It is two years now since the love of my life passed away, and I decided to become a member of a dating website. There were so many tales being shunted around about elderly, unattractive and normally lazy friends of mine who were coming out with these simply amazing online dating successes, that I thought there must be something in it for me. Therefore, I bit the bullet and got on with it.
I took into account that online dating was just a few years ago seen as something mildly unrespectable and for those people who were absolutely desperate. This is just not the case today as just about everyone you meet has tales of sorrow and happiness in their online dating experiences. Even a You Gov survey discovered that, of nearly 2000 couples, that around fifteen percent had met online.
Once on the site, I posted a photograph and gave myself an online name but then the profile tick boxing brought me to a grinding halt. The categories were so broad that I would never possibly be able to portray myself in my true fun loving manner. I could be intelligent and wealthy or I could say I ditched school at 16 and live off takeaway food. Eventually I selected the well-educated and highly paid path so I could actually get my foot in the door.
After only a few hours of my profile going out to all those clicking perfect matches, I was put in contact with a female who called herself “Queen Tracy”. She was 25 years of age, lived in Kensington, and worked in the media business. She said she liked my appearance and hers, I must admit, was pretty glossy as well.
We subsequently exchanged email addresses so that we could communicate out of sight of the dating site’s security cameras. When we did this, my luck was shattered and this gentle Kensington girl turned into someone who was burdened with a multitude of tragedies, all originating in Lagos. She instantly wanted me to mail her money so she would have the ability to fund those of her family who had fallen victim to a variety of catastrophes.
I was so totally mystified that with such little experience of a dating site that I could fall foul to a would-be fraudster and I barely had my foot through the door!
The immediate reaction was to inform the dating site’s moderating team who, of course, were undyingly sympathetic, but they would not refund my membership fees as I had communicated with this woman off the main site using private email addresses.
