This Is What It’s Like to Date a Luddite

When old school collides with a modern woman

We connected in the modern world of online dating. What I didn’t know at the time was that he didn’t have a computer at home or a smartphone. Shocking, but true. We sent messages back and forth on OKCupid. I said I would call him to talk and got his phone number. I forgot about it for a while, but eventually got through. It is a landline. I have one, too. I’m not super tech savvy, but I do have an iphone and use a few more features than simply calling and texting. He has an old flip phone. He goes online using computers in public libraries. Some of this lag in adopting technology is because of his limited financial resources.

He isn’t exactly a Luddite in the true sense of the term. It isn’t that he is opposed to new technology. The original Luddites were a group of late 19th century textile workers who destroyed machinery in protest for fear of losing their jobs to the new machines. I guess he is more of a slow adopter. He has an email address and is on Facebook. He found me on OKCupid.

Our relationship progressed in spite of not texting each other all the time, selfies (naked or otherwise) never showing up instantly on his cell phone but rather in his email, getting the occasional “busy signal” when calling him because he doesn’t pay the extra fee…