The Pitfalls of Meeting Potential Mates Online

With Valentine's Day fast approaching, the air is full of reminders that my life is devoid of anything that even remotely resembles a social life. I like to console myself by insisting that Valentine's Day isn't so much a celebration of coupledom, but rather a day invented for those of us who are dreamers. That, of course, lasts about two seconds -- then I remember that being single sucks a good majority of the time, and spending weeks surrounded by cheap paper hearts and boxes of candy I can't eat won't change that.

Cupid should have his arrows shoved unceremoniously up his cherubic ass.

It's not that I'm down on love, I'm merely in love with the idea of being in love. I have dreams of dancing in the kitchen with a nameless, faceless man, while Frank Sinatra croons in the background; never mind the fact that I'd probably dissolve into giggles the minute it actually happened. The thought of lying in a shadow-filled room while being read the words of great authors sends chills up my spine. I've gone to clubs with the possibility of meeting someone completely by chance in the back of my mind. I even read personal ads -- not as a specific tool for meeting people, but because they make me laugh, and serve as a reminder that I'm not the only person flailing around in this knee-high wading pool. Once I stop laughing at all the "Easy money!! Watch me jack off for $100!!" posts, some of them are quite intriguing.