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[written by kristin] When did the idea of the first time you see someone become a “meeting” instead of a date? I can tell you exactly where it came from….online dating. I’m not sure I like the term, seems very impersonal. Why is this word being used? Is there a better term?

Maybe the term is used because a guy thinks he either has to spend money on you or the girl thinks that they need to hang out for a least a few hours for it to be considered a date. Or just maybe its because if we call it a “meeting” than there is no commitment to having to see this person again. But really, that makes no sense.

What about using the term; “Blind Date”? But with online dating, you spend a moment emailing, then talking on the phone, then decide to meet in person. So you actually may know even more about this person than a traditional “blind-date”. Sometimes a blind date can be a complete set-up by family and friends and you have not even spoken… so I don’t think the term “Blind Date” works well either.

A “meeting” is something you do at work. This may include a large, cold board room with a handful of people sitting around trying to small talk. This is not the kind of feeling I want on my first encounter.

The definition on Wikepedia says “In a meeting, two or more people come together for the purpose of discussing a (usually) predetermined topic such as business or community event planning, often in a formal setting.” They even show photos of board rooms within the definition.

But my Apple Dictionary had two kinds of definitions.
1 an assembly of people, esp. the members of a society or committee, for discussion or entertainment.
2 a coming together of two or more people, by chance or arrangement.

Okay, okay maybe it could be called a “meeting”, it just seems impersonal to me. You are “meeting” this person for the small possibility that you may have a spark which could lead to something great. Not a business transaction.

I think I would like to start a trend and come up with a new word. Any ideas? No existing words really work for me. “Appointment”, “Interview”, “Contact”, all sounds way too cold. “Encounter” is a sexy word in my opinion, but maybe way too sexy for an initial get-together. (not unless there was major sparks!)

Experiment. Is another word that comes to mind. You’re mixing two people’s personalities together to see if there is a reaction. But sounds a little too science for me. “Trial” sounds cold, even though it is exactly that. I’m really stumped here. I believe it has to be a completely new word in our vocabulary. Something in reference to online or internet dating.

Got any ideas? I welcome suggestions!