[Ironic]

Nice article in the Sunday Times me thinks. A guy leaves for 3 weeks and then the article is publish upon my return. Evidently (I've seen the evidence via c'n'p) there is much talk (and excessive denial) on the boards elsewhere.

Truth hurts doesnt it?

*smirks*

[kall]

I hear you got a mention!

[Sparklechick]

How do feel about being mentioned in it Ironic?

Did you know about it at all?

I hear there's a lot of fuss going on over there about it ....

Ah well.

[kall]

Can someone please get a newspaper to do a comparison story on us?

[Penny]

I can't believe I am commenting,

I thought it showed and proved just how no matter how much we try and make it look like we do, we never truely grow up. All that Family talk was just like going back to secondary school.

I did write more but really the above sentence sums it up... however I think it was a well written funny article....

now

Originally Posted by kall

Can someone please get a newspaper to do a comparison story on us?

you needed to con Opti into saying... "now that I have left NZD, there are other message board sites to fill my hours... www.nzboards.com for one"

[opti_mist]

The online dating universe is a strange, shadowy, though often sweet world, as Peter Malcouronne discovered when he went to an NZDating party.

On a given Saturday, the 120,000 members of NZDating.com, New Zealand's largest on-line dating community, can stop virtual flirting, shut down their computers and head off to a dozen or so events taking place across the country. There are karaoke nights at the league club in Pakuranga. There's a Hypnotist's Evening in Amberley, hosted by a Christchurch dominatrix, and a fortnightly philosopher's breakfast in Kelson, Auckland, where, presumably, people are hungry therefore they eat. Or there is an orgy scheduled to take place in an unspecified central Auckland hotel room. Twenty-eight men have signed up so far and just one single woman, a 45-year old mother of three from the North Shore.

Not wishing to spend the night in the company of sexually frustrated single men from Glenfield, I decided to head south to the Night of Enchantment, an NZDating fancy dress party. I'm here in Hamilton with Gerry, a bashful friend now dressed as a Palestinian freedom fighter, wandering down the main street just minutes before the Super 12 semi between the Chiefs and the Brumbies kick offA strapping lad of the land seems unimpressed with my Louix XVI clobber. "Where are you from, ya fag?" he asks. "Oh? Dorkland!" he jeers. We take refuge inside a kebab house and consider skulking back to Auckland before the friendly proprietor straightens up Gerry's kaffiyah, slaps him on the back, and we return to the fray. Finally at 9.30pm, two hours late, we make it to the party venue, Gravity Bar. There are two princesses at the door flirting with Zorro and a rather care-worn cowboy. Dennis the Menace is chatting up Rapunzel, Alice in Wonderland is snogging the Mad Hatter.

Not entirely by accident, Gerry and I sit at a table opposite a nubile fairy princess from Te Awamutu. "Who are you?" she asks. "Um I'm Pedro the First. The Last King of West Auckland." She doesn't find this as funny as she should and already her attention is starting to wander. Mike, a recently separated Cambridge father of two, muscles in. Aside from the fact that he is the tall, dark, handsome type that far too many women inexplicably go for, he has another crucial advantage over me: he's dressed in jeans and a stripy Grammar-boy shirt. "So, who are you then?" I say snippily. "Oh, I dunno. Just me. Didn't have time to organise a costume. I work as a landscape gardener so I guess, um, you could call me, um... Captain Compost." Fairy Princess finds this far funnier than she should so I harrumph off to the bar, leaving poor Gerry in the clutches of Puss in Boots, a leggy 53 year old brunette in fishnet stockings.
At the bar a disenchanted highwayman sits by himself, absent-mindedly stripping the label off his Heineken. He introduces himself as Mazstar, which is not as silly as it sounds - as I will soon learn. NZDating members prefer to use noms-de-guerre. Mazstar has been an NZDating member for about a year and has been to five events like this one. He chuckles when he hears that I'm an "event virgin" and tells me he met a woman at the first party he attended. Went out with her for six months, was going to move in with her. But then she got back together with her old boyfriend. He found out by text message.

He desparately wants to find his soulmate, but plumbers don't meet many women, he says, despite salacious myths to the contrary. So he logs on to NZDating each night and spends a couple of hours talking to "slappers and solo mums".

[Sparklechick]

Interesting article.

I hear that NZD are trying to find out who it was that wrote it.

[opti_mist]

It seems to have stirred up a hornets nest because people seem to think it was me grinding an axe and attacking NZD.... Baloney as I said to someone today "Have been sent copies of some of the threads from NZD... Alas you have all got the wrong end of the stick.
I enjoyed events and have always advocated EVERYONE should go to one.

The article was not intended to be a slight on NZD...but rather a humourous snapshot of it. The writer was not allocated the word allowance necessary to do it full justice.

seems to me the only things people are complaining about is a) mr presidents mention ( which was because the writer genuinely was touched by Mr P's thread to his mother.

the other things seems to be that it was a negative thread about NZD.... for fornications sake.... its not and those who get all up in arms about "families" "clicky groups" what ever you want to call them are deluding themselves that they dont exist..... hell we all know they do!!!

I would have thought you had the intelligence, to see it for what it is and not assume that I had any axe to grind. I have had some wonderful times on NZD and met some wonderful people.... I have also met some spinners, and seen some idiots walk all over the weaker members

I dont have any ill feeling toward NZD or its members and the fact that so many people seem offended by the article suggest its cutting a little to close to home for some of them!!
Thumbs up to all those who saw it for what it was!!!

Originally Posted by Sparklechick

Interesting article.

I hear that NZD are trying to find out who it was that wrote it.

Well I shouldnt imagine they would have any trouble finding out if they asked Sunday star times

[Sparklechick]

Some people are obviously in denial.

Anyone who has ever been on NZD would know that there are "clicky" groups whether they want to believe it or not.

Apparently they're trying to find out what his nick was on NZD.

[kall]

Originally Posted by Sparklechick

Some people are obviously in denial.

Anyone who has ever been on NZD would know that there are "clicky" groups whether they want to believe it or not.

Apparently they're trying to find out what his nick was on NZD.

Indeed.

I actually thought it was quite a fitting representation of what goes on.

To tell you the truth, the thing about Mr P didn't even register to me...and I have had quite a few Coronas with the big bald man himself.

The impression I got from it was that someone had actually spent some time on NZD, on the boards and at an event or 2, and was writing about what he had seen.

Sheesh.

If I said to y'all "If you can find out who wrote *insert bad thing here* about NZB, do quietly tell me.." you would all think I was some kind of nazi freak.

[opti_mist]

Originally Posted by kall

Indeed.

I actually thought it was quite a fitting representation of what goes on.

To tell you the truth, the thing about Mr P didn't even register to me...and I have had quite a few Coronas with the big bald man himself.

The impression I got from it was that someone had actually spent some time on NZD, on the boards and at an event or 2, and was writing about what he had seen.

Sheesh.

If I said to y'all "If you can find out who wrote *insert bad thing here* about NZB, do quietly tell me.." you would all think I was some kind of nazi freak.

the writer has been on NZD for quite some time has been reading threads, approaching woman AND been to events. No its not all complimentary in the article but if people dont like the suggestion there are idiotic threads then they are living in a bubble.... I think it was a fair representation.

oh and FOR THE RECORD... webby DID know there was going to be an article.

[kall]

Originally Posted by opti_mist

the writer has been on NZD for quite some time has been reading threads, approaching woman AND been to events. No its not all complimentary in the article but if people dont like the suggestion there are idiotic threads then they are living in a bubble.... I think it was a fair representation.

The article certainly didn't read like a quick review, that's for sure...I have seen one article on NZD done on Flipside on TV2, but it was so cursory they may as well have just read the 'About' page and based everything they said off that.

No, this guy sounded like he had enough experience to be able to tell at least his story to people that weren't aware of the concept.

Originally Posted by opti_mist

oh and FOR THE RECORD... webby DID know there was going to be an article.

Hahahahahahahahahaha....I wonder if he will admit that publically.

[Ironic]

Originally Posted by Sparklechick

How do feel about being mentioned in it Ironic?

Did you know about it at all?

I hear there's a lot of fuss going on over there about it ....

Ah well.

I dont care about being mentioned. Amused me actually. And yes I knew it was being written, I proof read the article at one stage.

As for NZD getting all shitty, well as I said before, the truth hurts doesnt it?