Sweet Beginnings
The App That Only Let Me Date on Wednesdays (And Somehow It Worked)
I had exactly one open evening every other week, and every regular dating app treated that like a personality flaw until I found one built for parents like me.
Together 9 months · Sweet Beginning
I Made a Spreadsheet to Find a Decent Man on Dating Apps — Row 14 Was the Winner
After my divorce I approached dating apps like a science project, complete with a color-coded spreadsheet. Row 14 broke the whole system.
Together 14 months · Sweet Beginning
I Joined Bumble at 51 Because My Son Threatened to Make My Profile For Me
He alphabetized his spice rack and put it in his dating profile like a warning label. I swiped right anyway.
Together 18 months · Sweet Beginning
My Daughter Set Up My OurTime Profile at 64 — and I Almost Deleted It Three Times
I hadn't been on a first date since Reagan was president, and my thumbs kept fat-fingering the app off my phone entirely. Then a retired electrician named Walt sent me a message about my garden photos.
Together 11 months · Sweet Beginning
I Joined OurTime at 58 and Ended Up on a Date at a Bait Shop
I hadn't been on a first date since the Clinton administration, and somehow it ended with me holding a bucket of live minnows and laughing harder than I had in three years.
Together 11 months · Sweet Beginning
I Joined OurTime at 56 and Ended Up Arguing About Casseroles on Date One
I hadn't been on a date since Bill Clinton was president, and my first match wanted to debate tuna casserole recipes for forty-five minutes straight.
Together 2 years · Sweet Beginning
How a SilverSingles Profile My Daughter Filled Out Led Me to Diane
I told my daughter I'd never do online dating at 68 — then she filled out the profile herself while I was napping, and three weeks later I was sitting across from a woman who fixes her own gutters.
Together 8 months · Sweet Beginning
My Granddaughter Set Up My Profile, and Then I Actually Used It
At 67, three years a widow, I let my granddaughter talk me into a senior dating site. I nearly quit after the man who brought his own thermos of prune juice to dinner.
Together 14 months · Sweet Beginning
I Joined OurTime at 68 and Learned to Stop Apologizing for My Age
My daughter set up the profile because I couldn't figure out how to crop a photo. Six months later I was the one teaching my new lady friend how to video call her grandkids.
Together 5 months · Sweet Beginning
The Kayaking Group That Turned Into a Facebook Dating Match
I almost turned off Facebook Dating after a month of nothing, then it showed me someone from a paddling group I'd forgotten I joined in 2019.
Together 18 months · Sweet Beginning
Have a story you'd like to share?
Sweet beginning or a lesson worth passing on — every submission is de-identified before it's published.