Meeting Places and Romance

Rose Madeline Mula Writes: Among other things that have disappeared, along with traditional names, are virgin brides. Actually virgins — period. And brides in general. It seems that fewer and fewer couples are opting for marriage these days as “living in sin” apparently is either no longer considered to be a sin or nobody cares. And the few marriages that do take place often feature the couple’s children as ring bearers and flower girls. A popular inscription in the autograph books we all owned was “First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes (fill in a name) with a baby carriage.” Not any more. Not in that order. And why do people need so much entertainment today? Case in point: I recently saw an ad for a waterproof radio with headphones to wear while surfing. Isn’t surfing enough? When I was young, sitting by the radio listening to “Jack Armstrong, the All-American Boy” or “Our Gal Sunday” was the highlight of my day. more »

Adrienne Cannon writes: I am thinking of the various trips I have taken as a solo traveler when I awaken in a strange location with no companion to talk to. Then I learned to quietly observe life around me (often quite different to my “American” background) even though I wasn’t part of it. Instead of feeling sad about my solitary state I began to treasure those calming moments of contemplation and observation. When I had to schedule appointments during pandemic lockdown and I was one of the few people in a pool, in a class, in the locker room or other places where few people were admitted at the same time, I began to understand that being solitary is not the same as being sad or lonely. In the past, I have made friends on those solo trips by reaching out after too much solitude. And so it seems during those lonely days I have made new acquaintances. They are often a little younger than I am and I happily call on them to join me in my active hours that sometimes outstrip the energies of many of my contemporaries. more »

The Department of Justice announced today that the Western Union Remission Fund began its third distribution of approximately $66 million in funds forfeited to the United States from the Western Union Company (Western Union) to approximately 6,000 victims located in the United States and abroad... According to court documents, in the scheme, fraudsters targeted consumers, including seniors, through multiple scams. Three specific scams directed towards seniors included the so-called grandparent scam, where the fraudster would pose as the victim’s relative in purported need of immediate money to avoid personal harm; lottery or sweepstakes scams, where the fraudster would tell the victim that he or she had won a large cash prize but had to pay fees, such as taxes, to claim the prize; and romance scams, where the fraudster would pose as an online love interest and request funds for a visit or for another purpose. In each of these scams, the fraudsters convinced their victims to send money through Western Union. more »

"Social distancing and dating were always a bit of a challenging combination. So today, dating sites like Bumble, Tinder, Hinge, Match, OkCupid, BLK, Chispa, Plenty of Fish, and Badoo are announcing a series of features to encourage vaccinations and help people with that univer- — help people meet people who have that universally attractive quality: They’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19. These sites cater to over 50 million people in the U.S. and are some of the world’s biggest nongaming apps. Here’s one for you: According to one of the sites, OKCupid, the people who display their vaccination status are 14 percent more likely to get a match. We have finally found the one thing that makes us all more attractive: a vaccination." more »