The Most Epic, Grumpiest About Me – ever?
Why post this here ?
For real, it's out there in the SLOWLY users list. Honest.
Publishing it, mostly because it's so extreme (in length and demands from potential penpal candidates) that it serves as a good Ice Breaker - give a chuckle, and then let's talk about why we need a good About Me, and how to craft one. (That part comes later in this post)
I tried to connect with this user
I found it interesting, memorable, even if bit (quite) grumpy. Sent a nice first letter, honest. And I included, in the first paragraph, the requested statement that 'yes, I have read and understood your profile'.
Hello (username), Good afternoon from (my location). As per your profile...
“First: No mails will be answered that doesn't state in the first paragraph that the writer has read and understood my profile.”
So, yes, I have read and found it entertaining. 😊 I have also understood it, as requested.
No reply so far, an year and a half later. Looking at their ratio then:
Sent : Received Ratio ( ≈ 9 : 20 )
Wow, and that's with the Grumpiness and all. Responding to HALF the incoming letters, she is not a great one to try to contact, imo. But you can judge. 🙄🤨
Most demanding I have seen so far
A full copy follows, lightly edited for privacy.
First: No mails will be answered that doesn't state in the first paragraph that the writer has read and understood my profile.
* Editing my bio for the umpteenth time.*
Please read my bio before you mail me.
First: I am not here looking for romantic relations. If I sound grouchy it may be because of all the emails I got looking for that,even if I always stated in this bio that that is not what I am here for several times...
For those of you looking for it, I wish you the best of luck but first of all, read peoples bio before you write them, and second, good luck in your search.
Here's some other things I do not want.
Things I do not want:
To share my full name with you so you can add me on FB after 1 mail.
Or share my twitter handle or my real mail address.
Or marry you and live happily ever after.
Or have a relation except on friendly terms.
Or adopt your pet anaconda or discuss why I don't like Rush.
Or write to trump supporters.
Or be your tour guide when you come to my country. The only exception is if you're wonderfully weird and can laugh in the strangest situations.
What I do want:
Friendly conversations about life, the universe and everything. People with a good sense of humour, to share a laugh with. People who doesn't bother to fit in.
If you think that is you, send a mail, start with telling me about yourself, favourite dog or cat, music, how your street smells and which store is your favourite store to not walk in to.
Or what you collect or why you love the subway.
In short, give me something to work with.
I read. Books, recipes and so on.
I love music. And drums. No. Don't mention Rush. Let's talk about Mick Tucker instead.
I drink. JD and beer. I smoke. I'm a vegetarian. I curse. A lot. In three languages.
I have cats. Two.
I don't like the colour green.
I think John Belushi and George Carlin were great.
Now, it's your turn.
-——[ copy ends ]—————
Why we need a good “About Me” then ?
This post is all intended to people who want to find good matches – people with similar interests, and which we will keep in contact for a while, hopefully.
I just did a search through the Slowly Help Center site (which is quite good), but didn't find a whole article devoted to this, which I consider important to anyone wanting good matches – people who they might be compatible and start lasting conversations.
The best mention is in the How to Use Explorer Manually ( Finding people via Users List) article.
Even there, it's just a short mention saying there's a little Bubble besides people's Avatar, when they do have an About Me description.
Some users have a chat bubble next to their avatar icon, which means they have written About Me introduction in their profile. Tap a user card to read detailed profile of the user.
The main reason to get one — show people who you are, in your own words, what you are looking for, what you explictly DON'T want (like the warnings about no hanky panky we see on some profiles).
If you come thru clearly, the chance of the right kind of person finding and writing to you increases.
How to create a good “About Me” then ?
Glad you asked! :)
I would suggest looking at the users list, and reading some, find some witty, artsy, interesting ones to get some ideas.
- How yours will be is different from most other people.
- To make it polished is a Goal — and it does evolve over time.
- We can even mix in some emoji, but make it light - they complement words, not replace them.
- The objective is Clarity, and emojis are not that precise. People might understand some, but not others.
- Use correct spelling, paragraph breaks (Blank lines inserted), to make it light and fluid.
- Cause a good impression. Invite people to write to you.
- Mention your preferences - for certain age, or location, or specific interest.
- Like Long Letters? Say it. Prefer Short ones? Say it.
- Let people decide if you at a worthy person to write to. :)
And we can get more into this list, any suggestions? Post in a comment, it can be added here later. Thank you!
Yann2
And we also have a Special About Me Guide
Located here, in the Blog – “Tips For Creating The Perfect “About Me”, a Guest Author post by our friend -little-ghost, who contributed a lot at our SLOWLY themed sub-Reddit.
Famous Last Words
Special thank you to all the folks behind the SLOWLY app.
Letters we share, with pen pals all over the world. A modern day take in the traditional penpal experience. Come and join us, using SLOWLY.
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yann2@bsky.social