Introductory Message
While most of us have returned to work this week, it is reported that two tourist companies in eastern China gave their single female employees extra eight days off during the Spring Festival to 'go home and date'. So have you been on a blind date during the break? If yes, how did it work out? Does dating someone you've never met appeal? Are you aware of the Saturday Spouse-Hunting Fairs in Yushan Scenic Area? Oh, yes, we're very nosy because this week, we're addressing an elephant in the room - blind dating. In addition to the traditional, somewhat old-fashioned and unscientific concept of blind dates, dating apps and dating reality shows are becoming popular amongst singletons. Have you heard of Take Me Out? Are you a user of Tinder or Grindr? Besides gossiping, we also want to explore the driving factors of the huge growth of the online dating industry and the societal influence of celibacy.
这周大家都开工了，我们的英语角也开假了。不过如果你是杭州宋城旅游公司30周岁以上未婚单身女员工，那么你还可以多享受8天的“相亲假期”。咳咳，各位青年单身朋友，春节期间相亲了吗？各位有青年单身朋友的家长们，春节期间去于山相亲会了吗？本周六，我们要来一本正经地“八卦”一下春节“禁忌话题”——相亲。辩论“相亲”与“相爱”的复杂关系，探讨独身主义、婚姻观念对于社会结构的影响。
相关链接：单身女员工的春节福利：30岁以上8天“相亲假” 脱单年终奖翻倍！
推荐观影：Black Mirror Season 4 Episode 4 Hang the DJ
补充推荐阅读（Thanks to Joan）：
一席 钱岳：大家真的都结婚了吗？
Dating Stories
Michael's confusion
Michael is an American born Chinese and he works in an English training school in Fuzhou. He's cute and smart and very popular amongst Chinese colleagues and students. However, recently he's got into trouble for dating many girls at the same time. He feels utterly confused about the accusation of being a playboy. For Michael, dating is not exclusive and the whole point of dating is to explore and find the right one. But for those Chinese ladies who dated him usually have different interpretations of dating, relationship and the degree of intimate behaviours.
Mini-Debate
Is blind dating a good way to find your true love?
Yes!
- For most singletons, blind dating is the most efficient way, if not the only way, to find the true love.
- A good way to expand the social circle.
- It is very effective in ruling out the unwanted.
No!
- Blind dating is time consuming and repetitive.
- The mindset confined by the context of blind dating prohibits people from making friends and developing relationship naturally.
- While the match maker usually holds more information about the singletons, he/she does not necessarily have the same expectation for the setup.
Blind Date: An Analogy
Finding true love via blind dating is like improving English via test preparation. Getting a good score in IELTS and improving English proficiency is certainly not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, ideally speaking, they are supposed to be mutually beneficial. Nevertheless, reality usually says the otherwise. While you are attending a test preparation course, your English learning tends to be unconsciously exam-oriented. Accordingly, more attention would be directed to achieving a good score, as opposed to taking the time to digest the knowledge and hone the skills. It is also the case for blind dating. It is like practicing mock exams over and over again when little progress is made in terms of learning how to develop a relationship and love someone appropriately.
Keep Clam and Find Your True Love!
Date & Time: 16/02/2019 19:30-21:00 (Cold & Windy)
Attendees: 17 Nanxian, Janny, Lin, Tony, Sandy, Andrew, Celia, Mike, Mike, Jingru, Family(3), Joan, Brother Diao, Jessie, Ali
Archive files: 1 Photos, 1 Signin Form
Minutes taken by Janny
本次活动由“鼓楼区西湖志愿者驿站”协办！
