It dawned on me that it has been a while since I reviewed any new dating sites. As I reached this "revelation", I was busy swiping right on Tinder...so I am kind of slow on the uptake. Anyway...Tinder!
For those unaware, Tinder is an app for your phone that uses your Facebook profile and info to create a simple profile for you. The app which was originally used for hooking up is now a viable option for those in the dating world. And it's free (kinda, I'll explain later). My first reaction to Tinder: bizarre and superficial. Once you fire up the app it uses your location to find matches in your area. The only filter criteria you provide is the age range you're looking for and distance away from where you are located. As pictures appear, you swipe left to reject them or swipe right to accept them. If you both swipe right, boom! You are matched and can now communicate/text through the app.
I've struggled to write about Tinder because of my conflicted feelings on it. Sure, in one sense, it is easy, fun, and a quick way to check out potential matches. You can glance at a picture and in an instant, you can judge whether or not someone is worthy of our time. Yes, I think us single folk do a version of it constantly. (Scanning the crowd...attractive female...immediately glance at the ring finger...and fuck). But there is something much more shallow about Tinder to me. The swipes are a quiet acceptance or rejection without any real thought. I include myself in this and am guilty of it as well.
Here is a real-time analysis of some of my Tinder matches right now (ages and names were changed):
- Amber, 25 - very pretty and has a profile consisting of four words. SWIPE RIGHT
- Lindsay, 29 - Two similar interests from Facebook/no written profile. SWIPE LEFT
- Renee, 30 - no written profile, attractive, kids in every picture...hers? SWIPE LEFT
- Jenna, 37 - not attractive, lots of pictures of cats and kids...hers? SWIPE LEFT
- Sammie, 28 - very cute, tons of tattoos, one similar interest, no written profile. SWIPE RIGHT
What did I learn from this little experiment? I'm a terrible, superficial asshole. But isn't that what Tinder is about? Make judgments in the blink of an eye and onto the next one. The advances in technology have been amazing and have certainly changed how we meet and date other people. But is it a good thing? We screen and judge a potential mate solely on profile pictures, Facebook interests, and a few sentences. Swipe Left: out of my life, never to be seen again. Swipe Right: hang out in the "maybe" pile and we will see what happens.
I'm not saying it's all wrong but it does feel as though we have become our online "profiles" and are disposable/disposed of pretty easily.
As a person who just wrote down whether or not someone else is worthy of me and why...the Swipe Left of me is deserved.
