Online Dating Advice?

[UndergroundOverground]

Hi all, recently started online dating and have "met" a guy that I really like. I instigated the messaging but he replied straight away and over the past week we've been exchanging chatty messages online. Yesterday morning he messaged me with his phone number and requested that I message him using that.
We exchanged a few messages that morning via text but he didn't reply to my last message, this was mid morning yesterday morning.
I can see via the online site that he was active briefly this morning.

Now I'm fully aware that I'm massively overthinking this, but this is the first time I've liked someone in a long time, and I'm really keen to talk more. I'm really worried that my last message was offputting in some way and that I've blown my chances, I don't want to message a second time and be desperate. Any advice?

(Please be kind, I realise that this is such a pathetic non-issue but I've had a really shit time of it the last month, and haven't got much else going on!)

I just set back up an account on POF earlier today and before I had time to edit my settings to 'nobody without a photo' one slipped through the net! I am making the mistake of chatting to some guy now, and he has no photo. He's good at the chit chat though. Few funny stories up his sleeve. He's given me his number and wants to chat in rl! fgs! I've told that to me it's like chatting on reddit. He's like a counsellor or an anonymous internet poster on a forum. He's given me a load of excuses, can't upload on to pof, blah blah, new phone, honestly, can there be people out there who can't uplaod a photo Ha ha! I don't think so! I will not reply until I see a photo.

Tonight's candidates in my inbox are not igniting any interest at all I'm afraid! I'll have to do a search when I have the energy and add a few sane, coherent, humorous men to favourites. It's not just that they're not attractive, it's more that the gormless way they photograph themselves standing in a football shirt looking in to the mirror in a disgusting bathroom without any expression good or bad on their faces!!

Yeah, you're right Platimum No photo is a no no I reckon, a BS excuse if you ask me, can't load photo, yeah right. I know what you me about the photos too, I found they just look old, I don't mean wrinkles etc but they just look old fashioned. Some do what they think are funny photos but they just bloody aren't funny at all. I can't say I'm the best speller in the world but some of these guys are illiterate, I don't think they have the excuse of something like dyslexia either, it's not like that. What age range are you looking at? Mine are between 45 and 55, I've had guys of 60 message though. I'm mid forties.

I liked the way one poster on another thread described their look, they're like Dobby's elder brother with extra fag ash and grease. I didn't know who Dobby was until I looked him up, I thought the poster was talking about the donkey

I think it's fine to move onto whatsapp as I find messaging on the sites not as quick and easy. There's kik where you don't have to give your number but that's full of married men in my experience as it's more discreet. I don't like it when you're having conversations with the same guys by dating app, text, whatsapp and kik! It does my head in!

Im 46 so my range is 43-53 but tbh id prefer closer to my own age than 53! Also if they're lying then that would be more than 7 years which is just too big a gap for me. I work out and stsy slim and have never smoked, i dress beautifully and i"ve worn spf25 for the last 25 years so dating a man older than 53 is not on my radar. Id be forcing it. It'd feel like dating down or giving up.

I'm intrigued as to how anyone gets any dates? When I've used it I've barely had any replies and I'm really not that bad

so agree with you greyhound I read on here about everyone getting lots of dates but I struggle getting one and I'm not that bad either!

I got chatting to somebody in Galway. Bloody hell. We are really clicking but I must follow my own rules and not waste time.

I must write out my rukes again because i always have a vague sense when im doing something stupidcand wasting my own time but i relax the rules because im optimistic and laid back. Then i regret not following my own rules!
I certainly did the last time!

Every man different, every lesson learnt a new one but the same set of rules would protect me from making more mistakes.

I have thrown so much caution to the wind.

I think a lot of people set these profiles up and never go back to them. It's just weird. Someone put me in their favourites then I added them, then nothing, they didn't even view my profile.
People saying they aren't getting dates, are you messaging them or winking/adding to your favourites or anything?
I've been on about two months and had one date and another one lined up. Was speaking for about 3 weeks up to the date, via message system then email. I haven't been doing any App stuff. I'm behind the times I know.

Complete and utter waste of time in my honest opinion and speaking from personal experience. I would love to know where these people find relationships out of online dating as has never worked for me. Maybe because im gay and have a smaller pool to choose from. What sites have you been using? I've used POF in the past and met two people but zero chemistry in person. I also think the location matters too. Perhaps online dating only works if you live in a big city? Don't find it matters if you use a paying site or free one either.

Tinder every time! Why complicate things?

What about using Facebook for dating i.e. belonging to some interest groups? Or is Facebook strictly for people you know in real life only?

UPDATE: Turns out I was massively overthinking, he messaged me on Monday and we met yesterday and again today; he's utterly gorgeous and I'm very enamoured (and by some blessed wonderfulness he seems to feel similarly). Not going to get my hopes up, but its positive at the moment

Nice to hear, OP.

FWIW, I met my DP on POF. We've been together 4 years (in May), bought a place together 2 years ago and still going strong - unless she's not telling me something!

OLD does require persistence, and a very thick skin, though.