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Sofas and Slankets V Irregular choice shoes and Snogging - Dating Thread 23

999 replies

watchoutforthatsnail · 28/09/2012 10:14

:)

OP posts:
shuckleberryfinn · 12/10/2012 11:49

Eeeh, the date is today. STBXH is picking up the kids for the weekend at 3 and we're meeting in town for coffee at 5. It's POF dude, the one with the daughter. We tried to meet up when we first started chatting but couldn't get childcare to match. It felt like it was turning into a penfriend situation and then he messaged me yesterday saying he was free tonight!

He seems a bit too good to be true so I have no high hopes, it'll be nice to get out and if it's a bust I can be home in time to go to the pub.

Yogagirl17 · 12/10/2012 14:37

I did it!! No, not the job (still waiting to hear)....the tattoo! Woke up this morning and decided to just do it before I changed my mind. Grin

Good luck to everyone who has a date tonight!

DoingItForMyself · 12/10/2012 14:44

wow I'm jealous Yoga - what did you get?

have a great time Shuckleberry!

raskolnikov · 12/10/2012 14:58

Hi all
well i'm fretting now - I've been seeing a lovely guy off okc for 2 months, all going well but i've just gone onto the site for the first time in over amonth and he logged in last night! I've purposely not gone on there so he doesn't think i'm still looking but he obviously is. I'm really upset - we were supposed to be meeting up tomorrow and I feel as if he must be playing some kind of game - so what do i do now? I hate this aspect of online dating where you don't know what people are doing.

snapespeare · 12/10/2012 15:06

yoga! you devil! Wink

things ok here. last day at old job, i will leave quietly in a bit - gym with PM tonight, shall report back.

Yogagirl17 · 12/10/2012 15:12

Hee hee. I wasn't going to do it til I knew about the job (cause if I don't get the job I really can't afford it!) but just thought, fuck it. DoingIt - it's pretty much the pic on my profile, although I redrew it last night and there's a bit more colour in it. Lower back. Ouch bloody ouch. But very pleased with myself.

Hope PM cheers you up Snape. (I didn't end up at the place you recommended btw cause she had a 5 month waiting(!) list but found another place i was happy with)

FateLovesTheFearless · 12/10/2012 17:59

Rask - perhaps he logged in to see if you logged in Wink best thing to do is just ask him if you are worried. Smile

raskolnikov · 12/10/2012 18:21

Thanks Fate, but too much of a coincidence methinks, I texted him at 6.57 to say I'm out shopping I'll call later and at 7.05 he's logged on! I will ask him anyway but not impressed. We had such a nice time the other evening too - bugger!

Yogagirl17 · 12/10/2012 19:38

Hi rask - just a thought but what if he's seen you logged in and thinking the same thing?

raskolnikov · 12/10/2012 19:44

Hi yoga, I haven't been on there in 3 weeks - last time he was already online and we chatted for a while. I realise he could be checking up on me, but surely after 3 weeks he'd have known I'd stopped - my last login was early Sept. I know we could both be doing the same thing, I'm just disappointed tho, I knew this was going too well.

OhWesternWind · 12/10/2012 20:01

I wouldntrealpolitik necessarily worry about him going on the site. I think the messaging and looking who's looked at you can be quite addictive for some people. Doesn't have to mean he's lining up dates. Why don't you hide your profile, mention casually that you've done this and see what his reaction is?

OhWesternWind · 12/10/2012 20:01

Realpolitik??? Blooming phone

raskolnikov · 12/10/2012 20:08

Wind - lol, I thought you'd translated my (dodgy) russian name into english there!

I've already jumped the gun and cancelled the weekend together, am I jumping to conclusions then? Trouble is, I've been taken for a mug once too often so now I can't see the wood for the trees and assume the worst. Bloody hell.

OhWesternWind · 12/10/2012 20:18

I honestly think it's worth having a chat about (face to face but casually).

Can you get him back for an evening out or something this weekend? If everything else is going well, this isn't necessarily a problem. Or maybe he's expecting you as a couple to discuss coming off the site/dating other people and might be thinking you're still at it too if you've not raised the subject? Oh it's all so complicated!!

OhWesternWind · 12/10/2012 20:20

yoga that picture is awesome, bet the tat looks brilliant.

raskolnikov · 12/10/2012 20:25

Thanks Wind - I'll have a chat with him later this evening. It is complicated, there are no rules are there? And if there were, everyone would be breaking them right left and centre ... I'm not very good at talking about stuff like this.

JoylessFucker · 12/10/2012 21:11

I'm beginning to think I'm a bit odd as far as internet dating is concerned. I've been doing this for 5-6 years and have only had 6 first dates which didn't progress, most of them because I wasn't interested. There have been a couple of 2-3 daters, but largely they've been short-term relationships - anything from 6-9 months. I ended two, three were ended on me. I was left hurt by three, two have remained very dear friends. Additionally, I've had three FWBs - two still in hand (so to speak).

But before you think this is stealth bragging, I've wondered whether I'm too accepting and accommodating of people and their foibles. For example, the ex factor has featured large. The first one never got over her and kept hoping for her return, so we never got out of the closet. The second one "allowed" me to care for him whilst he tried to get over the death of his ex - it didn't work (of course) and he took another three years without me to move on and is now in a serious relationship. The fourth went back to his ex-wife after they'd been divorced for a year just after he'd asked me to move in with him. The final one ended for reasons other than the ex, but he was also mooning over one too ... So, western do tread carefully m'dear ... and if anyone has any comments/insights/questions to throw in my direction, I'm all ears.

JoylessFucker · 12/10/2012 21:21

raskolnikov it is difficult isn't it. I think the best is to have a honest conversation. One of my short-term relationships deleted after we got together but insisted it was unrelated to "us". I continued to use the site but made it clear on my profile that I wasn't dating (it also had a discussion forum). Years later he admitted that he hadn't been happy. If he'd told me, I might still have refused, but I'd have done it knowing the full story. These days, I say how I feel up front ... if they don't feel the same way, then at least I stop wasting my time.

Yogagirl17 · 12/10/2012 21:23

Thanks Western (have updated the pic now to the one I actually used) Smile

Wonder how MadameO's night is going?!

OhWesternWind · 12/10/2012 21:31

Thanks JF that's really interesting - there are a lot of them about it seems! It's so difficult because at this age we all come with baggage. I have my fair share, so do most of my single-again friends, so I do want to find the balance between having realistic expectations and putting up with unnecessary nonsense.

I AM really encouraged though that off his own bat and with no prompting from me at all he's now gone to his solicitor to get the divorce sorted. I think that's a really big step to take and it seems a good sign.

It's also difficult as I've been single longer, and my ex isn't in the picture at all, so I don't really know what's "normal" at this stage if a divorce -if there is such a thing!

I think maybe I'm a bit like you and think that a bit less than perfection is inevitable. We all have our hang ups, saggy bits, nasty habits and less attractive bits of our personality, and I think I'm quite accepting of a certain amount of this sort of thing and would hope that my foibles would also be tolerated. Otherwise I'm up the creek! But I will never again put up with abusive or controlling behaviour of any type - that's a different thing altogether.

Yogagirl17 · 12/10/2012 21:44

If anything I"m a bit more wary of the ones who have gotten to my age without any baggage. But then you don't want them dragging you into it or just using you as a distraction. It's tough, isn't it.

snapespeare · 12/10/2012 22:16

Gym was fine, worrying about nothing as usual, because that's what I do.

.

JoylessFucker · 12/10/2012 22:18

It is a really tricky line to tread ... I'm a long long way from having any idea how to get it right. But I have loved reading these threads though as the advice seems to focus on trusting one's inner voice and on making sure that we (and they) value us properly. Its seems a very healthy focus, so thank you all.

NewJamJarsandStickyCakes · 12/10/2012 22:35

Aaaargh.

Posted a few pages back about how a sort of work colleague had asked me out for a drink, then cancelled. How no-one knew if he was def. single or not, but general consensus was that yes, he was single, having split from his partner last year.
He got in touch last week, very apologetic, insistent reason for cancelling was genuine, so against my better judgement, agreed to meet for a post work drink tonight. Gave him my personal mobile number this time, not work mobile number. Much texting over last week, including some mildly flirty texts.
Met tonight, took me to lovely new bar, told me I looked lovely, all very charming....half an hour into things we get chatting about where we live, and he says. 'oh, you know I live with someone?'

No, no i didn't. Not with you not ever having flipping mentioned her before.

Can you guess what he said next?
Yup. We then went straight into the script of 'But we've both changed, we don't like the same things, she doesn't understand me....etc. etc'
Is there some kind of book with this script in it?
I felt pretty much like a car being taken for a test drive.

I am so annoyed, I would never ever have done any of the above if I'd known. Think he is well aware I am very very unimpressed. Angry Told him he was being v disrespectful to his partner and to go and sort his head out. Think he was bit taken aback. What an absolute arse.

Felt awful. Have no idea what to do about it all, not sure his partner, even if i could track her down, would appreciate some random woman contacting her (I know i wouldn't have)

However. I realised afterwards that not only did i quite like the idea of going on a date with someone, I also feel more sure that I can trust my own judgement. So, I'm going to give OD a go. Have no good photos, and no idea what to put on my profile, but have to start somewhere!

raskolnikov · 12/10/2012 23:27

Hi Jam
How bloody frustrating being treated like that - what an idiot! What's interesting is that he told you about it as if it ought to be ok? WTF? Anyway, good idea to give OD a try, trust your instincts and keep your fingers crossed. Good luck.

Wind, yoga, JF - well I bit the bullet and called him and felt a bit of a pratt really, he was very concerned initially, wondering what was wrong, but then started laughing (in a nice way) and saying how sweet it was that I was worried about him seeing someone else and that he wasn't, isn't interested, just goes on forums to chat etc and that if I get messages I'm doing better than he is! Then he disabled his a/c and I've just done mine too. So we're ok and meeting up tomorrow. Hopefully we can make up properly Wink.

Like you, I do find the baggage a bit of an issue but of course we all have it as time goes on. I'm always alert to their general attitude about ex's, kids, family etc as I do think its a huge indicator as to how they behave and take responsibility on board etc.

Wanders off in search of WineWineWine

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