In his photo he held a fish.

I broke the ice:

-You look like quite a catch! (Get it?? Fish…catch…eh, I tried)

-Ha! That’s catchy!

-Touché, sir

And off we went. His responses were fast and witty & in his pictures he was smiley and handsome. Finally I asked the dicey question:

-Where do you live in this crazy town?

-Actually I live in Atlanta. I’m here for work this week.

Dammit.

We’ve run into Tinder Rule #2: No visitors/foreigners. (Tinder Rule #1? No shirtless selfies)

New York City is a Tinder mecca. Word has spread around the world (particularly in Europe) that if one is planning on visiting New York for any time in the foreseeable future they should start “Swiping in New York.” I would guess that one in 4 Tinder matches I get is that of a visitor with a profile that begin “In New York for a week! Want to show me around?”

On the rose-colored side of things this travel Tindering is a way to get an insider’s look at a city by sharing a drink or dinner with a lovely local. I’m sure international politics and perspectives are exchanged and the world is a better place thanks to the Internet. And on the more cynical side? It all ends up sounding very escort service-y.

Generally, I follow Rule #2, not so much because I see things cynically but mainly as I’ve got no time to play tour guide. I barely have time to go on dates with New Yorkers I might actually strike up something with and a one time, dead-ended, date for-datings-sake seems silly.

Or romantic?

Earlier that week my gal pal, Claire, confessed that she has fallen madly in love with a German gent she hasn’t met, all thanks to Tinder. They’re apparently star-crossed soul mates who now text 12 hours a day. They won’t meet face to face until August but she’s already bought a ticket to Hamburg to visit him in October. Crazy? Decidedly. The whole thing will probably crash and burn faster than the Hindenburg…but who knows, maybe not! Stranger things have happened.

With that in mind and a free Thursday night on my hands I decided to continue chatting with Mr. Atlanta.

-Where are you staying?

-42^nd Street.

-Yikes! I avoid 42^nd St. like the plague.

-Lol. It’s crazy.

It was a gorgeous June evening. My window was open letting the cool air in and suddenly I wanted to sit outside and have a drink with a handsome stranger.

-Okay, I know this has imprudent implications in the Tinder world but if you’d like escape to a mellow NYC neighborhood you’re welcome to meet me for a drink later.

-I may like that. To be honest I’ve never met anyone off of tinder. Is that lame?

-No, not lame! Probably wise, haha!

We make a date for 8 at a bar near my apartment. The bartender made us round after round of inspired cucumber Tom Collins while we talked and laughed until 2 a.m.  It ended with a kiss.

So was it an instant cosmic connection? Well, no. But it was a fun night. And sometimes that’s all you’re looking for on a summer night in this crazy town.

xo Free Spirit