Dating Thread 242 - Mid-Summer daters

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The Rules:

1.The first rule about the dating thread is don't talk about it with people you're dating.

1. Develop a thick skin.
2. Do not invest emotionally too soon.
3. It's all BS until it actually happens.
4. Trust your gut instinct.
5. People vanishing, lying & being generally weird is not your fault.
6. Know your worth.
7. If it's not fun, stop.
8. Loo update is mandatory.

10. No dating the thread. 11. Treat others as you'd like to be treated 12. Any relationship you have that could get ruined by having a conversation about your feelings, standards and/or expectations wasn't really stable enough to begin with 13. The things you choose to ignore/ tolerate now are the reasons you will break up in the future 14. OLD can get very time consuming. Keep doing other activities you enjoy.

Optional: Please give your irons (potential dates you are talking to) nicknames like Mr Scottish. Initials are allowed (Mr S) when you are an item

I know, its absolutely horrible. To both deceive their partners and to obviously lie to the others they are attempting to date.

I have my second date with Mr Analogue tomorrow and I'm excited 🙈. I've got my clothes all planned out- I just need to iron them when the little monster that is my toddler goes to bed.

There's been a consistent stream of messages between Mr Analogue and I which has been lovely yet really built up the anticipation for tomorrow. We both enjoyed date no.1. I've had a few compliments my way and I've sent a few his.
Similar senses of humour.
Part of me feels like I'm dating myself 😂
I feel like I'm waiting for a red flag to appear somewhere as this is going too well. I've not really bothered with any of my OLD accounts since our first date last week.

If it feels right then it’s right. Just enjoy it and have fun 😊

Got another date Sunday this time with Mr distance. I’ve always said no to anyone more than about 25 miles away but he’s about an hour and 20 but we’re meeting in a city not far from me that he can get a direct train to.

Been chatting this week and got a lot in common. There’s one thing niggling me which might sound minor. I’m not good with compliments from someone I’ve never met and I have told him this but he still did it. Not sure if that’s just his way or he’s doing it on purpose. Once we’ve actually met Sunday I’ll be able to judge a lot better.

Anyone else dating this weekend - good luck

Good luck Sam, I'm away in the Cotswolds with family & friends for 9 days and my just over 1 month girlfriend and I are missing each other, we have formed such a strong bond already!
Sadly she's working pretty much every day I'm away or she would be here with me.
As @SamW98 says good luck to all on dates this weekend

@Itssnotunusual how did your date go?

Absolutely bloody brilliant!

He's a quite eccentric but then again so am I! I felt a bit like a giddy teenager to be honest. I borrowed my mums holiday let for the evening as it's in a beautiful area with great pubs. I cooked (which he was very complimentary of) and then we went out for a few drinks. He was a gent and we had a good laugh whilst we were out. I really enjoyed spending time with him (again). We ended up back at the cottage for the night and DTD. He's a bloody lovely cuddler too 🙈

Date no. 3 is definitely in the pipeline we just both has weird schedules due to his job and when my ex has our toddler.

I also have apparently gained a new hoodie and shoes that he'd bought to resell (a side hustle/ hobby of his) but wanted to see if I liked them before he actually sold them 😅. I'm not complaining- he has great taste in clothes!

Itssnotunusual

ahhh that’s a nice update 😘

@Itssnotunusual Lovely update, feeling like a teenager again and having a laugh is so good for your soul 💖

Amazing! So happy for you!

Love, love, love the potential 🥰

This is lovely. The fact you miss each other after short time only means this is a strong connection you two have. Enjoy holidays with family in the know you have a lovely woman awaiting your return!

😂😂 nothing wrong with feeling giddy and like teenager…enjoy everything! Hopefully you can get a good routine with ex partner relating toddler. I think this is a great time to introduce someone into your little family if everything goes well 😊

Relax Sam, and enjoy your date but I totally get the overdoing compliments…😊.

He’s just cancelled said he was out all day yesterday and feels rough.

Oh well it’s a friends birthday today so I’ll go along to his drinks instead

We have a regular set up with the toddler but it's a bit awkward as we have to work around my Ex's continental shifts. I do 5 days and then does 3 so it cycles around and the days change each week because of it! It kind of works with Mr Analogue as due to the nature of his job he's slightly more likely to be working friday-sunday. So random midweek dates are fine if needs be. We've both got a bit of heavy stuff on this week though- funeral for him and a horrible appointment for me that I'm really not looking forward to (can't give details).

One thing I'm wondering though is would it be appropriate/ weird of me to send flowers to him? It's a close relative that has died. I can't quite decide if it would be a nice gesture or me massively overstepping. I do know his home address 🙈

Mr Scott has messaged to ask how my date went 😅.

I think he might still be hoping for an encore!

@Itssnotunusual 😂

I spoke to my lovely woman this evening & relayed that message.
She was touched & said she's counting down the days to my return💖
I'm sure some of you are almost vomiting but I truly feel that after my wife died 4 years ago I have finally found another soul mate 💞

Hi. I’ve been reading some of the previous posts/threads and must say you all sound like a lovely bunch!

I’ve been trying online dating since early 2021. A LOT of dates but none that really stuck. Learned so much about myself in the meantime though, so while it’s been painful ( very at times) overall it’s been good for me. I’ve had fun too. But encountered all of the difficulties with it which seem
common.

Im 50 now and definitely notice less matches. Par for the course but kind of depressing. I get a lot of attention in real life but find it hard to meet anyone decent in real life.

Using Hinge and Bumble.

Do any of you know sites specifically for single parents? Came across one called Even?

@Itssnotunusual I think the flowers would be a nice touch

@WtP that's lovely, glad you've found your person again

Welcome to the thread @sparklingharbour

Got a date tonight with a new iron. Just a drink locally. Not sure what to expect. Looks good on paper. Only thing slightly off putting is his grammar/spelling but I'm trying not to let it put me off. He's a little shorter than me (doesn't bother me) so we'll see if it bothers him I guess 😆

@sparklingharbour Frolo is not just for dating, I think it's good for lots of single parent things. I've not tried it myself yet, but I do like the regular articles they send out via email.

I'm currently using Tinder, Bumble and Plenty of Fish, all paid for for the first month, as well as FB dating. I've chatted to lots and lots of men, all at the same time, as I do find so many of them ghost you it's best not to put all your eggs in one basket, or get too hooked early.

I've been on 2 first dates so far, neither of whom I wanted to see again as while they were pleasant, there was no spark.

I've experienced a few catfish/scammers/bots recently. I find they tend to be the almost too good looking to be true profiles, and seem to chat about random things not linked to your conversation.

Date last night was a waste of both our time. My one none negotiable is smoking - I even mention in my profile that must be none smoker and only swipe on none smokers - which his profile said he was however he asked to go out for a smoke and then seemed shocked when I was shocked he was a smoker and said I didn't like it 🤦‍♀️ will I ever find someone that doesn't lie 🤔

@Starseeking thanks. How long have you been dating?
I haven’t tried Tinder in a while. I did go on some
decent dates from there but I’m doubtful about how serious people are about dating there (on all the apps actually!)

I haven’t tried Frolo or POF

so many chats go nowhere! I think many men will match with almost anyone whereas women are perhaps a lot more intentional. I never match unless I think I would definitely meet them if they didn’t have a bad personality in text!

@Slothmomma that is annoying when you’ve specifically mentioned it. I have msg loads of smokers who don’t mention it on their profile but I don’t mind that much and so haven’t ruled them out on my profile. I have the occasional cigarette when drinking but I’m not a smoker. But if a guy said no smokers then I’d mention that before meeting

Met not msg

Oh what a waste of time. Hate it when they lie about stuff on their profile - so they think we wont notice?

I wouldn’t date a smoker either so I totally feel your pain.

Mr blow out still messaging but I’m not feeling it at all now so think it’s time to move on to next timewaster