Manners Still Apply
I’m on Match.com. I fought it for years. My friends nagged. My neighbors (who are also good friends) pushed. My parents even got in on the act. I didn’t like resorting to the impersonal internet to meet someone. After more than six pretty-much-date-free years in St. Louis I gave in.
As with all things in life, it’s had its ups and downs, but one thing about it gets to the very essence of why I avoided it … instant messaging. About 70 percent of the guys I’ve talked to want to IM. With some, it’s fine. With most … it’s so very annoying.
I blame the impersonal nature of it. It somehow makes some men forget their manners.
I believe IMing is a conversation. I’m engaged, interested … all ears (or maybe eyes in this case). If my phone rings, I ignore it, ask if I can return the call later or at least let the person I’m IMing with know I need to take the call. (Occasionally, I’ll multitask, but God knows men can’t do that).
In the time I’ve written these 241 words (and pulled the dogs apart many times), I’ve been waiting for an IM response from a guy I’ve been on a few dates with. He admits that he’s doing other things … it still irks me.
I guess I need to remember my manners when I type him a nice IM sharing my frustration.