dating

Five Ways to Meet People with Green Dating and Social Networking

ckane — Mon, 05 May 2008 00:00:00 -0400

1. Take a killer, but appropriate for you, photo to use for all your social networking sites--that's your first and best way to grab people's attention. If you want to meet friends to go camping with, put up a photo of you camping. (If all you have is an out-of-focus mugshot, that's not going to work.)

2. Don't just join Facebook (or MySpace, etc.), then sit back and wait for the messages to come rolling in. Join in the conversation. Find or start groups that describe you--here's a few I found (among all the admittedly more-prevalent-on-Facebook jokey groups) Organic Gardening 101, Slow Food NYC. Then participate in the discussions and when you like what someone says, add them as a friend or send them a message.

3. There are numerous dating services created just to connect green singles and friends, and I should add to that list Care2 (definitely check out this cause-oriented social networking/dating site), but you should still work the mainstream ones like Match and eHarmony, because they're better known, so they have more members. Just be as specific as you can when describing yourself and your interests to weed out potential global- warming skeptics (aka, dumb people).

4. In the real world, volunteer for you favorite politician, cause, concert series, or independent radio station. Go to idealist.org for volunteer opportunities and events, and another resource for volunteer opportunities or "activity partners" is good old Craigslist.org.

5. Here's another real-life option: Take a class in gourmet vegetarian cooking or green homebuilding or whatever subject in which you've always wanted to become more skilled. Even if you don't meet any new friends, when you do meet someone you'll be that much more impressive.

A Wearin' of the Green...With Sexy Results

ckane — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 00:01:05 -0400

At this time of year it may seem like there's corned beef meating up every perfectly good pot of potatoes, and at the St. Patrick's Day parades, green has a much different definition than the eco meaning that's been taking over lately. If you're looking for someone with similar values to share your Guinness, and you've exhausted the options on Facebook, MySpace, and more generalized online dating options, never fear because the Internet is here.

The specialized dating service I've known of the longest is VeggieDate with 16,000 ads of lonely hearts identifying as Adventist, Buddhist, macrobiotic, and raw foodists, among other categorizations.

However, Green Singles is probably the much older dating service; it's been kicking around since 1985. The vegetarian owner/operators also run the new site Veggie Love.

There's also Earth Wise Singles, Green Thumb Dating, Vegan Passions, Green Passions, Veggie Romance, Veggie Singles (a UK-based site), and Veggie Connection.

That should be enough to keep you busy. The abundance of resources make it seem a little more easy being green in love, and a little harder to sort through them all. Some of the sites are free and some for fee. I'm assuming there's overlap in candidates on these sites, but some of that narrowing-down process is up to you, fearless dater. The Internet can't do everything.

Note: This writer has not used any of these services (she and her fiance met on regular old MySpace), and can't vouch for them or their percentage of creeps vs hots. I'm just puttin' this list out there on an FYI basis.

Me Tarzan, You Vegetarian

ckane — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 21:53:41 -0500

Folks, I think we have a micro-trend in the media coverage of this ever-greening world: Carnivore-Veg*n Love: Can it Work?

It started the day before Valentine's Day with an article in the New York Times called I Love You, But You Love Meat. And while some commenters declared the topic a non-issue and the story a non-story, in the two weeks since, it has gotten press from The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, LAist, and University of Washington's The Daily.

As Lisa Romano, a vegan who broke up with her meat-grilling boyfriend noted in the Times piece, "I need someone who is ethically on the same page." But as one commenter on LAist opined, "These people seem unwilling to compromise, period. And since a relationship is all about compromise...they will remain alone for a bit longer."

The consensus among the articles seems to be that the reationships can work, but don't always. At any rate, the issue of meat-eaters pairing up with those who abstain was contentious enough to get well over 200 comments in the Times. And any kind of press means increasing awareness of the reasons behind dietary choices like vegetarianism and veganism (including environmental ones, some of which are found here).

Tips for a Romantic -- Organic -- Dinner

Marcus — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Imagine, if you will, the following scenario: you’ve just finished your Wednesday afternoon Bikram yoga class. As you’re leaving the studio, physically exhausted and drenched in sweat, you strike up a conversation with the most beautiful woman you’ve ever seen. At first you think to yourself, “no,there’s no way I can swing this. This person is way outside the attractiveness bracket in which I usually operate.” But somehow, perhaps due to the fact that that the yoga has somehow invigorated your psyche, you find that you’re conducting yourself with more charisma than you’ve ever been able to muster.

The next thing you know, you’ve invited her to dinner at your house this coming Saturday, which, miraculously, she says yes to immediately. Right before the two of you part ways, she mentions that she works for a non-profit environmental firm with a focus on passing sustainable energy legislation. Riding high on your newfound charm, with an ill-advised surge of self-confidence you boast that you are going to make the entire Saturday dinner experience totally sustainable. She smiles, perhaps a tad incredulously, and says she is looking forward to it. It’s at that moment that you realize you have a great deal of work to do.

I mean, you care about the environment. You recycle. You try to buy organic food whenever you can. But the idea of throwing a sustainable dinner date at your house with a girl who inevitably knows a whole lot more about the subject than you do is more than a little daunting. Well, before you call her and tell her you’ve contracted the intestinal flu, take a look at the info I’ve compiled below. Maybe you’re not so screwed after all…

Obviously, the most essential part of the meal is the food. Now, I’m assuming you already know a little bit about cooking, because if you proposed making dinner without any culinary skills, well, I just don’t think I can help you. A great place to start thinking about food options is at SustainableTable.com, which covers all things food and cooking related. They’ve got a great recipes section, as well as several cookbook reviews. There are also articles on various websites that interview chefs who have thrived in the world of sustainable cooking- check out this one with San Francisco chef Chris Cosentino about his methods toward sustainable eating-in, or, if you reallywant to impress your lady friend with some forward thinking menu items, take a look at this Seasonal Chef article, where chef Stu Stein discusses the benefits of edible flowers. If all else fails, you can always go to Amazon.com and frantically search for books on “sustainable cooking.”

Once you’ve got your menu plotted out, you’re going to need ingredients. But simply heading down the block to your corner grocery just won’t do- no, you’re going to need locally grown, organic produce if you’re going to do this right. “Well, where I am supposed to find this fancy, healthy produce?” you may ask. Well, I’ll tell you. A good starting point is to check out the largest health food chains, WholeFoods and Trader Joe’s. Both offer an abundant selection of local and/or organic produce and ingredients of all kinds. If you don’t have either of these establishments in your vicinity, check out this GreenPeople.org list of independently owned, regional health food stores and food co-ops. Finally, see if your neighborhood hosts a farmer’s market. These often occur on weekend mornings, and are not only a great way to obtain local produce, but also a potential means to network socially with other health-conscious folks in your neighborhood (or, if this Saturday’s dinner goes horribly awry, a spot to find a new date). The U.S. Department of Agriculture has compiled this handy database of farmer’s markets across the country. So, now that you know where to go, get shopping already! You’ve only got a couple days (oh, and be sure to bring a reusable, canvas shopping bag).

Another important element to any good romantic evening is a bottle of wine, and there is no shortage of organic wine on the market, so you’ve got a lot of options. Take a look at The Organic Wine Company or EcoWine.com- both are California-based companies that offer impressive selections of both domestic and imported organic wine. Or, if you’re pressed for time, head over to your local fine wine shop and inquire about organic wine- most higher end shops should have at least a couple varieties around.

Alright. Menu. Check. Ingredients. Check. Wine. Check. You seem to be in a pretty good place- you could probably stop right here and get through this evening quite successfully. Just for good measure, though, here are a couple more suggestions, just in case you want to go the extra mile, and/or the object of your affection is particularly militant about being green. So, for my bonus/extra credit section, you may want to consider:

Soy candles. Not only will you get points for utilizing candles in lieu of electric light, soy candles are cleaner burning, longer lasting, and create less soot than your standard wax candle. Plus, candles are real romantic, and, let’s be honest, you’re trying to woo a lady here.

EcoDishware. The only thing greener than eating green food is eating green food on green plates!

EcoDishwasher Detergent. To show her that you still care about the environment even in the post-meal, clean up phase of the evening. You’re so thoughtful.

Well, that just about does it. You’re ready to go. Follow these guidelines, and you’re one step closer to snagging yourself a green girlfriend. In fact, not to be presumptuous, but you may want to invest in some eco-friendly bubble bath, ya know, in case the evening takes a turn in that direction. You can never be too careful.