Arranged Marriage

Arranged marriage is not a topic that comes up all that often in North America, but I think we might be dismissing the concept without enough thought.

Ask any teenager their thoughts on it and you would likely end up with a sharp gasp and then a verbal diarrhea of why it's the worst idea in the whole world. Ask any single person in their 30's and you might just get a different response.

I am currently single. I have tried using some of those singles dating sites as I actually have friends who have had success with them. Of course, I haven't told any of them that I have given it a shot. I obviously am okay with the idea of online dating but I'm also not quite comfortable with admitting to the world that that's how I'm going about it. Seems like it would be a good "how we met" story.... for the wedding reception.

Possibly my favorite thing with online dating is my ability to suss out people before I meet them face to face. If you meet someone in a bar or at a party you might get a bit of slightly intoxicated idea of both their looks and their personality. Online, you get photos that may or may not be accurate, but you get to see how they express themselves when given a blank slate to write on.

This is also my biggest dilemma, the blank slate.

I like words, and I like spelling and grammar. Now, obviously I'm not perfect when it comes to these things, but I figure I'm pretty average and it worries me that my skills in English syntax seem to be far superior than the average single male.  I go so far as to mention how important the ability to use the full word "you" instead of "u" is to me - yet I receive numerous responses that include this sort of text speak. Why? Why? Why?

I realize that I may be eliminating a potential significant other with my ridiculous obsession, but my rationale is that since it's something that drives me INSANE, it's not unreasonable to expect someone who can at least spell - how else am I supposed to enjoy my future love letters??