Dating apps, filters, and sexual chemistry
I’ve officially been on the dating apps since January – I mean, I was on them before that, idly swiping through whenever I got bored and needed some distraction, but I wasn’t ready to go on any actual dates. And it’s a funny thing, using them for an extended period of time. You start to notice patterns, repeated phrases, replies to prompts that have been stolen from other accounts, spreading across Hinge like an airborne virus. I’d love to ask a straight man what it’s like for them, because on my side of the algorithm, it’s all wanting travel tips for Japan, “pizza is my second favourite thing to eat in bed” (SHUDDER), giving their height, followed by a sulky if it matters, and saying their special skill is getting their hoody back after you’ve “borrowed” it. This one, I am completely baffled by- are women regularly stealing hoodies on dates? Is this a thing? Comment below if you collect men’s sweatshirts as trophies, I want to hear from you.
The other thing I see frequently is a warning about filters. On a date in Paris, I asked about this and the guy told me that he had arranged to meet a woman and when she arrived, she looked like a different person. She had used some kind of beauty filter on her dating profile, to the point where she was unrecognisable in real life. As someone who was EXTREMELY fond of the