I wish I can upvote you a million times over. This is something most people don't really appreciate until they leave college.
As a recent grad this is something that bothers me. In college almost anyone you meet (of your interested gender) is in your dating pool - you are at most a couple years apart in age, everything works out, you're at the same stage in life, etc.
Once you leave you will find that:
1 - Chances for socializing drops through the floor. You actually have to try at it, but that isn't the main problem, though you do end up meeting way fewer people per day than you used to.
2 - Only a very small portion of the people you meet and befriend are within your dating pool (age, expectation, stage in life, etc). Add this onto #1 and you might actually start thinking about dating services. I know I am.
Any other HNers with similar experiences? I'm at a bit of a loss here - clearly I can't be the only one in this situation, but it seems odd that we allow this gigantic social hole to exist. Am I missing some dynamic of "being an adult"?
The fact that I'm getting upvotes and no solutions is somewhat telling, and very depressing :S Is this really one of those problems that we have no solution for?
I've been toying around with an idea about that... guess I should get work on it ;) While in college I never truly appreciated the kind of massive ache we have in the market for a dating site that works...
I've heard good things about coffee shops, but I haven't tried them yet. According to a recent article on YC, this is a "third place." (The article was about MMOs.) Pubs and bars are also "third places."
Essentially, though, yes, there is no solution that rivals college. Often people say that their college years were the best years of their life - I wonder if this is a leading factor in that decision.
