Many 20-something professional women in New York City struggle with love and relationships. I just happen to be one of them.
Finding suitable options among a plethora of casual, unserious daters has become a jading experience. It has prompted my friends to hilariously suggest I go on a dating show like “The Bachelor.” But we all saw what happened to Jenn Tran — even “The Bachelorette” got duped by a no-good love bomber.
Dating has become this behemoth, creating such unsettling experiences that women have gone viral crying about their dates, their perpetual singlehood and men in general. Some even claim they’ve abandoned all hope and are turning to celibacy.
I’ve felt the same lonely frustrations even though I’m really never actually alone. The vicious cycle of dating hasn’t helped: the initial optimism, the fatigue of disappointment and inevitable apathy – rinse and repeat. So I gave myself a challenge this summer: get off my dating apps comfort zone and try other forms of dating. I wasn’t looking for anything in particular. I wanted to experience the dating world outside the digital realm we have all fallen into partly by choice and circumstance.