Thou Shalt Always…

let the woman choose the first spot for a blind date.
Sorry, David (a.k.a. Dad’s House, the adorable single daddy blogger) I can’t resist using you as an example of what not to do when arranging a blind date with a woman you met online. Believe me, I’ve made worse dating mistakes, but your case is [...]

Why online dating gets a bad name…

Here are some personals ads I found on Craigslist tonight. Went here on purpose knowing I would find gold!

Breakfast in Bed? (Yuck!!! – I don’t want to see ANYONE at 5:00am, let alone a stranger.)

Consider getting to know me over breakfast in bed? I know this sounds completely out of the ordinary and you probably are thinking “OK I know where this is going”, but hold on. Seriously, breakfast in bed with a stranger. We set the boundaries, determine the proper attire for our breakfast in bed date and then order the food. I love the early morning hours so would like to do this between 5:00 and 7:00 am (I suppose I have just lost most of you). I want to sit side by side, pillow behind our backs, trays on our laps, fresh brewed coffee aroma swirling through the air, toast and jelly, perhaps eggs and bacon, OJ and some giggly laughter. After breakfast we get up and head off to meet the day.

Are you adventourous enough to join me?

Does your online dating profile need a make over?

In lieu of yesterday’s sarcastic and totally fake personals ad that some of you actually took seriously, I want to pass on some tips on the right way to write a personals ad for dating online.

Online Dating Profile Tips

1. Be honest with yourself. What are deal breakers? What must you have and what would you like to have? Try to express these and then you’ll be on a roll.

2. Be funny. Don’t take yourself too seriously, but at the same time don’t go over the top with lame jokes.

3. Don’t post a picture of yourself with your shirt off. Please…oh, and drop the pics of you and your best friend Suzy snuggling up in a restraurant booth together.

4. Don’t brag about your amazing book collection and please don’t tell me how much you love to have candlelit dinners and slow walks on the beach.

5. Pick an appealing username. Don’t kill yourself with a play on words…try a play on something like your street name or your dog’s name. Please, whatever you do don’t pick anything like “BigJohnForYou.”

6. BE REAL.

FYI: I refuse to do online dating again after my past experiences with eHarmony. And after all it’s Spring – there are men every where. The coffee shop, the book store, the park …

Here’s my list on the Top Spots for Single Mamas to Meet Men. Thought it deserved another look now that spring has sprung.

What are your profile writing tips? I am definitely not an expert…I am an expert browser. So I am an authority in telling guys what not to post, as most of us women are … but guys – what do you see on the other side in profiles that turns you off?

Do you keep up with your ex on MySpace or Facebook?

Crazy how MySpace and Facebook have changed the way we date. In just a few seconds you can scope out your ex’s relationship status, flirtatous comments and daily activities. Twitter makes it even worse. Maybe I should go on a delete binge tonight.

How often do you delete your the Ex-Profiles on MySpace and Facebook? Can you do it? Do you think I can?

Deleting an ex is like permanently severing all ties…but then I think of the ex’s who were my friends – the ones I genuinely want to stay in touch with. And then I think of the sting when I see their “latest activity.”

I vote for delete.

Breaking News: A really, really cool single parent network!

Yes..it’s really cool. I am SO incredibly excited about this and can’t believe I stumbled across it.
Check out “I Heart Single Parents.com”, a brand new social network for single parents. Join and you can make your own page, much like MySpace and Facebook but the members are all single parents. Once you join search for [...]

How to escape a bad date.

This is hysterical. My best friend and fellow single mama, Abby, went out on a date with a guy she found on Yahoo Personals. She’s been dating quite a bit since her recent break up. Yes, she’s very brave. Anyway…the date was a dud. A total flop. His voice was weird and as Abby put it, “there was something weird about his lips.” Ha!

So she runs to the bathroom and calls me.

“Okay. It’s horrible, call me back and get me out of this.”

“Seriously?” I ask, “Can’t you just tell him you’re not interested?”

“No! Call me. Now!” Then she hangs up the phone.

I hate doing this because I’m not a fan of lying to fellow singles. We’re all in this together. But, hey, she’s my best friend and a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do. So I call.

How to change or hide your MySpace or Facebook relationship status

To change your relationship status on MySpace:

1. Go to Background & Lifestyle

2. And – whalah – you’re there. Sounds so easy but filing your relationship under “background and lifestyle” can be a bit misleading. The first time I had to change my status on MySpace it took me at least 15 minutes to figure it out…I was scrolling through every tab – so frustrating. Anyway there you go.

To change your relationship status on Facebook:

E-Harmony Really Does Suck: Worst web site of the year by Time Magazine

My experience with E-Harmony over the past year has been a continuous disappointment. I think it’s one of the biggest scams out there, preying on innocent singles who are truly looking for love. Therefore, I want to keep getting the word out there to avoid the site all together. Instead sites like Yahoo Personals and Match.com have served myself and my friends much better. Because in the end, the E-Harmony matching system is a joke.

Online Dating Etiquette: How to break up…virtually.

The adventure continues.
My single mama friend has already been on date #1 from Yahoo Personals. The man in question had so many things in common with her. They both love reading, writing, the same bar scene, etc. She followed my advice, met for coffee, and had a wonderful time. But there was no spark. Alas, [...]

E-harmony Dating Review: for the single parent or any other dater

Okay. Let me just preface this by saying, I went into this online dating thing with total enthusiasm and a very open mind. After all, I’ve heard that friends of friends have actually gotten engaged after meeting online. And with very little free time on my hands – why not try it out? I started out as a voyeur. I would scope out the men on Match.com. They all look like loser players, so I move on to EHarmony. Those commercials are just so enticing. Could those people be real? They have to be, right? So I sign up. I take the super personality tests of all personality tests and then wait as my matches come in.