Tuesday 11 June 2002

Compleat Guide to Flirting

The Social Issues Research Centre’s amazingly comprehensive Guide to Flirting tells you where to flirt, who to flirt with, and how to flirt (including a section on Opening Lines). “Join a club” is the advice frequently given to those looking for romance, but the guide suggests that you should avoid the over-achievers:

Almost any participant sport or hobby can involve flirting. The level of flirtatious behaviour, however, often tends to be inversely related to the standards achieved by participants and their enthusiasm for the activity.

You will generally find a lot of flirting among incompetent tennis players, unfit swimmers, cack-handed potters, etc., but somewhat less among more proficient, serious, competitive participants in the same activities. There are of course exceptions to this rule, but before joining a team or club, it is worth trying to find out if the members have burning ambitions to play in the national championships or win prestigious awards for their handiwork. If you are mainly looking for flirting opportunities, avoid these high-flying groups, and seek out clubs full of happy, sociable under-achievers.

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Comments

I hope the fact that people often recommend church as a place for singles to meet doesn't imply we all are "happy, sociable under-achievers."

Posted by: AKMA on 10 June 2002 at 11:06 PM

Not sure that you're going to like this, AKMA, but the 12,281 word Guide to Flirting doesn't mention the word "church" once.

Posted by: Jonathon Delacour on 10 June 2002 at 11:39 PM

Even so -- and I hate to tell you this, AKMA -- those who are most serious about the religious aspects of church aren't going to be the top flirting prospects. Likewise, those who are there to scope out the prospects and have a good time are unlikely to be super-high on the piety scale.

The root of the issue Jonathon blogs here, IMO, is that it's darn hard to fit oneself in around a partner's obsession, no matter what that obsession actually is. I should blog about this, actually; have some experience in that vein.

Posted by: Dorothea Salo on 11 June 2002 at 01:47 AM

This discussion is now closed. My thanks to everyone who contributed.

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