Trainwrecks

Anyone who drives knows about "gawker slow-down" - that phenomenon where if there's an accident, people feel the need to stop and look.

I feel that way about Craigslist personals. I can't help myself, I have to stop and look. It's my own version of gawker slow-down. And of course, I can't keep this knowledge to myself - no, I must share it to save you from having to learn the painful lesson on your own.

Craigslist is all about categories... putting things where they belong so visitors can easily find what they want. In the personals, visitors apparently want lots and lots of acronyms. M4W. W4M. M4MW. W4M. FWB. SDM. SBM for BBW. DDF. Until all you can think is WTF? Don't these people know how to use words? Sadly, the answer is no.

And then there's posts involving pictures.... which I have also learned to categorize:
- Not a real person
- I don't know you, and I don't need to see that.
- Is that supposed to make you seem romantic?

Then there's the people who post. I'm sure some of them are very normal people, with normal and busy lives. But there's also these people:
- I want to get laid.
- I'm bitter about my ex
- My spouse can't find out
- Not from around here

There. You now know what I know about Craigslist Personals. Which leads me to the conclusion that it's better suited to finding furniture and garage sales than potential partners. I think I'll stick to meeting people at IKEA, or the coffee shop, or the library.