Jenny Seifert is looking for love in all the cyber spaces, which beats looking for love in all the wrong places, as the song has it. But it is still an inexact science. Big data, it seems, has come to the rescue of the lonely. Or at least it makes the attempt.
In her report "Looking for Love Online," Seifert describes the processes and pitfalls of sites like Match.com and OkCupid and gathers stories from others who have trod the path. About a 20-year-old phenomenon, online dating has not totally replaced the singles bar or the club social as mate-searching terrain, but it sure has expanded the opportunity to meet new people. Seifert points out that in a place as small as Madison, the pool is definitely finite.
Let an old married guy like myself offer a bit of advice on meeting new people -- try something different, visit some new places. An example would be the Isthmus a la Carts event on Friday, May 9, at Olin Park. For this encounter, 25 of Madison's finest food carts will gather from 4 to 8 p.m. for your dining and mingling pleasure. A $20 ticket entitles you to sample them all.
There will be beverages. Folks from FEED Kitchens and the Alzheimer's Association have collaborated on the drinks service and will be participating in the proceeds from the event. (FEED Kitchens operates five commercial food-preparation facilities for dining entrepreneurs.) Tickets are available at the Isthmus office, 101 King St., or online at IsthmusalaCarts.com. Do not delay. Tickets have been moving briskly and will probably sell out.
If you come looking for romantic sustenance, we cannot guarantee it. We can guarantee that you won't go home hungry. And you certainly won't dine alone. The event is rain or shine; we have that big barn to shelter us if need be.
