Weed out

So I’m taking a Match.com break - rather pathetic, actually, since I stalled for almost 9 months in putting a profile up (as measured by the time between the infamous 'Pimp Me Out' party and the profile going active) and then tried the whole thing for about 6 weeks and went on three Face-to-Face meetings. I’m frankly exhausted by the process. Pathetic, pathetic, pathetic. But I don’t date often. Hell, I’ve never dated, if such term is understood to mean, say, engaging in hopefully pleasurable activities with another person to see if you might like each other. I go out with people I already like. I’ll examine that more later, since clearly I need to engage in an attitude adjustment on that front if I’m going to keep Match.com-ing.

But more exhausting than the meet and greet is the pain of reading over and over what people feel constitutes an adequate profile. Now, note, please, that these profiles are prepared in advance and on a computer - hello to the spellcheck. Is it, therefore, really that unreasonable to expect a little care to be taken on the profile? I understand that we all flub up in insta-communication. I understand that many of us have personal style choices or verbal or written ticks (Lord knows I have many - which I try to hide in my profile - not here of course - I mean, look at all these parentheticals and run-on sentences - I could give Hugo a run for his money, but I try to ease people into it. And I'm quite sure my writing is easier to take once you've heard me talk, because I sound pretty much like it looks here). But, in my opinion, style choices are choices only when one is choosing between, say, Strunk and White approved prose and some other evolved personal option. I'm begging for people on Match.com to lead with the Strunk and White option.

And I further note that I’ve lowered my standard so that the writing in a personal profile needn’t be clever. Fine, sell the steak, whatever. At this point I’m happy in an akin-to-finding-the-Comstock-Lode way just to discover a profile which exhibits a passing knowledge of little niceties like grammar, spelling and punctuation. I mean, today's menu features:

Exhibit A - an enmotionaly secure man with good values … [who] knows there own mind, and speeks it

and

Exhibit B - a honest man who would like to meet a honest lady and must be trustworthy and be my best friend and that should take care of how a relationship on where it goes from there this is important I would like the lady not to worry on what people say just to be happy with what we would have with each other and what we will go to in days and or years ahead if you would like to know anything else feel free to ask


What am I supposed to do with this? What?