Swipe East, Swipe West

Pacific Northwest: Dating through the Decades w/ Mike Stone

Can you recall a time when you weren't swiping on Bumble? Well Mike of The TallMikeWine Podcast (@tallmikewine) does, and he is here to tell us all about it! Growing up in Washington State in the '80s, Mike adopted a small-town mentality where you marry young and relatively quick. That led him to his wife, the third person he went on a date with, but also a divorce 8 years later when he realized he wanted to see what it was like to date other types of people as he moved throughout Washington. He talks about using personal ads in the newspaper, meeting people in the wild who had to leave messages on land lines, and a time when dating apps were actually websites so you had to wait until you got home from work before replying back to a message. Mike also shares his dating experiences, including an affair turned relationship, throughout the years - which led him to his current long term girlfriend that he met on OKCupid. While this episode explores Mike's journey throughout the West Coast with his Pacific Northwest (PNW) mentality, it also strongly focuses on the changes of dating over time due to technology.

 

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Find The TallMikeWine Podcast on Instagram: @tallmikewine

Listen to The TallMikeWine Podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/02tPdoWG89UkXZCtTfidLd?si=W7RYyRLlRRiaHTOIWRMliA

Listen to The TallMikeWine Podcast on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-tallmikewine-podcast/id1548337838

 

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Milwaukee: Service Industry, Arts, & Gas Station Cheese w/ Brittney

This week, Ashley starts with an extended intro sharing some updates on her LA dating life, demonstrating that the city is not at big as it seems. Exciting? No. Entertaining? Yes. After this, Ashley dives right into dating and living in Milwaukee with Bumble BFF match, roller skater, poet, techno aficionado, and After Infinite clothing line owner, Brittney. The ladies discuss how Milwaukee has a lot more to offer outside of the standard beer and cheese that it is known for with Brittney sharing her experiences through the lens of working in the service industry. She discusses meeting people through both working and going to bars, which is something prominent in a city with a strong pub-like bar culture. Having an emphasis on drinking can have its downfalls, though, with some overdoing it on dates - or other areas in their life. With a love for poetry and music, Brittney also shares how the arts are a key component in her dating life- and ultimately helped lead her to her significant other, Dave, who was on the show last week! You'll also hear her thoughts on dating culture, and how that is similar or different from Dave's perspective.

 

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Find Brittney's poetry here: https://www.wordvandal.com

Shop Brittney's clothing line: https://www.afterinfinite.com

Follow Brittney's skate journey: @brittneyrollz

Chicago: Opening Up to Love w/ Dave Castellani

This week we explore the ins and outs of dating in Chicago! We have special guest, friend, and DJ/Producer Dave Castellani (@davidcastellanimusic) joining us to share his experiences living and dating in the Windy City with a lens on the underground music scene. Dave also shares insight on a time he worked at a marketing firm supporting a company that helped men (and some women) get over their dating anxieties to land their partner, and what that taught him about insecurities people can develop when it comes to relationships. This modular-minded guest also shares his opinions on love and dating in general based on his upbringing, why he thinks people should be more open minded when it comes to choosing a partner, as well as well as dating more openly (and honestly) before coming fully monogamous with someone. Dave even gives Ashley some dating advice at the end of the episode (speed dating anyone?!) to try help her find a mate.

 

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Find Dave's music here on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3aFbg2q1WyikPS4PKxZhZZ?si=dA8M18RJQgSGZGzOny2YgQ

 

 

NYC: Degree Diggers, Pandemic Dating, & Dating Apps Gone Wrong w/ Jack Moody

We got a good one for you this week! We are joined by guest Jack Moody of The Neighbors Upstairs Podcast (@theneighborsupstairs) for lots of laughs and perspective on dating in New York City on this episode. Jack discusses the focus women in New York have on education status, labelling them degree diggers, and how they relate that to one's current career - as well as their ability to make sound decisions. He then discusses his experience dating during the pandemic, including challenges with vaccination status and a very awkward Hinge video call. Last but not least, Jack discusses how he thinks dating apps highlight and lead to insecurities for both men and women - leading people to ghost - before sharing a J-Swipe date that went terribly wrong because of said insecurities. He also gives Ashley advice on dating in LA, including maybe, perhaps, trying to deal with the distance barrier by meeting the date in the middle? Does that concept exist out here?! Listen to find out!

 

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Find The Neighbors Upstairs:

Here on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1QGGswQHKV6rv2gzDoxygu?si=0eV9xsYjSyaeff0Wk9sepA

Here on Apple Music: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-neighbors-upstairs/id1511050770

 

Houston: Do We Have a [Dating] Problem? w/ Amy

Does Houston have a problem? With dating, that is. Well this week, we'll find out! We have guest Amy joining us sharing her experiences living and dating in this southern city. Despite her parents meeting in Houston, Amy shares her culture shock moving from a more liberal city in Ohio down to this more conservative area who's biggest event of the year is the rodeo. She learns that everyone, even transplants, take on a "Texas Forever," type of mentality, and there is a strong focus on relationships over hook-up culture. With that, some of the men who are born and raised in the area take on the role of a true Southern gentleman, which can actually lead to trouble in relationships. Though Houston is a diverse city, attracting a mix of intellectuals who like to hunt, Amy also shares dating horror stories with some men who did not have some Southern charm - including an ex co-worker with some racist tendencies.

 

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Tinder Love Story: Dating Long Distance w/ Jessi

Did you ever think you could find your soulmate on Tinder? And better yet - did you ever think you could do that and have success, despite having them live in another state? Well, Jessi did, and she's here to tell us allll about it. Despite being in school at the Rochester Institute of Technology, a place that skews heavier towards men, she found that as a woman, "the odds were good, but the goods were odd." That said, she ended up matching with someone on Tinder that was passing through town from Maryland. They started talking, and after one-month and a flight to California, she had herself a boyfriend. Five years later, that Tinder match is now her husband. This week, Jessi talks about what drew her to a man out of state, how her relationship succeeded, and all her long distance relationship tips and tricks!

 

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Las Vegas: Dating On & Off the Strip w/ Holly & Jill

This week, we dive into living and dating in Las Vegas with guests Holly, a Vegas transplant, and Jill, a Vegas local. While all 3 ladies can confirm it is a fun place to visit, Holly and Jill discuss how navigating life in Vegas is actually quite difficult. The Strip gets old quick with tourists looking at you like an exotic animal, the people that work in nightlife looking for a quick fix or one night stand vs a long term relationship, and there are so many transient transplants with a 2 year plan, it's hard to know what someone's intentions are - creating many trust issues. This all affects dating, and Holly and Jill found they needed join a group, like rock climbing or kick ball, in order to make friends or find a significant other. They both discuss how even that has challenges, as dating within a friendship circle can be tricky, but bringing someone into the group requires a set of approvals they may or may not not achieve.

Tune in to hear about dating on and off the strip - and what happens in Vegas doesn't always stay there.

 

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Scottsdale: Please Don‘t Swipe Here w/ Robin

This week, Ashley starts off the episode sharing updates in her LA dating life including getting ghosted by not just one, but TWO men, along with a story of an interaction with a man on a dating app that recently resurfaced when she saw a recent post on Nextdoor about him harassing several other women in Long Beach.

We then dive into the main topic of the week: dating in the Scottsdale area. We have guest Robin joining us sharing her experiences, including the frustration of all the men flexing their cash but refusing to spend it on dates, having to deal with the constant influx of tourists, and terrible luck using dating apps in the local area. She also shares how different Scottsdale is from its neighbor Phoenix, a city not known as a destination stop and is more grunge and indie. Dating in both cities is drastically different, and the men in each area are looking for a specific type of girl. Robin has a hard time fitting into both places finds herself outsourcing to California - managing to have a few men even fly out to see her. Unable to leave Scottsdale for her career, will she find what she's looking for where she is?

 

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From London to LA: Beauty, Clout, & Online Habits w/ Alexis

On this week's episode, guest Alexis, an American who spent most of her adulthood living in London until accidentally moving to LA at the start of the pandemic, discusses similarities and differences dating within the two cities. With Ashley having also studied abroad in the UK, the pair share their experiences around standards of beauty, hustle culture/clout, social media usage and dating apps, as well as ghosting. Ironically, Alexis' experiences are drastically different from Ashley's - especially in LA - as she has mostly encountered fuckboys who are only looking to show off their money in hopes it will lead to a one night stand. While she was able to find loving relationships in London, she is beginning to lose hope. This conversation leaves Ashley wondering -is LA a relationship city after all? Can you find love, or are there too many factors against you?

 

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Waterloo, ON: Gen-Z College Dating w/ Anneke

WE'RE BACK, BABY! In the Season 2 Premiere of Swipe East, Swipe West, we are joined with guest Anneke, a recent Engineering graduate from the University of Waterloo and a member of Gen-Z. She and Ashley (a millennial) discuss dating/hook-ups in college and how dating apps, social media, and even trying to meet people at bars have significantly changed over the last few years between the two generations. Have any of you heard of the double like?? Anneke also shares her opinion on the different types of men found in Waterloo, as well as her experience dating as woman in Engineering - a predominantly male major. She also discusses her experience dating virtually in college with Covid restrictions, and how she eventually met her current boyfriend.

 

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