I loooooved being a “matchmaker” ever since middle school. Okay, not a real matchmaker…more like poking fun and cracking jokes with people when I could see chemistry between two people. Some people didn’t like it, but I knew secretly they enjoyed it :razz: And somehow, maybe a year or years later, I’d talk to them again and reminisce about how I used to poke fun at a pair, and they would reveal/admit to me that it really was true. haha.

However, I actually realized that I haven’t done that for a really long time now. The most recent event was with my friend, who never seems to show a real interest in guys or dating. So I (and many others) would try to convince her to let us give her a blind date. And, if she didn’t let me do that, I threatened to make her blind date someone really icky, a guy who would be happy to go out with anyone. lol :lol: It was all fun and games, but in the end I didn’t really mean it (unlike some people). I actually was planning to go through with it in the beginning, but by the end it definitely wasn’t something I’d actually do.

I guess ever since I’ve seen the effects of peer pressure, it’s not so appealing even making a joke. I mean, a few jokes or a bit of advice is fine, but when it goes too far or is too excessive, I think it counts as peer pressure.

I don’t regret what happened in the past, but definitely would not have had my first relationship if it wasn’t for so much peer pressure. I don’t regret it, because it was worth it at the time, and at least now I learned a lot. I don’t think peer pressure was even a factor in our demise, but it makes me realize that peer pressure really can make a huge difference. I’ve seen it happen negatively with other people.

I had one friend, who I always kept urging towards the guy who bickered with her all the time. They definitely had the chemistry. She was a smart girl and never caved in, but long after, she admitted to me she did like him a teensy bit. So I was right about the chemistry, but very wrong about something else: he was a closet case! And so now I’m glad she never listened to me. Funny story.

I’ll leave the matchmaking to the actual people themselves.