, but I trust that everything is as it should be. I've simply learned that online dating is not the fix-all solution. If it works for some people, great. But all the unanswered emails and dinners within 50 miles of your zip code are rarely memorable. I hold faith in the balance of life, love, and all the possibilities of each day. In Ann Lamott's book, Faith Eventually, a friend tells her that real prayer is asking to be changed in ways you can't imagine. I think on this often.
Hang in there and take care, know you aren't alone.
Jackie Thomas
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Posted By: iluv2ksu @ 05/17/2008 1:56:34 PM

I must say, when my mother came over and thrusted the paper into my lap and said read this...I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Reading the article I felt as if I was reading my own life out loud. I have tried online dating and the conclusion I have come to is that perhaps some people online aren't really looking for their one true soulmate but just someone to spend time with. And believe me when I say there is nothing wrong with spending time with someone, but what's wrong with a little romance anyway? I have had the exchange of emails, and let's meet...so you drive an hour away to talk to someone for hours only to find out they already have a partner...so they become really great friends. The more friends the better, right? But still some nights sneek up on me and maybe, just maybe I am only making myself crazy by thinking...Am I going to be alone forever? But, if you do happen to read this, just know you are not alone in the dating pool...perhaps one day it will happen, or it will get easier living alone. Take care...Theresa NJ