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Naked On the Net
3/30/2003

One strange similarity that my father and I share is a fascination with personal ads. Don't ask me why, but we both enjoy reading other people's quest for amore. Of course, my dad sticks to the old fashion newspaper medium, whereas I take to the internet, and its on the net that I've been noticing some profound changes over the last 5 years. Mostly:

  1. The crowds are getting younger. The stigma of using personal adds that was once so pronounced in earlier generations seems to have largely evaporated.
  2. People are showing a lot more skin and being much franker about their preferences in the sack. Unsurprisingly, I see this more in the gay community, but I have little doubt the trend will spread (no pun intended).

Its the second change that I find really interesting. On sites like Gay Muscle, Big Muscle, or even in the Yahoo personals there are an amazing number of men willing to give you the full frontal and be darn specific about what they like. And why not? There was a time in my life when I found such directness to be crude and a turn-off, but more and more I'm recognizing the wisdom and utility of just telling it like it is. I mean, the point of dating is to get naked with someone and reveal to them your fetish for toe suckling. It seems an awful waste of energy to do the whole dating dance politely only to discover your partner has a strong aversion to all things below the ankle. Its true that sex and physical attributes are only part of the equation, but let's be honest, they're a big part.

There are down sides, and they're pretty obvious. Most employers in the US will probably still fire you for putting Mr. Happy online (a sad commentary on our society, but true). Too much emphasis on the physical does seem to blind and awful lot of people to what's really important in relationships, and everyone has heard horror stories about how much lying goes on in these ads. Still, I think its an inevitable, and positive trend. Welcome to 21st century dating.

Side note: Yes, yes, I have seen YOUR ad as well. I've found the personal ads of a great many of my friends. Your's (handsome penis), Your's (nice bubble butt), and yes, YOUR's (even though you didn't include a face shot). And don't go running to take them down. I've already taken screen shots of the profile and downloaded all the pictures. And, no I don't think any less of you. Truth to be told, I find it kind of endearing...

Side, side note: No, I don't have a personal ad online. Feel free to hunt for it, but I promise its a fruitless endeavor (again, no pun intended...).

Some Personals Sites

3/30/2003 | Permanent Link

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