HispanicVista Columnists

Dating High-Tech Style

 

By Domingo Ivan  Casañas/HispanicVista.com

May 23, 2005

 

In today’s high paced world, a single person has many options when it comes to getting a date.  We no longer need to go to the supermarket and crash a shopping cart into another when the person pushing the cart is someone you wish to know.  In today’s society we have the Internet.  We have matchmaking services such as Kiss.com and Date.com just to name a few.    Being able to do specific search on a possible date or future mate is as simple as putting out $19.95 for a one-month trial to such a service.

 What can one expect is to be able to chat on line or email the prospect that you have taken a fancy to by viewing their picture, a complete profile, age, likes and dislikes, etc. including a paragraph or two about who they are and who they are looking for, and the reason they are on the online matchmaking service, some might be in it for fun, sex, casual relationship, serious relationship with possible marriage later, or for marriage. 

 Of course, one will encounter many names they give themselves as a heading besides their picture such as: Sexy One, Sun Flower Girl, Kitten, Caliente One, Hot Stud, Ready 4 U, Born a Blondie, Clean Shaven, etc This are some of the names that a person might use to create instant interest for the person that is searching. 

 This high-tech online matchmaking services have thousands of members males, females, & bi-sexual.  People that prefer to sit in front of a computer and chat with each other until  they do decide to meet, or at times they may never meet.  For some people it might be because they feel safer at home in a relaxed atmosphere or they might be tired of the bar scene, club scene or blind dates that their friends or families have put together for them.  

 You might be asking yourself, if there is a high success rate in finding someone special using this online match making services.    According to marketing data released by the services themselves, it shows that many (no actual numbers) find friends, relationship do start dating, dancing partners to meet at clubs, and yes some actually end up getting married.

 Here in the Bay Area there is another service that caters more to the professionals in the area that might not have the time to get on a computer to chat with others.  This service is one that Julie Paiva has established and is called Table For Six.   I was able to meet with Julie not too long ago and she explained the concept to me.  Her main goal is to bring six adults together in a relax atmosphere (three men- three ladies) that are pre-matched beforehand by similar interests, lifestyles and sit them down at a  nice Restaurant where they get to know each other over dinner, then on the following day they call up the service to let them know who they would like to get to know better, the service will contact the other party and if there is a mutual liking, then the service will give each person each others phone number.  Of course, once in a while, there will be major chemistry between a couple and they themselves after dinner will let each other know and might end up going dancing or just sitting and talking with each other.

 Yes, my friends this are just some of the latest ways to meet your future spouse, friend, or just a dancing partner.  However, for those of us with Faith one of the top matchmaker is God Himself via prayer and the church to lead that special someone into your life.  Keep smiling and now you know some of your options. 

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 Domingo Ivan Casañas, a contributing columnist to HispanicVista.com (http://www.hispanicvista.com/), is a writer for several newspapers in his community of Northern California.  Mr. Casañas has been nominated for the Citizen of the year in his hometown.  He has also been nominated for the Cesar Chavez Award in recognition of continuing Community Service and Embodiment of the Cesar Chavez Values.  Domingo is the AUTHOR of a new book about Cuba and a journey to freedom that will debut in June 2005 titled: CUBA THE TARNISHED PEARL.  Excerpts of this book may be read at: http://www.cubanbook.com/ email:   LatinoAchievers@aol.com