warning: the article below has some mature language and adult concepts. if you are offended easily-do not read it.
being gay in today's world is as easy and as hard as it has ever been. The advent of the internet has made it easy for one to put themselves out there and be seen, while at the same time never leaving the safety of your computer screen. There are numerous sites out there that will allow you for free... and for a fee...to place an ad much like you would see in an article in the personals column...with a twist. Getting up the courage to message that hot guy two towns over, is easy as ever. One can “looking for fuckbuddy” or “looking for a friend” all from the comfort of your easy chair. That is where the problem lies. Gone are the days where one would have to shower, shave, decide what to wear, buy condoms, fix the hair, and pretty up to go to the bar in hopes of finding mister right or mister right now. It has become so bad in fact that the number of ads and personal “hookup” sites are increasing with alarming speed, while at the same time the actual number of people doing the “hooking up” is decreasing. I know personally of 2 such sites that have people from all over my state that are currently looking for friends, hookups, or LTR's. The sad thing is that we all are spending all this time on these sites looking for something in a picture. Yup you heard right...we are looking for mates in pictures. When we used to have to get ready to go to the bar by doing all the stuff i listed above, we actually had to make an effort to look good and smell good so that somebody might take the initiative and buy us a drink to break the ice. Not that there aren't the same problems at the bars, but the odds of meeting someone face to face in a bar seems much more friendly than sending a message “nice ass dude” or “got any cock pix?” It seems to me that by making the effort to go out and meet people, one would increase their own self worth (or self loathing...i am equal opportunity here :) ). let's face it...i would much rather take a chance to meet the perfect guy (or at least a decent guy...hell who am i kidding any guy will do) by bumping into them in a bar than by accepting an invitation “to view my webcam” any day. The person in front of you in the bar is a living breathing person, not just a digitally transmitted image over the internet (much like the images one would see on television and probably just as attainable as the hunk in that movie you watched the other night). Honestly, i think we have become so addicted to the notion of anonymity that it has just become easier to send that pic or message. We can be free to express ourselves in pictures (doing things that we would never do in public) either with or without clothes. Hopefully some time in the future we can go back to the good old days and have to go outside our homes to meet people. I am not a technophobe, in fact i belong to those 2 sites i mentioned above. It was when i was chatting with a friend that i never met (and probably never will) that i realized how very alone i am. Sure i can talk to any person anywhere in the world with nothing more than a click of my mouse, but really who are they? Will i ever get to know the people i am talking to? Some of them have seen more of me than my own family has (or ever will if i can help it). That is what i am talking about...i have pictures of myself...you know...down there...on the internet. Anyone that has an internet connection anywhere in the world can see what genetics and the glory of god have given me...and that scares me (and excites me a little). All i really want is to find a special someone to share all my gifts (and problems) with...and someone that will share theirs with me...is that really too much to ask for?
