The title of this weeks blog is a German word that means ‘to take delight in someone else’s misfortune’ – and before you all get upset with me, I have this persons full permission to share their stories and laugh with them about their online dating adventures. (They did ask not to be named tho!)

MK is someone I have met through one of the widow support groups, and we clicked right from our first meeting – although she claims not to have even noticed me that day! – RUDE! We were at a coffee catch up and her story struck me immediately. It has been a very different experience for her to the one I am living; and while that is true for all of us in the group, it is something that absolutely struck me about her. I am very aware of how lucky the boys and I have been with our journey, and that it is much more difficult for some other people.

From the first time meeting, an amazing friendship has grown. We are now at a point where we will talk several times a day about all sorts of things, often laughing hysterically at the various things that happen to us; and when we are not talking we are messaging. She has followed along with a huge amount of interest as I’ve delved into the world of dating and given advice or just a running commentary on the things that I’ve encountered. She has now started her own foray into the weird world of online dating, and it has been just as crazy as I warned her it would be!

MK has been on far more dates than me – I think she is a much braver person than I am, and although she is constantly saying that she has no confidence, she is always in conversations with several people. She has had the usual assortment of nice, weird and a couple of not so nice, but so far no one has clicked for her.

I was fascinated recently to see just how many messages she receives from her profile – her phone would not stop pinging in the time we were together. I asked to have a look at what she had written about herself, and to look at her pictures. We both had a huge belly laugh when we discovered that the way her pictures had been cropped (automatically) made her look naked! The poor thing was mortified (but laughing until she cried) and immediately updated the pictures to more appropriate ones. Amazingly, the phone notifications slowed down almost immediately!

She has tried several of the usual online sites – the consensus being that they are pretty well all the same, and often with the same people on them! Funnily enough, she also been rejected from a paid site that told her politely via email that they have no one suitable for her at this time, to come back in six months and in the mean time to follow the helpfully attached advice for online dating!

We have almost decided that between the two of us, and others we have met along the way, there might be a book in all of the funny dating stories we have encountered! It is certainly an adventure into a world that is far from normal!