Dating Post-Pandemic has gotten weird

The last few years of dating have not been a vibe.

Not sure what’s going on here if it’s a prison of my own making or a complete shift in the cultural zeitgeist with which my north star has not synced yet. Or it could totally be that last sentence of overly complicated thought processes I’m drowning myself in.

Either way, I just haven’t been having fun dating lately. Whether it be the personalities that I have encountered or the massive price tag that comes with dating these days. An average date these days is about $200 for me now, this is just two drinks, two meals, and possibly one location change. Two or three of these a week is the equivalent of a mortgage payment somewhere in the midwest of America.

When it’s not a vibe

I am also finding it harder and harder to connect on an intellectual, spiritual, and overall vibe level with current suiters. So I’ve noticed a few key ingredients that help with the fantastic mix of coalescing a vibe. You can be from the same era so you have a few overlapping timeline references that make conversations go a bit smoother. You can be from the same general area so you have similar points of reference to certain landmarks and feelings about certain establishments. There are plenty more items including; similar humor, political views, and hobbies. On the flip side in the past I’ve seen no commonalities and still a strong connection was made based on both parties having a strong attraction or desire to make it work.

Either way… This has not happened in the most recent years and I’m not sure if I need to expand my search parameters, narrow my focus on a specific archetype, or just plain give up for a bit. Most likely the latter but who knows? Life right! It’s a crazy thing.

Day 26 writing challenge