Is dating already dead? #1

Sit down and think about the last time you were asked on a date or you asked someone on a date. Yup, my mind is blank as well.

Thinking back on my relationship history, (which practically dates back to the ice age) I don't think I have ever been formally asked out on a date. Actually, there was one time, when I was at nature camp and a boy said that my smile reminded him of his mother and asked if I would go on a date with him. Naturally, being the free bird I was at ten years old, I refused.

College is supposed to be a time for experimentation, freedom, and finding yourself. Weekends are filled with parties, dancing, meeting new people, and expanding your social boundaries. Does the college environment automatically veto dating? Did dating die out with the dinosaurs?

Three years ago, I arrived at UNH as a newly single girl. I had just broken up with my long-time boyfriend Tim so that I could fully experience the college scene without limitations. The first weekend rolled around and I went out with my posse of new girlfriends. The minute I entered the first dank smelly apartment, I got the feeling that romance was dead. A few minutes later, an older gentleman (who shall remain nameless) approached me with the eyes of a drunken sailor and asked me, "Do you want to go somewhere?" No hello, no introduction, just simply, "Do you want to hook up?"

Apparently college has turned into Teflon for dating. People are skipping somewhat vital steps like knowing each other's names and advancing straight to the bedroom. Perhaps this is the new dating-sex first, names later.

Dating is like a slow seduction dance. It allows the mind to mull over the mysteries of the other person, and causes the body to weaken from anticipation. Plus, you generally just get to know the person. Remember the dating rule: no sex for at least three dates, or three weeks, or any period of time longer than an hour. Promiscuity versus old fashioned waiting: is it really just an issue of time? Have we condensed a months worth of dating into one night? Some find dating standard, a good way to begin a relationship, while others just want to get to the good stuff.