The Post-Modern Matchmaker Experiment

My name is Jean, and I'm starting a Dating Experiment called Post-Modern Matchmaker.

Aim: To try dating different types of guys than I usually do, and learn about what types of guys my friends and family think would be a good fit for me.  (And hopefully to write about it in an entertaining way.)

Materials: I've set up an OkCupid account, an email account, and this blog (postmodernmatchmaker.blogspot.com) solely for this experiment.

Procedure: I will ask family members and friends (one at a time) to be the Matchmaker for a week, and use the OkCupid account (or other methods) to select 3 potential suitors.  Then I will set up dates with said potential suitors (I am allowed to veto one of their choices if I want).  I will write about the process (selection of suitors and dates) and the Matchmaker is welcome to write guest posts.

Participants: The first Matchmaker will be my mom, then I'll ask other friends and family.  Potential suitors must live in the greater Los Angeles area.

Explanation:
I have terrible taste in men.  I even do stand up comedy about it, and though it's great that people always laugh about the compulsive liar I dated or the guys who lived in buses, I personally am rather sick of the type of guys I get involved with.  I'm not one of those girls who "only dates assholes," I'm drawn to guys that "have a lot of potential."  Unfortunately, they usually seem to have little intention of realizing said "potential."  And as well-intentioned as dating Guys with Potential can be, it's also thinly disguised Dating-Someone-To-Change-Them, which we all know is Dating No-No #415.

Recently I started thinking, how could I meet different types of guys?  I've tried OkCupid several times over the years and usually met guys that I have lots of common interests with but no chemistry.  Tinder...ugh, Tinder sometimes made me laugh and sometimes made me want to weep for humanity.  I went on one Tinder date, and he was a nice guy but we had no chemistry.  So the guys I meet online are usually nice guys I'm not attracted to, and the guys I meet in real life I'm attracted to but there's not much relationship potential.

But what if I wasn't the one picking the guys?  What guys would my mom, or my best friend, think I would be good with?  The people who already know and love me (and have heard about my boy drama for so many years) might see different things in potential suitors than I do.  And I'm genuinely curious about what kind of guys they would pick.  Whether it yields an actual relationship for me or not, I feel like I could learn about who they think would be compatible with me, what their dealbreakers are.

So we embark on this experiment.  Because, Science!