Dating sure has changed since the ’80s and ’90s.  We actually talked on the phone instead of texting.  We didn’t have computer to communicate.  The only computer that I used was in school.  It was an Apple, back when it was a hulking monster. There was no Internet.  We met at dances, clubs, school and parties.  A phone number was usually written on a piece of paper instead of saved into your cell phone.  Back then, cell phones were huge and carried in a bag and not that many people had them.  Then again, you could always “beep” your boyfriend and he would call you from a pay phone (what are those?).  Everyone had beepers.

A typical date usually consisted of dinner and a movie.  My dates were required to come to the door, meet my parents and ask what time I should return home. Oh…and I can’t forget that I had to take one of my sisters along. If one of my sisters wasn’t available, a double date with a family friend was the other option. I’m sure that a few dates grew a little sick of hanging around my friends and siblings. However, if they wanted to date me, those were the rules.  Did I mention that I had to be home by 10 pm—even on weekends?

My father told me funny stories of his dating days back in the ’60s.  Mexican fathers and families required chaperons on all dates. Maybe that’s why he insisted that my sisters chaperon my dates…hmmm? He was dating or “courting” a Mexican girl from the old neighborhood in Detroit.  The parents escorted her to the house and sat with them in the living room for the entire date.  She actually sat across the room from my father.  What kind of date is that? I don’t understand how they were supposed to get to know one another in that atmosphere? Dating was merely preparation for marriage. However, you have to remember that love was not required to be married back then.  A good girl from a good family usually married into another good, well-known family. It’s just the way that things were done. Needless to say, my dad didn’t end up marrying a Mexican girl.  As he put it, he was a little too impatient for all that nonsense.

I have to admit that I do not in the least miss dating.  I hated dating.  It was uncomfortable and nerve-wracking.  What to wear? What to say? Oh no…what if he tries to kiss me? Would my dad say something to embarrass me? I’m so glad that I’m out of the dating scene.  I can’t even imagine what it must be like today.

Author: Rhonda Gutierrez