exhibitionism

The beauty of the online personals sites isn't the ease with which one can find a date. In fact, it's quite the opposite. It's the extent to which they steel you to the concept of rejection. You go to the trouble of trying to describe yourself within the categories and word limits offered, put up a picture or two that may or may not be flattering, and then wait for your reality check. Because what you think you want, what you think you deserve, is an illusion in this virtual dating world. And yes, I know people for whom this whole concept has worked, and I am happy for them. I don't put a lot of faith in it, though, ironic perhaps given my dependence on technology in general.