I think a good arbitrage for finding a male partner in the Cluster is to join a Cluster social circle which is somewhat insular, to the point where men in the social circle place a significant premium on finding a partner who’s also in the social circle. (Or, they don’t have much of a social life outside the social circle, so potential partners outside the social circle aren’t options they’re considering.)
I would suggest that you research nerdy hobbies which are popular in your area, figure out which seem most interesting to you, then go to a meetup for that hobby. Find a guy who seems suitable, explain to him that you read about the hobby online and it seemed interesting, you’re new to the hobby, and you’re looking for someone to show you the ropes. Repeat until a guy takes you under his wing. If you can’t find meetups on meetup.com, I would suggest using the Wizards of the Coast store locator, then go to the store and ask what the best event to attend is if you’re a noob at Magic the Gathering (or some other game the store caters to).
If you’ve gotten to know a guy well enough to determine that you’re interested, don’t be shy about signaling that it’s appropriate for him to escalate your relationship romantically (you don’t want him worried that you’re going to make a “women in <hobby> horror story” post about him online). You could make a little joke out of it: “I wouldn’t mind if you asked me out, by the way.” Something like that.
I think a good arbitrage for finding a male partner in the Cluster is to join a Cluster social circle which is somewhat insular, to the point where men in the social circle place a significant premium on finding a partner who’s also in the social circle. (Or, they don’t have much of a social life outside the social circle, so potential partners outside the social circle aren’t options they’re considering.)
I would suggest that you research nerdy hobbies which are popular in your area, figure out which seem most interesting to you, then go to a meetup for that hobby. Find a guy who seems suitable, explain to him that you read about the hobby online and it seemed interesting, you’re new to the hobby, and you’re looking for someone to show you the ropes. Repeat until a guy takes you under his wing. If you can’t find meetups on meetup.com, I would suggest using the Wizards of the Coast store locator, then go to the store and ask what the best event to attend is if you’re a noob at Magic the Gathering (or some other game the store caters to).
If you’ve gotten to know a guy well enough to determine that you’re interested, don’t be shy about signaling that it’s appropriate for him to escalate your relationship romantically (you don’t want him worried that you’re going to make a “women in <hobby> horror story” post about him online). You could make a little joke out of it: “I wouldn’t mind if you asked me out, by the way.” Something like that.