Try it - you never know what may happen (What Do You Think of Internet Dating?)

Member Name: Coxy1974

Product:	What Do You Think of Internet Dating?
Date:	19/12/06 (203 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: New Friends, get to know people before meeting them

Disadvantages: Beware pervy men

After being single for what felt like an eternity, comments from family and friends about 'God is she still single?' and after several disastrous blind dates I thought I would give this a go.

A friend and I sat down with a bottle of wine armed with credit card and laptop. We browsed several sites, Match.com, Dating Direct & Free Dating being some of the ones we looked at and finally settled on DD because we liked the profile layouts.

After a couple more glasses of wine we decided to take the plunge and join. She directed me what to put in my profile and I did the same for her. So that was it - confirmed and fully paid up members and all that remianed was to choose the photos we were going to upload. The only one I had was one of me at the Christmas Party and another from in the summer last year so we went for those and my friend had one of her wearing a santa hat at Christmas!

We did have a giggle at some of the profiles on there along with the obvious lies some people tell about their ages! I mean at least use a picture that is 10 years old if you're knocking 10 years off your age!

I hadn't even been a member for 24 hours before the first email came through - I'll call him Bob to protect his identity. The mail was one line - 'How you doin?' - obviously not the best chat up line in the world but I mailed him back and asked lots of questions to demonstrate interest in him. God it was like trying to get blood out of a stone - the best he could manage was 2 lines saying he 'Thought I was mint' and when could we meet up?

Meanwhile, my friend had received numerous emails from men & 1 woman interestingly and began mailing back and forth with a couple of them. She seemed to be getting on fine and eventually chose to meet one of them. They met for a drink and I didn't see her for hours - they'd met and instantly knew they were for each other - they'd ended up having a 7 hour date! The drink turned into a walk along the river and dinner! She's still with him now!

Anyway - I received lots more mails and then I bravely gave out my mobile number to a guy who I'll call Dave. We arranged to meet at a local pub when he called. I gave family his mobile number and made sure that people knew where I was meeting him. He sounded lovely. When he got there I'd already got myself a drink because I'd been too early. I stood up to greet him and he completely blanked me, said I wasn't his type and got back in his car and went! I was flabberghasted!

The second guy I met sounded really nice on the phone - Richard I'll call him and I met him in a pub on the way home from work. I spent 1.5 hours with him, slowest talker in the world and I wanted to finish off all his sentences. He asked to see me again at the end of the date and even though in my head I was saying no guess what came out of my mouth - yep you've guessed it 'That would be nice'

Well he never rang so that was probably a good thing.

Then I met Mr Indecisive - nicknamed that because he could never decide where to take me (I decided on the first date and then had to give hints for the second!) and he really didn't seem bothered about seeing me at all!

I then met the guy I saw for about 2 months - he was lovely and I really thought that I'd met the one. He made me laugh and we shared some of the same interests. Thing is we spent most of our time together at his house and we never seemed to go out anywhere - anyway the decision to end the relationship was taken out of my hands when he rang me to tell me he'd met someone else a couple of weeks before so didn't want to see me again!

By this time I was beginning to get a little disallusioned especially as I had to wade through the 'Fancy a shag' mails too. I seriously had one man mail me and ask me if I wanted to meet him and his friend for sex at a local swinging spot.

I then spotted a profile I'd looked at weeks earlier but not bothered to mail so I mailed him. We mailed back and forth and then exchanged phone numbers. He is lovely. A real gentleman who makes me feel like a lady. We met up and just chatted for hours - had a lovely meal, met again a few days later and was constantly chatting on the phone. I know I have met the one for me now and have given up the site - we don't have much time together because of work committments but the time we do spend together is great because we want to enjoy each others company.

When I say I've made some good friends along the way there was the guy who lives local to me who I meet up with for drinks who has settled into a very nice relationship with someone he met off DD and the guy who supported me with the split from my ex and provided a neutral ear for me to bend every now and then.

The Internet has it's pitfalls but if you are careful then it is a really good way to meet new people, make some friends and meet the one!

Summary: I had a ball finding my new man