Do You Want To Be A Friend Or A Date

Do You Want To Be A Friend Or A Date

First of all, let's define "friend".

Do we want to find an "old" friend?

Lots of websites specialize in helping you find an "old" existing Friend.

These sites are called "classmates", "reunions", "public records" or names along the lines of trying to find acquaintances from way back, from school, the Service or previous jobs.

Do we want to find "people"?

We can use "publicbackgroundcheck", "usa-people-search", "peoplefinders" types of sites for finding people.

If, however, we are looking for love and are calling it friendship initially then things get really complicated.

For the word "friendship" the Web comes up with 46,100,000 replies.

So we should be more specific about what exactly the "friend" word means. "a person you know well and regard with affection and trust; "he was my best friend at the university" ally: an associate who provides assistance; "he's a good ally in fight"; "they were friends of the workers" acquaintance: a person with whom you are acquainted; "I have trouble remembering the names of all my acquaintances"; "we are friends of the family" supporter: a person who backs a politician or a team etc.; "all their supporters came out for the game"; "they are friends of the library" a member of the Religious Society of Friends founded by George Fox (the Friends have never called themselves Quakers) "

wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

We can now of course rank friends: good friends, intimate friends, family friends ad infinitum. When we then continue to talk about "friends" and "friendship" we soon start approaching the decision we have to make; do we just want to be penpals or do we want to meet face to face at some point in time.

This brings us to the dangerous word: DATING.

Yes, we have now convinced ourselves that we want to date somebody.

Just on the Web or for real? We can now play games based on the fact that most people trying to find dates on the Web are married. Does that surprise you? Given the anonymity of the Web it is very likely that if I am fat and ugly I don't want to emphasize this fact when I try to attract a date, so temptation is very great to embellish things a bit and to say in my description that I am "Voluptuous" and "Attractive".

Who knows, in all likelihood I will never meet this person anyway and this is only fantasy. Guess what? I now start corresponding in earnest on the Web with this person I know nothing about. I tell this person all my deepest secrets, except the fact that I am ugly and fat. After doing this for a while my "Date" says that we should meet in person, because it seems we are really compatible.

YEEKS! What now? Well, you brought this on yourself and you have these options:

1. Go on a crash diet and get a face lift.

2. Forget about this person and try again with a new date.

3. Hope your Date is fat and ugly too so you should take a chance and meet anyway. (This takes a lot of courage).

4. Hope your Date is pretty or attractive and VERY understanding and will accept you the way you are. (Fat chance).

So, anyway, there you have it, some of the possibilities you have when you want a Friend.

One thing you should pick up from this : you are probably better off if you are honest to your future friend or date; it may prevent depression, bouts of overeating and Internet Withdrawal Symptoms.

BONUS : Does A Date Online Count As “real” Dating?

The terms “online dating” and “dating online” are thrown around all the time, and used by practically any website that is primarily created to connect singles over the internet. But, in reality, what do these terms really mean? Can you really date someone online? Can you have a healthy dating life if it only exists online? How can you truly get to know someone if you've only been on online dates? Do those really count as 'real' dates?

Generally, dating online usually refers to the process of meeting people for potential dates online, or through an internet dating service. These services usually provide some help and guidance with which other members are most suitable matches, but for the most part, its up to each individual to find and introduce themselves to other members and potential people to date online. In this sense, online dating services act as an arena for singles to come and find other people interested in pursuing the same types of relationships as them.

The “dating” that takes place online is in the form of messages and emails that pass between people. Does this count as “real dating” even though there are no face to face conversations? Is 'dating' the time where people get to know more about each other? Do you have to be in the same room as someone to be on a 'date' with them? Although online dating is usually described as meeting, messaging, emailing, and eventually meeting other singles in person, the terms seem to be fairly accurate. Dating online can, and does take place, when two people find each other online and pursue a courting period, whether that is on or offline, where they get to know each other better and test the waters to see if there is a mutual attraction. Although an in person meeting may not take place until later, many of the same components (aside from the physical) take place through a date online. Although dating online isn't defined in the same was a traditional dating, the changes many peoples' romantic and sexual lives are experiencing due to technological evolutions, may warrant reconceptions of the definitions of certain terms, just as these advances have reconceived our notions of how to find love.