15 Reasons Dating Was Way Better Back Then

#1 No Dating Apps

Way back before technology came along people had to actually romance someone by going or real life dates. Yes, with websites today developed strictly for dating, including a quick sexual encounter, dating is about a prehistoric as the dinosaur. First impressions are now a thing of the past, and if you don't have a sexy photograph of yourself to share on an app then you're pretty much left out in the cold. Asking someone to the movies or a picnic in real life is much more difficult than asking them to come over to "chill". Gone is 'love at first sight' and with dating apps, you risk the chance of being rejected on a continual basis every day.

#2 Fewer Options

People were once limited to fewer dating options as well based on location. If there were not many single people your age in your area you probably had a difficult time finding a date for Friday night. Your chances of meeting someone from another locality were slim to none since people just didn't have that option and even if they did, what would be the chances of meeting someone while on a vacation? However, it wasn’t all bad, with fewer options available it actually gave you the chance to get to know someone that little bit more, forcing you to try harder, rather than disposing of them with a blink of an eye. With less choices available it led to longer lasting relationships because people were not always looking for something better with the swipe of a finger.

#3 Matchmaking

We don't think of matchmaking today the way people once did. It used to be a hip thing to do. The concept was easy and simple. With no online dating apps to fill your boots with, and it’s rare to find men and women picking up other singletons in bars, people had to rely on their pals do to the fishing for them. Matchmaking often had pretty good results and many people ended up finding true love by having someone set them up with a date that fit their likes and dislikes. Of course, some people got set up with someone that was totally the opposite of what they expected thanks to Aunt Bertha, but for the most par,t it worked pretty well. Now, not as common as it was in the past, people are more inclined to choose for themselves, preferring their own opinion than the ones of others or choosing by looking at a photo and a short bio on an app.

#4 No Mind Games

We live in a world today where dating is more or less about playing games and messing around with people's emotions and feelings. Some people get their rocks off watching someone suffer with a broken heart and to them, dating apps are a thrilling adventure. From ignoring messages on purpose, faking love for somebody else, to pretending that you don’t care when you actually care so much it hurts, mind games have become standard practice among the men and women of today’s world. But back in the day, people acted like real adults and held conversations and were honest and truthful about their feelings and emotions. It was actually acceptable to tell someone how you felt about them whether positive or negative without doing it like a third grader.

#5 Anticipation

There was a time when just the anticipation of seeing your crush again, or the thought of maybe one-day holding hands, kissing, or hugging, would send shivers down your spine. People went to the movies and dinner for dates and then, if you were lucky, out to dance afterward. But there was little to no touching, and if there was, it was brief and in a non-sexual manner. Creating a sense of anticipation and a flutter of butterflies, the longing to see one another again became unbearable. Forming a constant feeling of attraction, this kind of love is rarely replicated these days, with it easy to access someone through the means of technology.

With chivalry a major part of dating, men often have to go through the classic motions of picking up the woman from her home, greeting them at the door, paying the bill, driving her home, and kissing her goodnight before leaving, followed by a phone call the next day and another planned date. Nowadays, the process has seemingly been left in the past, with both parties even sometimes refusing to label it a date, from ‘just hanging out’, to ‘Netflix and chill’. And dancing today? Well, that's all about groping and rubbing up and down on one another.

#6 Tolerance Of Others

These days only the smallest of things can repulse someone. With both men and women guilty of judging other people too quickly, the result ends in a missed opportunity with a potential partner. Any detail no matter how minor can end a date instantly. However, before the concept of the tailor made significant other came to light, the majority of people were happy with what they were given, preferring to find the positives in others rather than judging the negatives. Optimism certainly overshadowed those who now have a pessimistic approach to dating, with folk quick to turn their backs on future relationships. People live in the moment and don't realize that the hottie they picked up off that dating app is going to get old, fat bald, and wrinkly just like they will one day.

#7 Mystery

In the old days, you went into a date usually knowing just your partner's name or maybe their occupation. This lead to a night of back and forth conversation filled with questions and getting to know one another. It was all a little mysterious but you had to put some effort into keeping the date upbeat and moving, A little flirting was sprinkled in for good measure as well. However, nowadays, all the information you need is right there in front of you, with social media able to tell you everything, from what their favorite color is to what they had for breakfast yesterday morning. You can even pull up a whole album of their old photographs that may even include their past lovers and personal information. The air of mystery has most definitely been destroyed.

#8 Communication

Communication is key to a successful and happy relationship, or at least that’s what they tell us anyway. Nevertheless, with communication at it’s very worst, it seems the act of talking to one another was never really a problem at all back in the past, despite the lack of technology to do so. That’s right, with couples these days unable to address their problems as soon as they arise, the issues, in particular, can be left to stew, creating more and more disappointment down the road. With the questions ‘what’s wrong?’ often implying an answer, it is more than likely that it’ll end up being ignored, with the common return of, ‘nothing’. Grunt. Couples are far too eager to create arguments rather than solve them, with each person wanting to come out on top. Remember it’s not a race to see who wins, it’s a race to see who is willing to lose.

#9 Catfishing Didn’t Exist

One thing is for certain, catfishing did not exist back in the good ole days of dating. Catfishing, for those who are still using rotary phones and dial up internet, is a term given to those who create fake profiles on social media, using someone else’s details or fake information in order to find a romantic relationship. However, back in the past, there was no ‘catfishing’, with people literally unable to hide who they were. Yes, everybody has secrets, with some people occasionally lying when asked certain questions. Yet, with dating usually face to face, you knew what you were going to get from day one and that's why it was important to take it slowly and get to know each other.

#10 Blind Dates Were Blind Dates

You never really knew what you were walking into with a blind date. But today, with social media, it's easy to do a little detective work beforehand and get the scoop on your date, including photographs and background information, before ever stepping foot in the place of hookup. That’s right, with blind dates seemingly a thing of the past, the internet makes it near enough impossible to actually succeed in partaking in a real life blind date. However, not too long ago blind dates actually did exist and were a common occurrence for many. In fact, blind dates were so normal, that most people had to endure several of them, with this the only real chance of meeting someone special. You never knew what you were going to get and that was half the fun and surely exciting.

#11 More Effort Was Required

You used to have to put your heart into building a relationship or have a series of successful dates, and it took more than just buying a girl a drink to get to first base, let alone second base. Getting a date was hard, plus with it unheard of for women to do the asking, the majority of it was left up to the men. In fact, with the process deemed extremely difficult, women were given handbooks, explaining how to attract boys and obtain a date. Men were often expected to flip the bill and some women were difficult to deal with, making a first date pretty costly. That's not even counting the flowers, candy, gas, and entertainment that went along with all the financial burdens. Today you can take home a "date" by spurting out a few pickup lines and buying a girl a cocktail. Or is you're lucky, you never even have to leave your home and can get a girl by using a quick-hit dating app.

#12 People Were More Spontaneous

With people more concerned about what's going on with social media, spontaneity is out the window. Humans are creatures of habit and tend to fall into a routine. This routine is killing the dating scene. Nowadays people would rather settle for a cup of coffee or a drink and call it a night instead of doing something to keep the relationship fresh and interesting. However, it wasn’t always that bad, with the dating scene much more fluorescent than it is now. That’s right, take the fifties, for example, an era that saw the dating lifestyle really take hold, with ice cream parlors, pizza parlors, drive-ins, bowling alleys, coffee houses, and record shops and the backseat of one’s car, all ideal places to take someone on a date. And all of this meant you had to switch it up a little from time to time because you wanted something to last forever, not just a few hours in the bedroom.

#13 Improved Social Life

In the past young daters and hopefuls would go to dances, home parties, carnivals, or maybe a local pub to listen to music, much different to the bars, clubs, and sticky-floored pubs of today. Taking up a large part of the teenage dating scene, dances were also supported by schools or churches, therefore trusted by parents and often chaperoned. Take the whole tradition of prom, for example, a night in which girls and boys tentatively dress in their most formal clothing, each requiring a date that will be forever remembered in their timeline of memories. Not taken as seriously as it once was, prom today is more remembered for breaking curfews, spiking the punch bowl, and losing your v-card, with the buzz that surrounds the whole facade sadly disappearing.

#14 Breaking Up Was Easier

Breaking up with someone today is messy, and can become fodder for social media very easily. The act of ending a relationship, once a traumatic heartbreaking affair is now commonplace all over the internet for the world to see and mock. All your friends and family and even people you knew briefly in school can now see all the drama you're going through, thanks to social media and the way people have begun using it as a mouthpiece. However, back then, breaking up was ridiculously easy, with it impossible to stalk your ex’s on social media. Not once did you end up crying over two gallons of ice cream on the realization that the person who you thought was the love of your life had found someone else. Yes, gone are the days of putting all of your memories into a shoe box, with it instead exceptionally easy to spend your Friday nights wallowing in self-despair.

#15 More Passionate

If you've ever watched any old movies or listened to some old music, you know that people appeared to be overly romantic back in the day. They were so romantic that it seemed forced, but it was actually the way people behaved. There was more passion in everything regarding the opposite sex and kissing sent sparks flying down your spine. They were intimate in a nonsexual way, they showed their feeling through a touch or through their eyes. It took forever if at all, to get someone between the sheets. In fact, most couples waited until marriage to get sexual with one another.

With months and months of tension between you after dating, the resulting act was usually mind blowing, making it all that better in the long run. However, that’s not to say that some didn’t test drive the theory beforehand, with the backseat of a car a popular destination for those who were willing to take it that one step further.