Summer is a selfish, fatalistic season. You career around the city, flitting through barbecues and ascending to rooftops, your eyes always trained on the next destination and the newest crowd. Consequences vanish: youre physically in the office, at least, though the boss is away until mid-September, so anything you do now, youll have to do again anyway. This year, Brexits penumbra and North Koreas nuclear posturings add a frisson to proceedings: global uncertainty famously breeds hedonism. Essentially, if the end is nigh, might as well make it a large one.
So you are drunk and self-interested which in turn informs your dating strategy. Winter is, notably, cuffing season finding a relationship to save on a central heating bill but once your legs are out, and shaved for the first time in six months, its a shame to be tethered up or so some millennials reckon. For a certain fast-and-loose cohort, this is a summer of love: monogamy is on hiatus.
To some,sticking with one person just feels unimaginative. Take one twenty- something chap who, after a long-winded but amicable break-up, decided not to waste a single long, languid summer evening on moping. Instead he picked up his smartphone and started swiping often left, but periodically right. Soon he had nine suitors of mixed sexes, and duly has started dating them all.
Naturally some friends were aghast though not so much by the outrageous polygamy but because even if you went on a date every single evening of the week, you still wouldnt see them all, and surely Sundays and Mondays are verboten? Think bigger: there are 24 hours in a day, and a Monday morning hangover is naught but an inconvenience if youre the only person in the office that morning. Plus, no ones getting hurt: each one knows about the other one further proof that everyone in town is playing by the same loose morals. Its all in the spirit of a bit of healthy competition.
Man sends crush hilarious ideas for a date but it goes horribly wrong
Everyone lives for the summer its like everything is heightened, observes one twentysomething committed summer singleton. People put more effort into their appearance and making plans. Everyone looks fitter and goes out more, so youre way more likely to meet someone. Why bother putting all your eggs in one basket (thank you, Love Island) when you could be trying all of the eggs to find one thats 100 per cent your type on paper? The only people I know who are in relationships during the summer are people who have genuine feelings for someone they think is the dogs bollocks. In terms of Tinder, Ive had way more spontaneous dates over the summer with minimal messaging prior.
Granted, while summer is a catalyst, theres evidence this generation has a shifting attitude to monogamy in general. A survey by YouGov published at the end of last year found that nearly half of millennials perceived monogamy on a spectrum, rather than as a binary state. Those under 30 were the least likely of any age group to want a relationship that was wholly monogamous. This chimes with our attitude to sexuality: millennials resist labels and use evasive language to describe the relationships were in (seeing each other, linking, hanging out) and sometimes avoid endings, too, even when theyre strictly necessary (ghosting to leave your flame hanging, of course).
Nonetheless theres also something about summers prickly heat that makes people go doolally. We are overstimulated there is so much fun to be had! and too weak to resist the temptations of the flesh which, despite this weeks execrable weather, is usually visible and lightly tanned from the group holiday to Turkey. While winter evenings at the pub are nicer with a hand to hold, festivals, for example, create a lawless temporary world, a mirage of sparkling lights and sparkly faces, from which the realities of the outside world are excluded. Snogging strangers in tents is all part of it: indeed, a survey by uSwitch in June found one in five people planned to download Tinder just for a festival.
These are Tinder's most popular singletons
Tinder/Cosmpolitan
Matches a day: 10
Number of first dates: 5
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 15
Number of first dates: 10
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 20
Number of first dates: 5
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 4
Number of first dates: 18
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 15
Number of first dates: 3
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 6
Number of first dates: 10
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 1
Number of first dates: 8
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 5
Number of first dates: 6
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 5
Number of first dates: 13
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 10
Number of first dates: 1
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Number of first dates: 15
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 6
Number of first dates: 3
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Matches a day: 6
Number of first dates: 4
Tinder/Cosmopolitan
Barbecues are more fun with a flirtation in your sights; reaching last orders is more thrilling if youre not yet sure whether the fun is, indeed, drawing to an end, or whether that two (or three) person after-party is about to start. Plus, invites are open and fluid in summer: dates dont mean sticking to drinks you can bring someone along to Sunfall in Brockwell Park this weekend, or as a plus-one to a mates house party. Everyones up for meeting new people. Frankly, its strategic: if it doesnt work out with you it might do with one of your mates.
Tinderis having a month of field days: the Tinder tourists are in town, which gives Londoners a chance to attempt to atone for the sins of Brexit. Sure, youd have to be a top shagger to mitigate for Article 50 in its entirety, but you can make your best attempt at international relations. One twentysomething student whos kicking about over the long summer says she downloaded it as soon as she got off the train home, despite having a few flirtations on campus that she wouldnt really want to ruin. Im far away and looking for people to meet and while away the lonely summer, she observes, shrugging.
Others confess to having changed their Tinder subscription strategy for the summer: Tinder Boost, which sends your profile top of the pile for 30 minutes, and gathers up to 10 times more profile views in that time, is worth the premium when you know youre competing with a whole capital full of people on heat.
One twentysomething girl has just started seeing someone, but both have holidays booked so theyre barely in the country at the same time, and frankly, monogamy would seem like martyred self-deprivation. Another guy grumbles that hes stretching the limits of his local knowledge to come up with a new date location several times a week he fears the opprobrium of the bartenders if he brings a rotating cast of men in every week. Dont: theyre all doing it too. Why do you think every waiter and waitress in town has a glint in their eye?
Crucially, though, dont pretend. If being a polyamorous playboy or playgirl makes you feel empty and alone, then dont persevere. Youll probably find a real gem everyone else is too busy being a lothario.
@phoebeluckhurst
View post:
Why millennials are giving up monogamy for August - Evening Standard
- Home - Wild Women Vacations [Last Updated On: December 23rd, 2016] [Originally Added On: December 23rd, 2016]
- Hedonism - New World Encyclopedia [Last Updated On: December 26th, 2016] [Originally Added On: December 26th, 2016]
- Hedonism II (Negril, Jamaica) - UPDATED 2016 Resort (All ... [Last Updated On: January 3rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: January 3rd, 2017]
- Hedonism II Resort Negril, Jamaica [Last Updated On: January 8th, 2017] [Originally Added On: January 8th, 2017]
- Hedonism II Community | Home [Last Updated On: January 30th, 2017] [Originally Added On: January 30th, 2017]
- Hedonism and healing - Independent Online [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Dark side of hedonism: a rock journalist's battle with drug addiction - The Guardian [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- Rainbow Serpent turns 20: a weekend of boundless hedonism - Mixmag [Last Updated On: February 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 7th, 2017]
- 'Dream Boat': Love Comes In All Shapes And Sizes In This Candid Berlinale Documentary Set On A Gay Cruise Ship - moviepilot.com [Last Updated On: February 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 11th, 2017]
- Black Wave review: From hedonism to the apocalypse - Irish Times [Last Updated On: February 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 11th, 2017]
- Feminism, ambition, hedonism: drama explores lives of university's privileged - The Guardian [Last Updated On: February 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 12th, 2017]
- Leftism: From Bloody Tragedy to Therapeutic Parody - FrontPage Magazine [Last Updated On: February 13th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 13th, 2017]
- Science: How to Get into the "Flow" and Do What Makes You Happiest - Big Think [Last Updated On: February 13th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 13th, 2017]
- Weekend Arts: Find the Beethoven Music Festival, 'Avenue Q' and more in Tulsa this week - Tulsa World (blog) [Last Updated On: February 15th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 15th, 2017]
- Now We Are 40 by Tiffanie Darke review a generation lost to hedonism and irony? - The Guardian [Last Updated On: February 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 16th, 2017]
- Chefs to Watch for 2017 - Hedonism II, Negril - Jamaica Observer [Last Updated On: February 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 16th, 2017]
- Hicks column: Schools should stick to the facts, as should everyone else - Charleston Post Courier [Last Updated On: February 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 17th, 2017]
- Berlin Syndrome - The Upcoming [Last Updated On: February 20th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 20th, 2017]
- Tears in the Club - PopMatters [Last Updated On: February 20th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 20th, 2017]
- Chefs to Watch for 2017 - Hedonism II, Negril - Food ... - Jamaica Observer [Last Updated On: February 20th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 20th, 2017]
- Hedonism II | CheapCaribbean.com [Last Updated On: February 20th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 20th, 2017]
- Book review: 'The True Story of Guns N' Roses' will rock your world - Times LIVE [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2017]
- Pleasures: the desert of life - Tulsa World [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2017]
- Living Like a Hedonist - Daily Trojan Online [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2017]
- How dirty do you like it? Revel in hedonism with You Pull It, the new EP from The Byzantines - Happy [Last Updated On: February 23rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 23rd, 2017]
- When did Britain stop being a nation of hedonists? - The Guardian [Last Updated On: February 23rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 23rd, 2017]
- What is Hedonism wines? Mayfair vendor owned by Russian exile counts Jose Mourinho among its clientele and ... - The Sun [Last Updated On: February 24th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 24th, 2017]
- Pastor's column: Hedonism: Self-driven life of pleasure - Gridley Herald [Last Updated On: February 24th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 24th, 2017]
- Look around the wine store where Ranieri's future was decided Mourinho loves this place! - Daily Star [Last Updated On: February 25th, 2017] [Originally Added On: February 25th, 2017]
- The Gooch Palms are a handful of hedonism - Mandurah Mail [Last Updated On: March 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 7th, 2017]
- Jose Cuervo's Apocalyptic Vision Encourages Hedonism 03/08/2017 - MediaPost Communications [Last Updated On: March 8th, 2017] [Originally Added On: March 8th, 2017]
- Europe conquers itself - Arutz Sheva [Last Updated On: April 8th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 8th, 2017]
- Hedonism alone didn't kill George - Irish Independent [Last Updated On: April 8th, 2017] [Originally Added On: April 8th, 2017]
- Hedonism II All-inclusive Resort Reviews & Deals, Negril [Last Updated On: June 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 7th, 2017]
- Phoenix: 'The purity of French identity is an illusion; it's never existed ... - The Guardian [Last Updated On: June 8th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 8th, 2017]
- First-rate musical performance & production that's hard to fault: Garsington's Semele reviewed - Spectator.co.uk [Last Updated On: June 8th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 8th, 2017]
- Guest Post: Bhante Suddhso Guidelines for Happiness - Patheos (blog) [Last Updated On: June 9th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 9th, 2017]
- 'I trafficked women at a famous Hong Kong nightclub' - South China Morning Post [Last Updated On: June 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 11th, 2017]
- Sydney Festival Film Review: Axoltl Overkill (Germany, 2017) burns up Berlin with heavily stylised hedonism - the AU review (blog) [Last Updated On: June 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 11th, 2017]
- Fun Fair Shot Bar By Claudia Comte Brings Seor Frogs-Style ... - ARTnews [Last Updated On: June 13th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 13th, 2017]
- On 'Ti Amo', Phoenix Combat Dark Times with Fun and Gelato - Vulture [Last Updated On: June 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 16th, 2017]
- Honey-glazed, hedonistic, and hyper-real - Cherwell Online [Last Updated On: June 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 16th, 2017]
- Review: True to the original, 'Cabaret' revival trades in hedonism, horror - Seattle Times [Last Updated On: June 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 16th, 2017]
- Spanish Party Town Publishes 64 Rules to Stop Hedonism of Drunk Tourists - Heat Street [Last Updated On: June 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 17th, 2017]
- WIL DARCANGELO: Hedonism has its advantages - Sentinel & Enterprise [Last Updated On: June 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 17th, 2017]
- Comme des Garons' spring collection designed for a warehouse rave - The Guardian [Last Updated On: June 26th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 26th, 2017]
- Considering a weekend in Ibiza? Our guide to the White Isle tells you where to eat, sleep, rave, repeat - Mirror.co.uk [Last Updated On: June 29th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 29th, 2017]
- Norfolk makers of Wild Knight vodka score first London stockist - Norfolk Eastern Daily Press [Last Updated On: June 30th, 2017] [Originally Added On: June 30th, 2017]
- Hedonism II - Negril, Jamaica The Swinger Cruise [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2017]
- Comic Legends: How Did 9/11 Change Strangers in Paradise's Ending? - CBR (blog) [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2017]
- The kids are all white: can US festivals live up to their 'post-racial' promise? - The Guardian [Last Updated On: July 4th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 4th, 2017]
- Cakes Da Killa on Clubbing, Labels and His Shanghai Debut ... - That's Online (registration) [Last Updated On: July 4th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 4th, 2017]
- Claude Speeed is the trance-inspired ambient nomad documenting Berlin's rave sadness - FACT [Last Updated On: July 5th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 5th, 2017]
- Reporter strips naked to quiz nude swingers on their love of wife-swapping in bizarre telly segment - The Sun [Last Updated On: July 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 7th, 2017]
- Steve Vizard's Vigil at Arts Centre Melbourne reveals trauma ... - The Age [Last Updated On: July 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 7th, 2017]
- Party Report: Hideout Festival 2017 - Deep House Amsterdam (press release) (blog) [Last Updated On: July 11th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 11th, 2017]
- Wimbledon 2017: The tech behind the world's top tennis tournament - Ars Technica UK [Last Updated On: July 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 12th, 2017]
- Exploring the world's first dog glamping site at NOS Alive music festival - Metro [Last Updated On: July 12th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 12th, 2017]
- Hyundai has come a long way with its outstanding Ioniq Hybrid - Philly.com [Last Updated On: July 14th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 14th, 2017]
- Why campus boys make the best husband materials - The Standard [Last Updated On: July 15th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 15th, 2017]
- I demand a critical reappraisal of Kesha's brilliant, brilliant music - Salon [Last Updated On: July 15th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 15th, 2017]
- Norfolk vodka brand joins London's jet set - Business Weekly [Last Updated On: July 15th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 15th, 2017]
- Clean raving: how club culture went wild for wellness - The Guardian [Last Updated On: July 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 16th, 2017]
- News Bites | Loewe Releases Ibiza-Inspired Record, Erdem x H&M - The Business of Fashion [Last Updated On: July 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 16th, 2017]
- Crisis in leadership as bright minds avoid public service - The New Indian Express [Last Updated On: July 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 16th, 2017]
- Woman seriously injured after falling off stage at Guns N' Roses show - The Times of Israel [Last Updated On: July 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 16th, 2017]
- What's the Best Song, According to Science? - Gizmodo [Last Updated On: July 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 17th, 2017]
- We Asked the Happiest People at Lovebox About Their Worries - Noisey [Last Updated On: July 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 17th, 2017]
- Dance Like Nobody's Watching To Shock Machine's Unlimited Love Video - The FADER [Last Updated On: July 17th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 17th, 2017]
- Gig review: Catfish and The Bottlemen at Don Valley Bowl, Sheffield - Yorkshire Evening Post [Last Updated On: July 18th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 18th, 2017]
- Montreal's Ancient Future Festival Reveals 2017 Lineup with Hudson Mohawke, the Underachievers, Sam Paganini - Exclaim! [Last Updated On: July 18th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 18th, 2017]
- Coexistence at the beach - Opelika Observer [Last Updated On: July 20th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 20th, 2017]
- Ibiza: Where To Eat, Party And Beach - HuffPost UK [Last Updated On: July 20th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 20th, 2017]
- Film Streams, Joslyn team for screening of 'Marie Antoinette' - Omaha World-Herald [Last Updated On: July 20th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 20th, 2017]
- Hedonism II Hotel - Jamaica | Oyster.com Review & Photos [Last Updated On: July 20th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 20th, 2017]
- Fiction review: Living the Dream - The Sydney Morning Herald [Last Updated On: July 21st, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 21st, 2017]
- Arcade Fire - 'Everything Now' Album Review - NME - NME.com [Last Updated On: July 21st, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 21st, 2017]
- Dream Hoarders - HuffPost [Last Updated On: July 22nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 22nd, 2017]
- PS Spotlight: Remembering celebrity fancy dress for the grand Cointreau Ball - The Sydney Morning Herald [Last Updated On: July 22nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 22nd, 2017]
- Last Night Guns N' Roses Played An Epic Set At The Apollo, Today Appetite For Destruction Turns 30 - Stereogum [Last Updated On: July 22nd, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 22nd, 2017]