By: Aaron Tang
Give me a silent nod if you’ve ever felt this way: all the good men are taken. And the ones who aren’t taken are gay. What’s left are players, desperados, and creepy old men (disclaimer: there’s nothing wrong with being an old man if you’re a charming old man).
Case in point: Abercrombie & Fitch models
Fear not though, there are still plenty of good men out there. You might just need to alter your lifestyle a little and go to places where you can meet them easily. Hint: it’s not in your living room in front of your TV. In no particular order, here are my suggestions on where to meet good men:
Religious Places
This won’t apply if you’re of a religion where men and women are segregated. If you’re not though – places of worship can be a great place to make right with God, and erm, men. Don’t distract the men by batting your eyelids and flirting with them during religious services though. Leave the socializing for later, during the after-service-meals. Religious organizations also often organize social gatherings, charity events or camps. Excellent avenues for meeting new people.
Major plus point is the guys you meet will at least have some kind of interest in morals and religion.
Organizations
So why would you become a member of another organization, when you’re already putting in 60 hours of work a week at your company? Because I believe everyone needs a healthy outlet for their social and creative energies. And that’s where you can meet men with similar interests as you. Like doing charity? Find an NGO which you can volunteer with. Like the outdoors? Join an outdoor adventure and hiking club. Like working out and looking good? Join a gym. And since I’m a member of a Rotaract club – check it out too.
We’d gladly take up hiking classes, thank you!
Not sure what you really like? Meet with a few different organizations and see which one appeals most to you. Don’t worry about being seen as flaky – they won’t mind. Like backstabbers? Join a political organization. (Just kidding)
Classes
My secondary school Pendidikan Moral teacher once told me “University is first and foremost for finding a life partner – and secondly for getting an education”. Perhaps that explains the dismal state of our education system, but she was right on one front: classes are a really easy way to meet people. Could be any kind of class too – whether it’s your MBA class, a public ‘body combat’ class in a gym or a Mandarin class in a language school.
Find something you’re interested to learn – survey a few different places that teach them, and sign up. Then you can use that all-time favorite pickup line for women “I’m having trouble understanding <insert subject here>, can you help tutor me?”
Don’t forget to add in your best wide-eyed innocent look.
Your Friend’s Event
Your friend’s event could be any kind of event and it could be anywhere. It could be a mutual friend’s wedding, a club outing celebrating a promotion or a mini road/eating trip to Penang. It could be a house party where you know everyone who’s coming or a mamak session where you only know 1 person out of 10.
Each of your friends and people you meet has their own circle of friends and acquaintances. And if there’s something inherently noble about most people – it’s that they like playing matchmaker. So go out there, have fun with your friends, and have fun meeting their friends too.
Rule of thumb about meeting people is you’ve just got to get out there and socialize more. Now, unless you’re into online dating – shut off the computer, make some calls to your friends and get out of the house.
(Photos: tumblr.com, weheartit.com, guardian.co.uk)
