Dating over 40 hits different. And not in a good way. I don’t know if it’s me or… wait, no — it is me. Dating after 40 just sucks ass. Some days I feel like I should give up and embrace the hermit life. I open a dating app just to “see what’s out there,” and five minutes later I’m already done.
Everyone is so damn dynamic now. You can’t be the smooth operator every day. You can’t be the funny, cool, vibey dude all the time. What works as an intro for one person falls flat with the next. Conversations go from promising to “talking to a wall” real quick. Or worse — talking to an incompetent AI that can’t draw for shit.
The other night I was chatting with this woman who was into hiking. Cool, right? So I start talking trails, greener pastures, the whole outdoors vibe. Everything was flowing. She even sent me a voice message. It was late, so I figured I’d reply the next day.
Next morning, I open the app, look at the convo… and somehow I press the damn thumbs‑up emoji. The most passive‑aggressive, dry, “cool story bruh” emoji in existence.
No wonder she unmatched. That thumbs‑up probably looked like I was dismissing her entire personality. Like I was saying, “Nice voice message, kid. Anyway…”
And just like that — gone.
Dating apps at 40 feel like a job interview mixed with speed dating mixed with a personality audition. One wrong move, one wrong emoji, one moment of low energy… and it’s over.
So yeah. Oh well. Time to burn the app again. Hope she falls off a 2 foot cliff!!! naw guys, I am joking… or am I?
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