Jodi Tandet
Sep 3, 2018 · 1 min read

Hi Mike,

Thanks for reading and responding! I agree that in real life, a hi or a hey is completely natural. If some guy just walked right up to me at a bar and yelled, “What’s your favorite episode of Parks and Recreation??” without preamble, I’d be rather freaked out.

But on an app, where you can’t read a person’s body language, facial expressions and vocal tone, it’s harder to get out of the simple greeting place. When a guy messages me “hey,” responding is more of a gamble. I wonder how long it’ll take before we get to an interesting place… whereas, if he brings up a commonality or asks me something intriguing about my profile, I’m interested from message #1.

And I message first quite a bit! I’d say about half the time, depending upon when the match comes through (if I’m busy or free) and how interested I am in them.

    Jodi Tandet

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    recovering em dash overuser writing about mental health, dating, pop culture & other oddities — all with humor + Hamilton references //joditandet.strikingly.com