Baby boomers try online dating

Here's an interesting article about baby boomers' attempts to navigate the online dating scene. An excerpt:

Dating online the second time around — after divorce or the death of a spouse — isn’t always second nature among the nation’s 78 million boomers, let alone people who are 65 and older, but neither is it all that scary.

Yet they often have unrealistic notions of how to hunt for love and companionship, said Pepper Schwartz, a sociology professor at the University of Washington in Seattle, sex and relationship expert for the AARP and developer of an algorithm to make matches more meaningful on the dating site PerfectMatch.com.

On the surface, this doesn't mean much to 20- and 30-somethings.

But we're the children of boomers. Amid factors like divorce and death, there's a chance we'll encounter the odd experience of watching a parent date.

Have you been in this position? If so, how did you handle it?

Tuesday power anthem

Can you believe these guys are coming to Columbus this weekend?

Confession: I'm a little jealous that my colleague Sara Pauff is writing an advance story about the concert right now. Learn more here.

What's that smell?

Oh yeah, sex and candy. Mmm.

Hangover 2 and dating

Your friends will likely be talking about "Hangover Part II" this weekend, so why not extend the discussion to the dating world?

Ladies, here's an article about how to use various GPS tools to track your significant other while he's away at a bachelor party.

Is that going too far? You decide.

I have no objection to the elusive "boys' night out."

However, I don't think "boys' night out" should be synonymous with "the night I temporarily cut off all communication with my girlfriend."

Listen, guys. We understand you're enjoying male bonding time. And that's fine.

Just please take a minute to call or text.

Otherwise, I'll have to bust out my GPS.

Doggy dating

Must love Greenies, rawhides and long walks in the park.

I envisioned the profile after reading this article about a new dating site designed for dogs.

Of course, the goal is a little more complex than simply finding a new digging partner. The site is designed to gauge "whether the puppies from two adults are likely to be healthy."

Still, I like to imagine two dogs sipping peanut butter martinis while coyly licking each other's ears.

The only problem? My dog probably wouldn't care for the site.

She's been fixed, but also has incredibly high standards in the social world. When we go on our nightly walks, she generally doesn't even look up when nearby dogs bark.

But yes, the image that accompanies this post is her dating profile pic -- if she ever wants to dabble in the online meet market.

What has your pet taught you about dating?

Let's get married?

Marriage is losing ground, according to Census data cited by USA Today. An excerpt:

Unmarried couples made up 12% of U.S. couples in 2010, a 25% increase in 10 years, according to Census data out today.

Two-thirds of the cities with the largest shares of unmarried couples were in the Northeast and Midwest, up from about half a decade earlier.

The information isn't exactly groundbreaking. I've read plenty of articles about how cohabitation has made many couples less willing to take the marriage leap.

So here's my question: Do numbers like the aforementioned Census figures change your views on relationships and marriage?

Margaritas and massages

"Let me give you a massage."

Sigh. I can describe many bad dates that began with that pickup line. I'm only half kidding.

Massages generally fall in the "love it or hate it" sphere of public opinion.

If you love massages and need Wednesday night plans, you might want to stop by The Cantina (1030 Broadway) between 6 and 8 p.m. tonight.

For $5, you'll get a margarita and a 10-minute chair massage from Miller-Motte massage therapy students.

Have fun!

Long drive, short marriage

I knew I moved close to work for a reason.

Jezebel discusses study results suggesting long commutes increase your risk of divorce. An excerpt:

Clearly commuting creates some problems that are gender-blind. It's annoying, especially if you have to do it by car, and a long trip home every night can put someone in a bad mood. It also takes time that could otherwise be spent with a partner or kids, and may put partners on drastically different schedules, which is hard on any union.

The research underscores something that often goes unnoticed: the way work stress can extend into your personal relationships.

I think a lot of us assume we can maintain our job as an entity separate from our personal relationships.

But more often than not, it's the impetus for some sort of relationship tension -- whether that's spurred by pressure on the job itself, our factors like commutes and salaries.

Thoughts?