Curious to hear strangers' dating experiences, Redditor HeloPeopelinos asked:
"What was the weirdest way you got into a relationship?"
Ready to get started? Okay, cupid.
These Redditors found a spark online.
Mutual Interest
"On the original Napster. She had a very rare live track I wanted, and I had the whole back catalogue of the same artist that she wanted.":
– kevinmorice
It Started With A Rant
"Craigslist used to have (might still have?) a rants and raves section. I posted a long pissed off open letter to how much winter in Chicago sucks."
"A woman answered it and sarcastically made light of just about everything I posted, and we went back and forth for a few emails before meeting up for drinks. Spent close to 3 years together."
– conipto
Chatting
"9GAG hat a chat app called 'Cookies' for a few months. It was basically Twitter for 9GAG and I only used it for a few days. When I posted something, I chatted with a guy for a bit and we found out that we were both from Germany."
"We kept talking on Whatsapp but I had some family and mental health issues which is why we didn’t write with each other for over a year. When I wrote him again apologising for my distant behaviour we started talking again. We’ve been dating for over 5 1/2 years now."
– mrl_a
How Sweet And Tinder
"I erased my tinder because I wasn't into just hook ups and right before I erased it I matched with a cute girl and just said to text me if she wanted because I was going to erase my tinder. She did but only to be my friend and literally 2 months later we started dating. Now she's my best friend and girlfriend coming up to 3 years."
– Deftoones
Some people unexpectedly met their eventual significant others in person.
The Manifestation
"In school, I drew a lot and would often draw randomly made up people."
"Once, I doodled a pretty girl and the girl sitting next to me asked who she was."
"I told her she wasn't a specific person but she thought I was just too shy to say and kept pressing, as well as getting all of the other girls in our class involved."
"And one of them said she knew her. Some girl who went to a nearby school."
"So they asked me if that's who it was and if I'd like them to get her to come meet up with me."
"I said f'k it, yeah."
"We met up that weekend and ended up going out for a few months."
"So, I basically drew a girlfriend into existence."
– BadgerSituation
The Wave
"My ex wife was the consolation prize in a radio contest. Well...kinda."
"I used to co-host a morning radio show back in the 90s, and we did a version of 'The Dating Game' on the air. Just like the classic TV show, we'd have a woman choosing between 3 eligible bachelors, or a man choosing between 3 'bachelorettes.'"
"The winner would get a date paid for by the station, and the runners up would get a consolation prize. Part of my job was to coordinate everything between the contestants. This one day, we had the bachelor in the studio, and three women on the phone. He picked one for his date (it was tickets to a baseball game and dinner at a nice restaurant), and afterwards I got all the information from the runners up so that they could get their prizes."
"One of them sounded really fun on the phone, and we hit it off. Our studio window looked out over the station's lobby, and I told her that if she came in to get her prize while I was still on the air, she should turn and wave at the window."
"A few hours later, I looked out the window and saw her waving. My first thought was 'holy sh*t...she needs a date?' Turns out she was pretty hot...and it turns out that I had her phone number."
"So I called back later and asked her out. Relationship lasted 7 years."
– gogojack
In The Spirit Of Competition
"Was holding tryouts to join our clan in Starcraft around the year 2000."
"She joined our game and it was decided I would 1v1 her while the rest of our clan watched. I kicked her ass and we agreed she could join up with us if she still wanted to. Turned out I couldn't stand her and tried to avoid her like the plague."
"Somehow started talking over AOL instant messenger and ended up learning she was a 4-hour drive away in the state next door. Things fell into place and we ended up in a long-distance relationship at the tender age of 16."
"We celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary this last September. Can still kick her a** in video games. =D"
– Guinnessnomnom
Not every encounter is romantic.
Going Insane
"Met a girl while exploring a creepy abandoned insane asylum at 3am. We were both there with separate groups, neither group was aware of the other group’s presence but we kept hearing one another moving around and scared half out of our minds because we each assumed the other was crazed hobos or criminals using the place as a hideout or something."
"Anyway our groups kept getting closer and closer to one another while trying to figure out how to get out. I turned a corner, saw a face, and nearly brained this poor girl with the baseball bat I was carrying before I realized it was just a bunch of scared college kids same as us. We had a good laugh about it, me and the girl hit it off, and ended up dating for a couple of years."
– KongUnleashed
Mistaken Identity
"Was at a party. Waved at a someone I knew. A girl standing between us who was visibly smashed thought I waved at her. She came over and tripped in the last meter. I caught her."
"That's 10 years ago and we're getting married in august."
– DaPino
Making A Mark
"She threw up in my bed after taking a nap there without asking me on my newyears party."
"Hard to say no to that."
– T0b3yy
The Trade-Off
"Work did a mandatory fun evening at a bar. My then gf came in with a good looking woman, walks past the group I'm with, goes to the bar and proceeds to order two shots of tequila and drinks them off her friends breasts. She then waves me over, some shenanigans happen and in the morning tells me I'm dumped but her friend is single. That lasted about a year. I got traded."
– throwaway198675543
These relationships started off with an apology.
Time Out
"It was an alien themed birthday party. I knew only the person who’s birthday it was. I’ve also got a neurological condition which means sometimes I need to take a time out. So I’m sitting in a beanbag leaning against a wall in a full alien morph suit. My time out must have gone for a while, and people who arrived after me thought I was a decoration as I was motionless."
"This guy trips over my foot, so I moved it. He freaked, and then realised I was a person and came up to apologise. I just gave a thumbs up. Anywhos time passes and I go to get snacks. I take the hood part off and the guy that tripped on me is just staring open mouthed. He eventually comes up to say he first thought I was a decoration, then thought I was a dude. He then spent the rest of the night getting snacks for me."
"Lasted a few months."
– Grieie
NSFW Note
"There was phone number written on the back of a bus I was on when I was 14-15 and under it was written 'will suck dick for money' I was with a few mates and to be a little smart a** show off to my friends I called it and asked if she was for real."
"later that day I felt so bad for the girl I ended up texting her and apologising for being an a**hole and she was grateful for my message and explained that it was her ex that put it there. Anyway, we got texting and I ended up dating her for 3 years. Nice girl."
– braedn
Cupid persevered, regardless of the circumstances.
Oh, Deer
"Hit a deer going about 45, knocked one of my headlights out. The car was drivable, but it was dark and foggy in the country. My crush was with me that evening, and after cursing the deer for a solid 10 minutes, I asked if it was okay if she stayed with me that night instead of me potentially wrecking driving her home."
"She agreed. We got back to my dorm, and I had to use the restroom. I told her I’d fix the bed situation when I got out. I intended to pull the mattress cover off, and let her have the bed for the night while I used the floor."
"Yeah, she didn’t think that. I came out of the bathroom to find her wrapped in my blankets. I asked where I should sleep and she said to just sleep next to her. We ended up cuddling all night and having a tasty campus breakfast date the next morning. We’re still together 2 years later."
– Programmer-Boi
Pandemic Romance
"My ex and I got stuck together at his place on our first Tinder date. For 2 months. Met him during a layover I had where he lived and they closed all the borders a few hours before I was supposed to leave. 2020 was a wild time."
– ApprehensiveStatus13
It wasn't that bizarre, but years ago, I met someone as a straphanger on a packed subway in NYC.
Our train came to a halt in between stations, and we were held there for a good half hour. A fellow passenger sitting down in front of me decided to engage with me with some small talk, which I absolutely cannot stand.
But he was cute.
After exchanging numbers, we ended up having a brief fling. But much like our stuck subway car, we weren't going places, romantically. So I eventually got off that train to nowhere.
It just goes to show you never know the opportunity for a meet-cute could be there in front of you...as long as your eyes aren't glued to Candy Crush on your daily subway commute.
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Because no one wants to date someone and find themselves being a parent in a romantic relationship.
"What are signs a guy hasn’t matured?"
When interacting with others, immature men may be prone to doing the following.
Now, Hear This
"If he doesn’t listen to who he is talking to."
– Cookieej23
The Hypocrite
"blatant disregard for others while saying others are inconsiderate."
– EmptyVessel39
Dismissive
"Shrugs, says 'my bad' and makes the same mistake again."
– snowballyyc
Tantrum
"Has a meltdown when asked to do basic chores because he 'doesn't like doing them' and then threatens to move out because of this. Like, please do, you child."
"Edit: all housemates came together and cried it out, there was a lot going on behind the scenes I didn't know about. I'm glad I came here to rant instead of saying anything I'd regret. Happy New year folks :)"
– lala_loves_corn
Man Child
"Honestly, when he acts like a toddler."
"Do small inconveniences make him throw a temper tantrum? Does he punch walls and hit stuff? Does he get upset when he doesn’t get his way?"
"If you can imagine him as a toddler, he’s a weenie and needs to grow up."
– Burrito_Loyalist
Why He's An Ex
"I knew my ex hadn't matured when I told him I thought we should try saving money to move into a better apartment. I said I was going to cancel my gym membership, shop for cheaper groceries, take my lunch to work instead of buying my food, and reduce our Netflix account to 1 screen instead of 2."
"I suggested he maybe choose a gaming membership to cancel (he had 3), bring his lunch to work, and maybe come up with a drink rotation when him and his friends got together instead of him always buying the drinks. He got angry and said I was a kill-joy and that there was nothing wrong with our apartment."
"Our apartment still used electric coils in the wall to heat the place and 2 of them smoked when you turned them on. The stove routinely caught fire. There was a significant roach problem."
"And the apartment downstairs was broken into multiple times. I had found a really nice split home for $80 more per month in a quieter part of town and it was being privately let by a very nice older woman who moved out when her husband went into a care home."
"I knew then that he would never grow up if he couldn't make those small sacrifices."
– Zoo_In_The_Bathtub
Keep It In Your Pants
"Brags about his bed count/dick size/sexual prowess... Public or private settings, I don't think it matters, it's tacky af and 99% of the time is bullsh*t. If you actually do have a nine inch dick, short of you pulling it out and slapping it on the table for all to see, no one is going to believe you so just keep it to yourself and whoever is in your bed."
– Instant-Noods
If you can't apologize or are willing to have an honest discussion, you are the problem.
Taking Responsibility
"A sign that anyone hasn't matured is not being willing to apologize when they realize that they made a mistake and caused damage especially to someone else's emotions."
"EDIT: I should add this because I think I'm not being fully understood here. If you did something wrong, know that you did something wrong, don't feel remorseful and are not acknowledging what you did and whatever consequences your actions caused, are getting angry with whoever points out the obvious mistake you made, are making false excuses and arguments or blaming the victim, you are immature."
"If you genuinely didn't do anything wrong then you have nothing to apologize for."
– Goddess-Ylvia
The Right Phrasing
"There's also a huge difference between 'I'm sorry you feel that way' and 'I'm sorry about how I made you feel.'"
– micoxafloppin1
Evasive Isn't Cool
"Stonewalling and refusing to have a mature conversation about problems in the relationship."
– Hello891011
Silence Speaks A Thousand Words
"Going silent in an argument. Mostly intentional, such as silent treatment. However people can also unintentionally go silent as an automatic coping mechanism against their own emotions. That could lead to something called pursuer-distancer dynamic, which is extremely common and I guess pretty normal although painful."
– Kakofoni
Wrong Response
"If they get offended when you communicate how you want them to please you."
– Noodlesandwings
Some say the ability to look inward is something that is a mark of true character.
Taking A Deep Look
"Inability to self reflect in a meaningful way."
– Anticrepuscular_Ray
Interpreting What Others Think
"I think the best I ever did was sit alone in my room and actually question why I think the way I do about the world and the people in it."
"I always thought people assumed the worst in me, and that’s why treated me like I was an a**hole. Turns out I was just preemptively being an a**hole as a defense mechanism to not get hurt or tricked by people. My family is a bucket of crabs unable to ever figure out how to properly treat people with respect. all their jokes to me were constant personal attacks, so I guess I learned somewhere along the line that you apparently just roast the sh*t out of people for any little thing they do."
"So in short, I thought about why I felt like people thought the worst of me, and it’s because I thought the worst of me and showed it to them. So I decided I would treat people how I want to be treated, not how I thought I should be treated."
"So I guess that’s an example of self reflection."
– perpetualstudent101
Good Personal Growth
"You are already self reflecting when you think this applies to you. Thinking about what you think and the things you do, and why you think and do them, and how they affect other people, is self refecting. It's actually a very interesting thing to do and it helps you grow as a person."
– squirrelfoot
Work In Progress
"Tap into your empathy and have a genuine focus on understanding none of us are finished products and we should never stop trying to improve ourselves and as a direct consequence how we treat those around us."
"The main lesson I've learnt in life is pride for prides sake is absolutely destructive to that. Learn to apologise and mean it, take the 'damage to pride' on the chin, it makes you a stronger person."
– Wilfko
No wants to be around a mess.
Untidy
"Doesn’t clean up after himself."
– macaronsforeveryone
Personal Maid
"I'll do you one better; doesn't clean up after himself and has his gf clean up for him. Used to hang out with a guy like that back in the day and steered clear of his room."
– Doggo6893
Bad Expectations
"As an add-on, doesn't know how to do household chores. I think it's imperative that every mature person know how to at least cook a simple meal, clean up and wash clothes. Not too long ago men expected 'the wife' to do all that but I think it's important to share the chores."
– googdude
Based on the comments provided by the Redditors above, people should take note of the characteristics of men they would like to avoid.
And for those men, or even women, who feel uncomfortable with the red flag examples, it may be because they may have some growing up to do themselves.
But overall, a good rule of thumb is: tantrums aren't sexy.
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