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Wednesday, August 20, 2014

The Magical World of Tinder

Hi there blogiverse and my darling readers and critics as well! I know that it's been forever since I've updated this blog but I have a very justified reason for that. I have been very busy trying to normalize my work hours which have been very crazy! Suffice to say that I have even started working on the weekends too! I guess I'll be going through this up until the end of this year. Now, for those of you who are frequent readers of my blog and most of the posts here, you would know that I have been dropping in and out of the dating game.
 
Seeing as I'm a human being with working limbs and the flawed tendency to get sucked into social media trends, I've admittedly employed the help of popular mobile dating apps such as OKCupid, Badoo and Tinder. Badoo is full of stalkers and weird people (at least where I live) and OkCupid is lame and boring (though I did meet someone who turned out to be a very good friend now). I believe you're all familiar with this fancy schmancy little mobile app called Tinder . Tinder is originally a hook-up mobile app used by single people (and on the rare occasion- married people who are 'looking for a good time' or just can't stand each other) who crave sex/some fun while in town or something short term. Tinder can also be used to find like minded spirits with whom you can share a coffee with.To be honest, I have found close friends on this app plus I have gone on some pretty awesome dates.

Before I explain to you the pros and cons of using Tinder, I'd like to explain to you how this app works. In order to have a Tinder account, you must have a Facebook account because it uses all your information from there and photos to create a profile for you. I have tried to find a way to create a standalone profile but haven't found it. For those who are worried that Tinder might post something that would show your friends that you *ahem* use this app, worry not. Tinder does NOT post anything to your wall- ever! After everything has been created and photos set, then it will scan around your location for people who might interest you and all you have to do is swipe left to reject them and swipe right to accept them and start chatting. The good thing about Tinder is that you only chat with those who you have swiped right (and if they like you too and you both match).



Phew. Now that we have gotten that out of the way let's proceed to some pros and cons that I faced while using Tinder. One of the pros of using Tinder is that I am in control. I choose who I want to speak to and I decide who I want to meet with. It's not like OkCupid or any other site whereby any random sicko can send me a disturbing message without bounds until I had to block them . Another good thing about Tinder is that it's so easy to use! It's just a matter of swiping right or left. But the disadvantage in this is that there are times in which I found myself on a "No" streak and kept swiping left until I accidentally swiped a hot guy left. That is the most frustrating thing that can ever happen to you on Tinder: swiping an interesting person left instead of right and never getting a second chance to undo the mistake.

Another frustrating thing about Tinder is that most of the people who use it in my part of the world are tourists and they barely stay in one place. Which is why they are more likely to F**k then hang out. The response rate on Tinder can be pretty bad but the redeeming feature for that is the distance viewer. This way you can see how near or far this person is (and stalk them too). Overall, your experience on Tinder differs according to the people you meet there, but most of them are only looking to screw around. Finding love on tinder is like finding a needle in a tightly congested haystack the size of Africa! This is not to say that it is impossible, it is possible just the possibility isn't very high.

Personally I have met some great guys there of different varieties. Some were tall, some were short. Some were nice and some were rude. Some wanted to have sex at the end of the night and some were honored to just be in my company. Some wanted more than a kiss on the cheek and others were happy to get a hug. When I started using Tinder, I did it out of boredom. My intention was never to meet up with these guys or even speak to them. In fact, I only needed something to kill some time since 9Gag ceased to do that anymore. That quickly transpired into me chatting away with a couple of tourists and acting as a guide who told them where to go and how to make the most of their trip in the city.

The first person I met face to face after avoiding others was this guy from the Netherlands... who later turned out to want much more than friendship and kept bugging me about it until i had to delete him- with a very heavy heart as he was such a great guy. The next guy I met up with turned out to be a stalker and the rest after that were just not floating my boat at all. Coming up to my most recent Tinder date with this Scottish guy, it has been going well. This is one of those moments whereby I was happy I texted him first straight after we matched and relieved when he replied back.

As I am writing this sentence, he and I text almost everyday, share funny stories with each other and actually flirt here and there (and trust me, there has been a lot of flirting going on). We have already been on two dates and I foresee a few more into the future. Ever since we met, I have stopped using Tinder and really don't feel like getting back on that bandwagon anymore. I'd really like to see how this one ends up. Hopefully well.


So to those of you who'd like to try out this app, I say go ahead! It's worth the experience and it could well  help you find your Tinderfella/Tinderella. Good luck and have fun with the app!

**[DISCLAIMER: This post is in no way associated with Tinder or it's partner companies and is strictly written from a heterosexual woman’s perspective and experience while using this app. This is not a promotional post for Tinder unless stated otherwise.]

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