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You probably remember the exact moment on your last blind date, which your thoughtful friends set up for you, when you realized that blind dates, however well-intentioned, are an old-testament style apocalyptic punishment delivered directly from hell. It was then you finally came to your good senses and closed the door on this unrighteous torture once and for all. But the problem which got you into the whole blind dating fiasco in the first place continued to bother you - you are single! And we all know it just isn't easy to meet someone right off the bat - grocery store pickups are simply unacceptable. But until a few years ago you did not have very many options - sit through the horror three-hour blind dates, go to the grocery store five times a day, and maybe in thirty years you will find the one. Luckily, Rabbi Yaacov Deyo invented a wonderful way to make dating happen - Speed Dating.
The name speaks for itself - it's dating with a twist, it happens quickly. Usually around seven to twenty people of each sex meet up at a restaurant or club and date away. Every man has one date with every woman, and vice versa - this is already at least seven times better than plain dating! But it gets better, each date usually lasts around five minutes. Remember that blind date which made you give up on it altogether - well, with speed dating it would have only lasted five minutes tops! After each short date you confidentially write down whether you would like to see the other person again, and after the event, if the other person would also like to see you again, you have a match, and your email addresses (or phone numbers) are exchanged by the speed dating company. While there is no upper limit on matches (you could have twenty, it sometimes happens,) some companies let you go to a second event for free if you did not choose anyone at your first speed dating event.
With every good thing there are some downsides, speed dating is no exception. There are some things you should really try to stay away from, for instance, hyper-crazy dating. Some companies are holding events with only around two minutes per date and more than twently dates in each event. They make more money this way - rather than having two separate events for all their customers, they only hold one, and save on costs. However, the event still lasts less than three hours, so you are left with only enough time to get your date's name and then rush off to your next date. This is not speed dating at its best, and I would not recommend it. It is very hard to make any decisions when you meet more than twenty people, especialy in such a short period of time - it all becomes a blur.
Another problem is the price. There are very many speed dating companies out there and, while it has been said very many times, it bears repeating - shop around! Most of these companies have websites so you do not have to leave the computer to find one. Do not go for the first things that come up on a google search - they spend all of their money on making sure they are at the top of the search results, and none on making their customers happy. Try to find a few directories of speed dating sites (there are many) and then you will be able to compare the prices and features. Don't be lazy - prices range from $15 to as much as $45.
Speed Dating companies will tell you that their events are not pressure, rather, they are a lot of fun. You will not believe them... at least not initially. But surprisingly, the events usually turn out to be fun and you do not end up feeling much pressure. You will probably be at a nice restaurant and there will be good food, good people (almost always), and you will have a good time and also have a great chance to meet someone. That is the main thing about speed dating - let yourself enjoy it and you will. And the companies' websites always brag about success stories of people meeting at their events and then really falling in love - I think some of these stories are true, you do get to meet a lot of people at these events. Since dating is a game of numbers, you could really win with speed dating.