Julia Stephenson, 54, set out to find her match on dating websites. So what happened next?
“When was my eight year relationship came to an end, I heartbroken. Though it was the last thing that I felt like doing, I reluctantly joined a dating website. My friends had advised a period of reflection, but I reasoned that at my age I’d better get on with it.
And, as they say, the quickest way to get over a man is to get under another, so I signed up and my inbox was soon deluged by messages from attractive men. I perked up; I’d obviously stumbled across the planet of lost men.
But, disappointingly, although I was being contacted by about five men a day, all they were doing was sending me endless questionnaires to fill in. These would come with a standard line: ‘Norman, 60, would like to find out a bit more about you!’ As I had already filled in a form with what felt like 1 000 questions when I joined, I didn’t want to fill in anymore. Plus, very few of them could spell. I wilted when Colin, 55, contacted me and misspelt the name of the town I was born in.
One man stood out though: Ned, 59. He was just my type – brawny and weather-beaten with a deliciously thick neck. I surmised that he must be handy as he worked on an oil rig, and I secretly thrilled at the thought of him bundled up in oilskins while his huge frame was buffeted by freezing winds.
I put up with filling in another questionnaire from him as he seemed so promising, although I balked at answering: ‘When you go to a party do you usually like to leave before your partner, or are you the life and soul?’ I hate parties and always leave as soon as I decently can, but I’m hardly likely to admit this to the potential man of my dreams, am I?
Ned sent me another questionnaire but I ignored it, and instead jumped straight to e-mail communication!
VIRTUAL GIRLFRIEND
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