I've been meaning to post some sort of dating guide for the 21st century for sometime. Not that I'm a genius in this area, obviously, but all these new fangle-dangle forms of communication have definitely thrown up some new ways of doing things.
During my most impressionable teenage years I spent a lot of my time involving myself in the dating conversations of Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha. They spent hours deliberating across morning-after brunch over weather to call the guy or not - this was long before texting, facebook and probably even mobile phones. Back in the day if you broke up with someone you probably had a good chance of never seeing them again, EVER. Nowadays every newly single person finds themselves at the do-I-delete-them-on-facebook crossroads. All these new social issues is what has inspired me to look into the new rules of dating; it's a dating evolution.
The first very important rule is Facebook. Facebook is actually quite a good tool as you can use it for various different flirting methods. I have been known to refer to facebook as my very own match.com. It's fantastic for flirting, it really really is.
Firstly there is the stalking. Facebook stalking is the secret guilty pleasure for everyone with a FB page. This is probably the sole reason we're all on the flippin' thing, well that and to show off how witty you are and how amazing you look pouting in pictures before your night out (just me?). Through a good stalking session you can remind yourself what he looks like, check out his fit friends/ex-girlfriend and see where he went on holiday in 2010.
If the stalking is successful this leads on to the friend request/not request dilemma. I have previously stated that I tend not to add boys on FB. To be honest, the boys I have come across of late are all too eager to do the adding. Regardless of weather you add/accept/not add/decline you can still partake in what I think is the best tool on FB for flirting; the inbox message.
Inboxing is soo good these days. With all this smart phone nonsense, getting an inbox message is pretty much the same as texting only you've side-stepped the awkward number swap scenario. I love a good inbox flirt; it's noncommittal, quick and just soo bloody easy!
Asides from the traditional phonecall, texting is probably the oldest form of flirting these days. Don't get me wrong I love a text flirt too; a well formed witty text with a winky face thrown in is probably my staple move. More recently I have discovered that the wait-twenty-minutes-before-replying thing no longer stands. Texting has got fast and short. Oh god, I don't even know where to begin on the put a kiss/not put a kiss, I think that's your call.
Over the last few years, there have been new additions to these mobile messaging shenanigans, this in the form of BBM, Whatsapp, Viber... the list is probably getting longer as a type. The down side of these app forms of instant messaging is most have the facility to tell if someone has read your message and not replied; talk about encouraging you to turn into that psycho girl you try so desperately not to be; 'I know Luke has read my message - why has he not replied? WHY?!'
On the plus side, these free instant messaging services enable you to also send pictures. The days of paying £1.50 to send an MMS message from your old Nokia 3310 are over. Why pay when you can send a saucy snap over BBM and follow it up with a raised-eyebrow smiley for free?! Happy days. Perhaps this was the real reason behind Blackberry developing this application. But please be warned, if your sending a new guy snaps (which they are increasingly asking for BTW) be wary about including your face in the frame; it's much easier to deny that it is actually you if it's just your boobs. Well, that is unless everyone knows about your third nipple, if that is the case then your fucked.
