Make Your Own Luck: Where the Boys & Girls Are In DC

The moment my eyes fell on him, I was content." – Edith Wharton

“Go west” says a female colleague if you are seeking single, available men in Washington, DC.  It’s true; the District is reported to have the worse female to male ratio in the nation.  At last count (in 2007), there were 52.9% women to 47.1% men and rumor has it that if you subtract the percentage of men who are gay from this number, (and the jury is still out on this), the ratio for women is roughly 13-1. A National Geographic “Singles” map suggests that the single men live in Los Angeles while the single women are on the east coast, in New York City. This suggests that the competition here is fierce and some of you may already be feeling the pinch.  

How exactly does a single, man or woman then enjoy the summer and remain hopeful of meeting that pot of gold boy or girl?  If there really is a “surplus of women” as the map suggests then perhaps it’s time for a little bit of strategy combined with a “wee” bit of luck? 

Ernest Hemingway said “you make your own luck” and that means you get out there and get going to places other than the usual suspects, namely, the stale and staid gyms and bars and try things that may feel out of character but which could turn out to be just your pot of luck. The whole idea is to meet people, socialize, and have fun.

A few ideas on places to meet fun, interesting people some which are familiar some which may be new (and I can vouch for most of them) include the following:

1)     “Jazz in the Garden” every Friday on the Mall, beginning at 5:30 p.m., the National Gallery of art offers free jazz performances at the outdoor café in the Sculpture Garden.  A mix of professionals, families, tourists, it’s quite lively and relaxing. Ah yes, and the sangria is also deliciously refreshing.

2)     The hottest new online venues are the social networking sites like Face Book and Twitter.  The nice thing about them is that you can meet or discover people through their posts, the games or quizzes that interest them, and having a mutual friend/s is also a great launching point for conversation. It’s so much easier and stimulating than, playing to a banal script, i.e. “so what kind of things do you like to do?”

3)     Also hot are the traditional online dating sites many of us appear to have succumbed to in our desperation (though friends will be slow to admit they’ve tried them): eHarmony and Match.com.  While feedback suggests they can be hit or miss, they’re great sites to get your toes wet if you’ve been out of the dating scene awhile. Also, if you’re on a budget, Metrodate offers you a free membership, allowing you to create your own profile and search by specific locales in the Metro DC area.  Finally, there’s even a venue for those professionals whose schedules are simply too tight to spend online searching.  “It’s Just Lunch”  will do it for you. You simply show up to your pre-arranged lunch date or after work drink.

4)     Art gallery openings are plentiful in the District (Dupont Circle, Logan Circle Penn Quarter). Currently, the annual Artomatic 2009 event which runs through July 5, 2008 brings them all together in one place. Nine floors, quite impressive.

5)     Volunteering.  Our President’s recent Call to Service asks us to participate in our nation’s recovery and renewal. This creates an opportunity to meet and develop a bond with one or lots of people across a number of organizations, and for a good cause. Simply type in your zip code and you’ll find opportunities to volunteer in your local area.

 There are of course many other places here in Washington, DC, the tried and true coffee shops, I also hear Costco and dog parks are hot spots.  So there’s really no need to go west to find your pot of gold. The best way to approach making your own luck is to keep in mind that it’s just a date! You don’t necessarily have to be on the hunt for “the one” and even if you are, have fun in the meantime, while you are casting that net a little wider.