Why We Meet Friends on Tinder
But wait! Tinder — isn’t that a hookup app?
“Tinder — isn’t that a hookup app?”
That’s usually the first question we get, and it’s usually the one people hang on the most for an erotic response. But no, my husband and I do not use Tinder for sex. We use it to meet people. And it has been wonderfully successful.
My husband and I moved across the entire country to a new town where we knew nobody. There is no bar scene here. There is hardly any nightlife at all. Plus, we moved here in the dead of winter. All of the young people were either up at the ski resorts or busy pumping out kids. It’s not an easy time to meet people, and it’s also the hardest time to be without them.
We tried our best to meet friends at drop-in sports and at our places of work, but the pools were small. From our experience, small-town folk are warm and friendly, but oddly competent at keeping you at an arm’s length. It’s not hard to feel welcome, but it is hard to feel invited.
Don’t get me wrong, we were intentional. We asked for people’s numbers. We dropped hints about going for sushi or having a wine night. The experience was like throwing a handful of darts at a board and hoping one will stick. But they rarely did. Not in the first six months, at least. And there’s not much you can change…
