Emoti-prude

As you may or may not know, “dating” these days doesn’t often involve physical speech. It’s become a series of one-line, usually deplorably spelled, text messages such as “Hey, wat’s up?”, punctuated by the occasional in-person meeting. This apparently reduces the amount of time invested in a new person and the amount of accountability you have toward the person if you meet someone else or decide to just blow them off. I mean all you know about them anyway is that “Things are good” and that they’ve “Been busy” – easy to take or leave, right?

Well, the stranger phenomenon I have encountered in NYC is the ease with which these guys will feign what I like to call “text affection”. Many of the guys I’ve met here like to sign their texts with X O X O or some variation thereof within the first couple of back-and-forths! Last time I checked, virtual strangers don’t merit hugs and kisses. But I guess that makes me and my friends who agree on this point “emoti-prudes”. We are not willing to give away valuable X-Os to just any guy we meet! What are we, text whores?! You wish, guy I met once drunk in a bar. Do you think that if you are immediately text affectionate, I will physically put out once our relationship gets to the stage of forming 10 complete sentences?! Think again. You may get a winky face out of me (usually because I am making a joke at your expense and find the whole situation fairly ridiculous), but do not expect virtual hugs and kisses until we have had several dinners and at least two real hugs and kisses. If that makes me an emoti-prude, so be it! One of us has to have a little class.