NTSC-RePlay 018: First Dates II

[Neon Ignition]

The relationships thread has had some truly glorious moments of posting in its time but likewise, as the average age of the sites userbase rises the amount of relationship turbulence also declines. As such, the thread has grown much quieter over the past couple of years with more and more users settled down now.

On 25 October 2009, supergoal was partially seeking some advice on first dates and the awkwardness of these occasions. With thirteen years having passed since the thread was first posted it's time to revisit.

This isn't NTSC-UK.... it's NTSC-RePlay


What are your first dates tales?
If you are single or if you found yourself single again how would you go about dating in the modern era?
How do you think it would go?

[Asura]

What are your first dates tales?

Honestly I've had the whole gamut. Good, bad, nightmarish. Went on a lot of blind dates/did online dating before it was the norm, in the 00s.

I had a sugar momma at one point, briefly good times.

But ultimately I've been with Blobcat for years now, and weirdly we didn't really have a "first date" (we knew each other for a long time beforehand).

[endo]

Anyone got the Pizza Hut/voucher date debacle to hand?

[CMcK]

I separated from my partner of about 20 years late in 2019. Modern dating post pandemic is a world away from what I knew in the 90's. It could be the effects of the pandemic but people on there seem to be using the apps for validation making sure they are still attractive to others but with no intention of any progress.
Also, and I appreciate I am somewhat unusual in this respect, when it comes to exchanging real life contact details I'm stonewalled due to not using social media. I don't know if it's a bit of he's in the tinfoil hat brigade or just an easy let down excuse.

I have been on dates with people I've met via friends and have to admit I was super nervous before going on my first date in years. Worse than going for a job interview.

[QualityChimp]

My brother-in-law was single and using some dating apps, but mainly Tinder.
He was saying about how you swipe left or right, depending on if you liked their picture.
I know we all have a "type", but I couldn't imagine just writing someone off with the swipe of your thumb based on a 1 second glance.

He also said how he'd been thanked on one date for not looking at Tinder whilst on the date, which is what has happened previously.

It feels like modern mobile dating has introduced its own set of conventions that this dinosaur would struggle to adapt to.
For this, I'm grateful I'm still happily married!

[Neon Ignition]

Dating is the worst, there's precious little about it that's enjoyable so it amazes me some people love that part and struggle with the relationships phase that follows. I've never really been on a date, the closest would be when I met up with my now wife but we'd know each other for 6 months or so already at that point so whilst there were a lot of nerves there was also some ground behind us too.

Online dating used to and still does feel like it's done nothing but harm for people meeting and I wonder how my kids will find the process by the time they get to the relevant age (though I suppose it will appear normal to them).

[Neon Ignition]

I had an online dating profile once and got nowhere so I don't think being even more photo-based a process would benefit me at all

->Open Spoiler<-

SWIPE LEFT!






SWIPE LEFT!






SWIPE LEFT!




SWIPE LEFT!







PHWOAR! SWIPE RIGHT! DING DONG!

[Asura]

My brother-in-law was single and using some dating apps, but mainly Tinder.
He was saying about how you swipe left or right, depending on if you liked their picture.
I know we all have a "type", but I couldn't imagine just writing someone off with the swipe of your thumb based on a 1 second glance.

Yeah, but surely people using Tinder for proper dates are doing it wrong? Tinder's what you use if you want to meet up with someone for sex.

[Hirst]

I guess I didn't technically date my missus as I knew her via a friend, but I took her to IKEA as I needed some extra shelves for a Billy bookcase, she'd never been and ultimately I did like her so I just wanted an excuse. Was it a date? I don't know, but it all worked out in the end and I'm very happy.

The only real "standard" dates I could say I've ever been on were with a Chinese student girl I helped with directions when she was lost. Had a coffee and talked for an hour, went well enough. Met up again for another and had a walk around town, but I think we didn't really have much of a connection, basically just not much in common. It wasn't embarrassing or unpleasant or anything, so not very interesting to post about.

I was able to see what online dating looked like years ago when some poor chump did a typo and used my Email address for their dating account. I left it about a week, then reset their password and had a snoop around. They'd had zero responses (no profile photo and the hundreds of messages sent out were variations of "hey"). To be honest, it looked an awful place. Just loads of pictures of women at parties and "I love to laugh and have fun" or "I am what I am" (Popeye?).

[Atticus]

Popeye, lol

[QualityChimp]

Yeah, but surely people using Tinder for proper dates are doing it wrong? Tinder's what you use if you want to meet up with someone for sex.

This was a while back and there wasn't as much competition and it wasn't seen so much as a hookup site then.
I think Plenty Of Fish was more like that then.

Another (female) friend was telling me how she was on PoF and regularly had messages just saying "show me your tits" and she explained how that was degrading to one guy, but he said "Don't worry, you don't have to show me your face" like that made it better!
[MENTION=7652]Hirst[/MENTION], I thought couples went to IKEA to argue?

[endo]

Hot date in IKEA, followed by a voucherlicious Pizza Hut on the way home?

[Hirst]

Nothing wrong with IKEA once you know all the shortcuts through the store to get straight to the end for the hot dog counter.

[Hirst]

Hot date in IKEA, followed by a voucherlicious Pizza Hut on the way home?

I stopped getting pizzas when my usual place put them up to £11.99 for 3. At least their old deal from 2017 lives on in old Google Streetview.



Just think, three pizzas for £9.99. You could get one for the first date, then save the other two for future dates.

[QualityChimp]

Nothing wrong with IKEA once you know all the shortcuts through the store to get straight to the end for the hot dog counter.

Sounds like Hirst knows all the shortcuts to get that sausage ASAP.