Anyone met someone naturally in their 30s?

[Mothersbeenabadgirl]

I despise online apps, they've never got me anywhere whatsoever, just time wasters.
I'm 33, I just want someone who's sweet, kinda geeky, easy to get on with and has stuff in common, someone who makes me laugh.
I would just like it to happen naturally and develop.
I do parkrun but people don't seem up for talking, the ones who go for the coffee after always seem to be 60+, nothing wrong with that but not my age range.
I like art, cinema, gigs and so on.
The thing is I am quite confident, I've no issue approaching men or asking them out.
People say I'm 'sweet' and sadly I feel like a lot of men seem to want someone who's a bit 'harder' :(
I just feel Iike it won't happen :(

I work in the Civil Service in a massive office. There are likely men there, but people kinda stay within their teams and the good ones seem to be taken :(

I met my DH at 35 in a sports club. Team sport and roughly equal men/ women. Lots of social nights. This was nearly 20 years ago so lots has changed I guess.

I think online is more the norm now for meeting people. I resorted to it as didn't seem to find anyone naturally - I thought because maybe people aren't really looking when they're doing normal things

That sounds good, I may give it a go :)
I only have 2 male friends sadly, one who's gay, and the other is someone I talk to a lot and like, but we work together and he's kinda hot and cold :(

Many of my friends are married to people from online and I know it can work. But I seem to be really unlucky on it, the men just seem to want one thing, or last week I had someone randomly cancel with some rubbish excuse, or they'll just stop talking randomly.

Yep I did! We met at work, I was 33 and he was 28. Took two years before it finally happened though! Very happy together. It can definitely happen in real life!

That's lovely :) so were you friends for 2 years first? How did it happen?

I was having a conversation with a close friend not long ago about this. We are in our late 30s. She is in a similar situation to you re. being fed up with OLD, but also wondering how else she will meet anyone. We (sadly) concluded that almost all of our friends / siblings who are in long term, committed relationships, either met their DP / DH / DW many years ago, at school / university, or more recently via OLD.

My advice to her was to join Meetups, I was briefly on this pre covid and then it all went quiet during covid. I haven’t met a partner there, but could see that this may be a way to meet someone outside of OLD. I also met a very close (female) friend on a meetup.

Never say no to an invite to a colleagues party, barbeque or even kids party . Siblings night out , party . You never know who's gonna introduce you to the love of your life ! Never turn down an invitation .

I met my DH on a weekend away with friends- he was seeing someone else at the time - so nothing happened but the spark was there and we got together a few months later.

I second this! When I was single ( long before internet dating became a big thing) I accepted invitations and went out with friends; wasn't going to go one night as I was broke, and I'd been out with friends the night before, went anyway, and met my now husband. It's our 25th wedding anniversary this year! We met in a nightclub, doesn't sound ideal, but we clicked. Just be open to a variety of different things. You never know who you'll meet.

I was 40 when I met DH at a friend's BBQ party while on holiday in the country in which she lives. I also had the motto never say no to an invite at that time, glad I did.

I met my now DH at a boardgame cafe "meet up" event three years ago. I too was utterly fed up with OLD and related shenanigans. Good hunting ground for geeks!

Try meet up for social groups and go to make friends, you may meet a chap!

I met DH when I was 32 and he was 36. He was a former colleague of my best friend, and the night I met him he was with another friend of a friend. Actually it’s more surprising I’d never met him before.

I kind of did. He'd been my brother's friend for years then we went to the wedding of a mutual friend, and he decided to make a move. We were married less than 2 years later (I had known him over a decade after all).

By the way one of those sixty yr olds who go for coffee might just have given birth to the love of your life . So maybe not a bad idea to go for a coffee and get to know them 😏

Join a running club - lots sweet, geeky blokes there and it sounds like you already run.

Join a boardgames group or work in the tech department of a large company.

I got to know lots more people by volunteering at Parkrun than by running at it, although ours does have a busy post-run coffee and breakfast scene too.

Second the suggestion for a running club. I was also a member of one for a while and it was very heavy on Men in their 30s and 40s.

My ds 30 fits this description. He’s fed up of apps too. He likes board games and climbing walls.

Join a board game group.

@SquashPenguin are you me? 🤣
I was also 33 when I met my DH 28, at work. We were friends for about 6 m though. He was such a geek and we were the least likely couple. A friend bet me £5 to snog him the next time we were out, as we often bumped into him in town. I did! And that was almost 25 years ago!

Yes. But I did look for him in real life and not online. It's my preference.

I didn't meet my wife until I was in my 40s. First time around for both of us, and we met through a sports club that both of us belonged to.

Met dh at work when I was 33. Married for 12 years now, with a lovely DS.

Not sure what I'd do now if I were single though, the very thought of OLD makes me want to curl into a ball.

I met my husband at work when I was 36. We met in the August (did not fancy him at all) but by the Autumn we were good friends. Went on a date the following June, moved in together in July and married the following Winter. Celebrating 15 years together this June.