The Lonely Stoner’s Guide to Looking for Love in All the Right Places

Welp, kids, it’s Valentine’s Day again. It’s that one day a year where, if
you are dating someone or perhaps even married to them by now, you are
required by the laws of Hallmark Corporation to buy them candy, flowers,
jewelry or some other gift that says, “Hey baby, sorry I went so cheap at
Xmas, I hope this makes up for it.” This is the day when people in
relationships must tell the ones they are sleeping with that they love
them, can’t live without them, would be devastated without their presence
in their life, *blah, blah, blah*. You get the gist of it.

So, if you have someone like that in your world, well, what can we say? You
had better make damn sure that you have dinner reservations somewhere
better than Cracker Barrel. Still, there is a legion of outcasts out there
who will undoubtedly spend this holiday alone. Not because they aren’t a
catch. But because they have special circumstances that make it
exceptionally difficult for them to find love. No, we’re not talking about
a wooden leg or anything like that. It’s just that, due to the stigmas
associated with cannabis, it can sometimes be harder for the average
marijuana user to track down a love interest that shares in as much
enthusiasm for the leaf as they do.

In the old days, marijuana users had to try pretty hard to find people they
could vibe with on a romantic level. We’re talking about the days before
weed was legal anywhere in the United States, a time when stoners were
considered the dregs of society, troublemakers and burnout,
good-for-nothings. You had better believe there was always some overly
protective father ready to kick the ever-living crap out of any druggie who
showed up at his doorstep trying to date his daughter. And that didn’t make
it any easier for the free-thinking hippy chick to find her kindred spirit,
either.

But that was then, and this is now. Sure, there are still protective
fathers out there to beware of. That’s never going to change. Thankfully,
though, technology has made the whole freaking world more accessible, which
has opened up new ways for people from all walks of life to meet each
other, regardless of lifestyle or kink. Of course, we are talking about
online dating. It’s a brave new world, some might say, one that has made it
easier for marijuana users to connect based solely on their passion for pot.

If you’re sitting on your couch right now reading this column and thinking,
“Meh, I don’t know, Cannabis Now, I don’t think online dating is for me,”
here is something to consider. Around 30% of the U.S. population is using
the computer to get a date, according to a recent study from the Pew
Research Center. Yep, long gone are the times when it was necessary to hang
out in bars, go to church or join a community organization in hopes of
finding someone to have dinner with and eventually see naked.

Now, lots of people are just logging on.

It’s 2020, so all one has to do is sign up for an online dating service,
post a couple of photos, list their “turn-on’s” and “turn-off’s” and then
just wait for a prospective partner in crime to come-a-knocking. This is
especially good for pot users who may have had a tough time in the past
finding a boyfriend or a girlfriend due to their longstanding relationship
with weed. Because while 12% of the population is now reportedly using
marijuana regularly, it’s a subject that still isn’t discussed very freely
at work or social events. But online dating allows people to fly their
stoner flag freely, and it’s a platform that gives the user carte blanche
on what they consider an acceptable partner. Feel free to post that you are
“an occasional marijuana user, searching for someone to do smoke with
during a Netflix binge.” But don’t be afraid to say, “I’m a diehard
cannabis user searching for someone who’s ready to wake and bake.” Of all
the people using dating sites right now, we assure you there is someone out
there staring at their computer screen, wishing that someone, just like
you, wasn’t afraid to be honest enough to say, “Let’s get high and just see
where this goes.”

But where to begin?

Several online dating sources allow people to post openly about cannabis
use. Some of them require a monthly subscription, but it’s still a heck of
a lot cheaper than frequenting the bars a couple of times a week. And it’s
definitely less expensive than buying tickets to Dead and Company or some
random Jam Band Festival in hopes that you just might bump into your soul
mate.

Match.com is perhaps the most popular. While the site is not specifically
geared to marijuana users, it doesn’t discriminate against them either.
Everyone is welcome on Match, which is one reason that it is our number one
pick for someone getting serious about trying the online dating scene.
There are also many other non-cannabis specific sites like OkCupid, Plenty
of Fish and Tinder. All of these allow the user to specify that they are
420-friendly. Of course, there are a few marijuana-related dating sites, as
well, for those people who are not messing around when it comes to finding
someone to share their bong with. There’s 420 Singles, My 420 Mate and Date
420 Friendly. They are exclusively for single stoners looking for other
people who are passionate about cannabis.

Listen, life is too short to be out there getting stoned alone. In the
immortal words of someone wiser than us, “a spark of kindness can start a
fire of love.” Now, go get ‘em, tiger. Get out there and get you some.

The post The Lonely Stoner’s Guide to Looking for Love in All the Right
Places appeared first on Cannabis Now.