The idea of going on a date with someone you’ve never met may feel rather strange, even when dating apps have become all the rage in recent years.
But, did you know that finding a partner using a personal ad or profile goes as far back as the 1700s? Of course, people used newspaper ads, not smartphones, hoping to find a mate that would match their interests and fortunes. Funnily enough, those early personal ads aren't that different from the dating app profiles we see today.
Recently we chatted to some of PDPAOLA’s friends and picked out some seriously hilarious, inspiring, and cringe-worthy stories to inspire you and make you laugh. Read on!
Equine passion
After his conversation starter, Lina could have guessed that going on a date with this guy was a bad idea. “If only I was a horse,” he said, referring to one of her profile pictures in which she was sitting on a pretty white carousel horse. “I couldn’t figure out at the moment if he was being creepy or funny,” Lina recounts.
They met up for dinner. She remembers he was dressed with jeans, an elegant button-down, and, for some reason, he was carrying a huge backpack. “He seemed charming so I didn’t make much of it.”
Peter was very passionate about horses. He talked about how he had ridden them since he was five and spoke about everything from saddles to breeds for a good two hours over dinner. “Even when I asked about something else he went back to the subject”, she remembers.
As they waited for the bill Lina asked Peter about the backpack. “It’s my collection of plush ponies; I never leave home without it,” he replied. “I wanted to think he was joking”, recalls Lina, “either way, I wanted to get out of there as quickly possible”.
My last and his first
After a series of awful dates, Adriana remembers she was ready to delete the dating app from her phone. However, there was a seemingly nice and cute guy who wanted to take her out, so she decided to give it one last chance.
“He mentioned he had just gotten out of a serious relationship so I was hesitant. Then again we were just meeting for a beer. Oh, what the hell, I thought.”
Unexpectedly, Ollie was everything Adriana had ever dreamed of: kind and charming with a stable job and incredibly handsome. They went on a few more dates and things went so well, she was terrified that there was something awful about him that she hadn’t yet discovered.
Meanwhile, Ollie was smitten with Adriana too, “she was just amazing,” he recalls. She was the first woman he had ever met through a dating app after his serious relationship ended, “so I wasn’t sure at the time whether to try and meet more people, but I didn’t really want to.”
And he didn’t. Two years later Adriana and Ollie got married and last year they welcomed their first baby. “Who would have thought his first date from the app would also be my last?”, says Adriana.
Sometimes second parts are also charming
About three years ago, Ellie matched with the hottest guy she’d ever seen. They met up for dinner and a movie and, “it was love at first sight”, she remembers. The next six months they had a “very intense relationship” until he had to move away because of work. “I wasn’t ready to go with him, it seemed too soon and neither of us believed in long-distance relationships, so that was it. I was crushed”, she said.
They remained friends on social media and stayed in touch for a while, but when it became obvious he was seeing other people in his new town she couldn’t take it and cut him off entirely.
After a couple of years and a few failed relationships, Ellie was done with dating for a while, so she went on a solo trip to Mexico to disconnect and meet up with friends there. “During my last night in Mexico, after a few tequilas, me and a girlfriend downloaded a dating app for fun and Aidan’s profile appeared!” They matched again. He had been transferred to Mexico City the year before. Ellie was meant to fly out the next day, but she changed her flight to meet up with him. They’re still there together.
