[Blindtlk] Online Dating

[David Andrews]

Good things can happen from on-line dating, but it can also be a 
bumpy road for blind people.  I have tried it some in the past, 
gotten a few dates, but nothing that developed into anything.  On the 
otherhand, I know people who met through sites like eHarmony or 
Match.com, blind people, and got married.

I think on-line dating is like life, most people, when it comes to 
the opposite sex, can't get past the blindness.  Most people you meet 
wouldn't date you.  And .. in on-line stuff, since it is more 
superficial, I think this trait is exasserbated.

Dave

At 01:00 PM 5/24/2015, you wrote:
>Some years ago, I signed up on one of the well-known online dating sites. I
>had a membership for about a year. On my profile, I had it very clearly
>stated that I am blind. I can't remember my exact words, but I did state
>that I had a guide dog, and my picture was a shot of me and my dog in
>harness walking on the GDB campus. I was working there at the time. Anyway,
>this site had a pretty involved process, in which one aspect was a series of
>questions you could choose from to ask potential matches. Two questions I
>always chose were how do you feel about pets, and how would you feel about
>your partner having friends of the opposite sex? I obviously had guide dogs,
>and I also have cats sometimes. My best friend is a guy. Both those things
>are nonnegotiable. You'd be surprised how many people those two questions
>eliminated. I did get as far as phone conversations with a couple guys, but
>it never went beyond that. the experience was fun in a way but frustrating
>too. If I'd gotten as far as wanting to meet someone in person, I'd have met
>them in a public place and would have had a sighted person I trusted be
>there in the background to observe. I did have people look at the potentials
>profiles and pictures.
>
>Sherry
>
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: blindtlk [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Judy Jones
>via blindtlk
>Sent: Sunday, May 24, 2015 11:54 AM
>To: Blind Talk Mailing List
>Cc: Judy Jones
>Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Online Dating
>
>Yes, you could very innocently mention in conversation, for instance,
>something about a braille display, or a cane, and let him ask the question?
>That would be one way to introduce the blindness topic.  Have you ever had
>the topic of officially introducing yourselves and talking about yourselves?
>
>Judy
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Carly Mihalakis via blindtlk
>Sent: Sunday, May 24, 2015 10:58 AM
>To: Blind Talk Mailing List ; blindtlk at nfbnet.org
>Cc: Carly Mihalakis
>Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Online Dating
>
>Of course, be forthright about your blindness. if you guys end up
>meeting, you might not  want his  shock to color his experience of you?
>   If you have additional curiosities about meeting people from
>phone/  On-line dating services, don't hesitate to ask.
>Car

         David Andrews and long white cane Harry.
E-Mail:  dandrews at visi.com or david.andrews at nfbnet.org