Many of our cities in north america don’t have good access to third places anymore, due to both availability and cost.

I refuse to use online dating/friendship services so I struggle to meet friends and partners in the new citiy I moved to. Everyone at the local bar scenes is 15-30 years older than me, my outdoor local areas are homeless emcampments or riddled with needles and litter. I’ve met some people at my local climbing gym, but I find it difficult to get there between the cost of climbing and my physical labour job.

It almost feels like if you don’t make the plans online you don’t get to meet/hang out with people anymore and I’m not a huge fan of that.

Online dating is so shit for the majority of hetero dudes. You’re lucky if you match with somebody, luckier if you get to have some kind of discussion that doesn’t end after a few messages, even luckier if it ends in a date, amazingly lucky if anything physical happens, and incredibly lucky if it turns into a relationship.

Men are expected to initiate, keep the discussion alive, ask out, keep the woman entertained, and be grateful they were chosen. It only gets worse online.