A Different Breed Of Men

In a recent meeting at work, someone described the social media voice of a client as a Midwestern cross between the Brawny man and Conan O'Brien – except, apparently the client disagreed with the picture that was presented. Supposedly, the strapping young men in the area aren’t as attractive as what we put forward.

To which I thought, “WHAT?!” Who wears flannel better than a homegrown, boy-next-door type from somewhere in the Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois triangle? (As a random side note, check out one of my favorite YouTube videos here, in which flannel is prominently featured during a parody of Katy Perry's California Gurls.)

However, the client had a point - there does seem to be something a little off with the boys in Chicago. Specifically, a lack of interest in girls. Or at least me!

In an attempt to meet new people when I first moved here last year, I quickly joined Match.com - but despite dozens of winks and emails to the "supposedly" eligible bachelors (I'm convinced some of the better-looking possibilities are actually dummy profiles that have been planted to help keep you interested) in my area, I ended up with only a single date over the course of a month. Some of you may think this is all that can be expected from online dating, and that in fact, a single date with a decent guy in four weeks is actually a good track record.

However, I know better. When my roommates and I were at the height of our Match.com-ing in DC (think Monday nights spent on the couch with our laptops open to better compare potential matches while watching The Bachelor), I would occasionally have two to three dates - per week!

At the time, I chalked it up to the fact that we were in the middle of the holiday season. After all, from a strategic perspective, who wants to risk the possibility of having to Christmas shop for someone you've only known two weeks?

But now that it's August, and I'm having the same problem, I realize there must be something more going on. You could make the argument that during the summer, everyone is out and about happily meeting (and hooking-up) easily enough between happy hours, weekends at the beach, etc. Except that summer is winding down, and still no uptick in dates. And it's not just dates - it's responses in general. In the last six weeks, I've had a total of four qualified men email or wink at me (and by qualified, I do not mean they meet all my standard criteria - only that they're under the age of 40, and relatively nearby!).

So what gives? Are the men in Chicago just not as active in the online dating scene? Definitely a possibility, given that so many in this city seem to have moved here as a group with their college friends, limiting the necessity to expand their social circle (as opposed to DC, where everyone's looking for new partners-in-crime). But that can't be the only reason. If anything, there seem to be far more boys - particularly cute and gainfully employed ones - on the site in Chicago than there were out East.

Which leaves me to wonder what's the story? Is Match.com in this city a hoax? Is eHarmony the way to go (if you can get through that questionnaire, more power to you!)? Are the men here really aliens disgused to look like nice Midwesterners?

Please share your theories - I really want to know! And I'll keep you posted on any new clues I discover as I sleuth around the Windy City.