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Dating App Experiment
Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Minneapolis, Phoenix, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Seattle, Vancouver

The Dating App Experiment

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The Dating App Experiment

As a single staff member of one of the Events & Adventures clubhouses, I decided to do a bit of an experiment with myself. Like a lot of people, I’m a dating app user; as a person dating in the 21st century it often feels like there aren’t many other options. As a simultaneous member of Events & Adventures, I started to compare and contrast my experiences with my online relationships and the ones I was seeing develop at Events & Adventures.

I’ve been on the classic apps like Tinder and Bumble and have tried some of the more obscure apps like Hinge and Coffee Meets Bagel. They each have different layouts and specialties that make them seem like lights at the end of a tunnel filled with fellow singles. In the end, each app seems to turn out to have a similar end: possible dates and little connection.

 

The Findings

Dating apps turned the very real and emotional experience of dating into a very numb and robotic game. I’ve found myself mindlessly swiping through people without even looking at them. The sensation of matching with someone seems to create more of an endorphin boost than an actual opportunity for a true connection.

I’ll never forget when I matched with a guy and mentioned meeting up for dinner with him pretty quickly, trying to bypass the small talk and make something out of a match that seemed promising. He agreed, we set a time and location. The next morning, he was gone. He deleted our match and seeing as that was the only form of contact I had with him, there was no way of getting in touch to see what happened.

The experience stung, but a part of me accepted it because we hadn’t even met. How could I hold this guy accountable when he was only a picture on a screen?

I’ve gone on my fair share of actual dates through these apps too. I’ve even been in short-term relationships with some of the men I’ve meet. The large majority of the time the connection I thought I had with these guys online didn’t come through in person. If we did actually have something in common, there seemed to be a pressure to put a definition on whatever we had right away, which ended up scaring one of us away. When you make dating the primary focus of any activity, there’s an expectation of trust and vulnerability almost instantly. How can you put that kind of pressure on someone you barely know?

Having heard friends express similar frustrations, I know I’m not alone in my dating app woes. I even hear us wondering aloud if there is something wrong with us because of our lack of success.

 

The Solution

Having experienced Events & Adventures for the last six months, I honestly believe it’s not us but the online dating system that’s to blame. Unlike the forced nature of online dating, Events & Adventures creates an organic environment for members to have fun being themselves.

Are you filled with random facts or a board game connoisseur? You can guarantee there’s a trivia or game night coming up with Events & Adventures. More of a sports fan? Every club has at least one viewing party or pickup game on the books. Are you a whitewater rafting, bungee jumping, or adrenaline junkie—or do you want to be? Events & Adventures has you covered there, too.

And the best part? Other people are doing all of these things with you. You’ll be able to build connections with people that have similar interests and have the opportunity to see these same people on a weekly, or even daily basis, without having to plan the get togethers yourself.

All of the romantic relationships I’ve seen develop between Events & Adventures members have come out of the weeks and months they have spent together at Events & Adventures events. When people have the chance to develop friendships, those friendships turn into trust, and that trust can very easily blossom into something more substantial like commitment and love.

Our members have the chance to cultivate relationships with each other without having to worry about defining their experiences, romantic or otherwise, because that’s not what Events & Adventures is about. Our goal is to help people live a life they love, and that definition is different for everyone.

As a self-proclaimed wallflower, I’ve really had the chance to soak up all of the wonderful benefits Events & Adventures provides its members. In a world so fueled by instant gratification, Events & Adventures slows things down and gives its members the change to enjoy their lives with friends, new and old. So why keep staring at a dating app filled with what-ifs and maybes and come have some promised fun with Events and Adventures? You never know where it might lead until you give it a try!

Super Bowl Party with Events & Adventures Houston
events, Houston

Super Bowl Party with Events & Adventures Houston

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This Year’s Super Bowl Party Was One to Remember for Events & Adventures Houston Members

Whether it’s for the game itself or the commercials, the Super Bowl is one of the most anticipated events of the year. It’s a time for friends and family to come together and celebrate with food, drinks and good old competition. Events & Adventures Houston members got to experience a Super Bowl Party like never before, partying at a house in the Heights with other fun-loving Events & Adventures members.

To go along with the big game, the event had several awesome activities in store for the members, including a party garage, corn hole, giant Jenga, beer pong, free cocktails and, of course, a super feast. Saint Arnold Brewing Company provided guests with complimentary beer, keeping their thirsts quenched for the entire night. Additionally, Railean Distillery provided spirits for the evening. Guests could cheer on their team either inside or outside, with two screening options to view the game.

What’s a Super Bowl Party without prizes?

Members got involved by participating in a football squares game, giving them the chance to win $25 gift cards each quarter. To raise the stakes, there was also a 4th quarter jackpot opportunity where one lucky member could take home a cash prize. Congratulations to Steven for being the lucky winner! Towards the end of the night, members got to wind down by roasting s’mores over an open fire pit.

Overall, this well-planned Super Bowl Party gave members the golden opportunity to make friends while enjoying the sports event of the year. The Events & Adventures Houston members got to join in on the preparation for the event by helping to cook food, set up decorations and prepare an amazing night for everyone. Although this wasn’t required of them, what better way to make friends than by coming together to create such a fun festivity?

This was the perfect event for brand new members

This get-together was coming off the heels of the monthly New Member’s Game Night, which took place the day before. During the game night, new members had the chance to get to know each other while playing games and eating a delicious spread of food, including briskets, pork shoulders, chicken, ribs and fajitas. They even got to show off their skills with a chili cook-off!

The New Member’s Game Night flowed smoothly into the Super Bowl Party the next day, as members had the chance to meet each other and get excited for the next great event. The Super Bowl Party was a great kick-off to an upwards of 30 events per month that Events and Adventures members get to enjoy.

Events & Adventures New Year's Eve Party
Dallas, Houston, Minneapolis, Phoenix, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Seattle, Uncategorized, Vancouver

New Year’s Eve Party How-to Guide

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The Experts at Events & Adventures Share How to Throw a New Year’s Eve Party

  • Location. Where you choose to throw your party is almost as important as what you do at your New Year’s Eve party!  Are you going for a destination event, like hosting it at the beautiful and historic Hotel Galvez?  If your guests are going to travel you want to make sure you make it an all-day or two-day affair.  Planning meals and cocktail hours in the area makes for a complete experience your friends will enjoy.  If you want to stay in the city, look and feel is important.  A good planner can transform any space, but why spend the extra time if you don’t have to?  Book early if you can, but if you have to book late then make sure to negotiate.  Banquet/event coordinators will be willing to negotiate because an additional, unexpected end-of-the-year sale will bump their paycheck and year-to-date totals. So we recommend going private if you can.  Separating yourself from the party people who have a carefree spirit on New Year’s is a way for your guests to relax and get into the event.  If you book a room in a restaurant or bar hire security to keep out unwelcome guests and under-age explorers.
  • Theme?  Putting pressure on your guests to dress up or do work for your event must be taken seriously.  Am I really going to have more fun if I make a mask for a masquerade ball or a western theme?  If the answer is yes, make sure your guests know exactly what to expect.  To put it bluntly—don’t half-ass it.  Expect to put in some money to make it come to life in the space you are using.  Simple color scheme themes make it easy for people to participate without having to put in a lot of effort.
  • Food?  Start later and go lighter.  If you start around 9pm, most of your guests will have eaten dinner beforehand allowing you to have more fun with your food budget.  Finger foods only with light or no sauce—you don’t want there to literally be stain on your evening! Food is important if you plan on a night of drinking so think about serving lite bites that will soak up at least a couple Manhattans.
  • Drinks.  We’re talking booze for a New Year’s Eve party, so this is where you want to focus your budget.  Don’t cheap out.  Open bar at most venues will run you about $15-25 per hour per person depending on your options.  The perfect time to host a bar is from 9:30 pm to 12:30 am.  If you are running the bar yourself, try to focus on one or two signature cocktails, two wine choices, and a mix of quality beer and domestics.  If you are hosting the party you shouldn’t feel obligated to stock an entire bar.  Choose one or two of your favorites and stock up.  A fun bourbon drink and vodka will cover most of your bases. You can still serve bourbon on the rocks and shake up a martini for those guests who just have to have it their way.
  • Entertainment.  Friends and tasty cocktails should be all you need for a fun-filled evening.  If you must add on, keep it simple.  A photo booth and casino are easy.  You don’t want your guests to separate themselves from the party vibe or have to sit and think about anything else other than socializing.  If you must spend more money, consider upgrading your drinks or investing in drivers to take guests home at the end of the evening.
  • Champagne Toast.  This is a must have, but even though it’s a New Year’s Eve party, don’t overspend on champagne.  Get the cheap stuff and rip the label off or keep it in the kitchen, then pour and serve to your guests.  You’ve already given them drinks and no one needs more than a sip of champagne after their liquor or they will regret it the next day.  If you are hosting a house party, only people trying to look cool will splurge on fancy champagne glasses they will only use once, so use the plastic.  When half of your guests drop their glass they won’t have to feel bad for breaking your stemware.

Hopefully, these tips that we’ve learned over the years at Events & Adventures will help you throw some awesome New Year’s parties of your own.  And if you’re ever in doubt, or want to skip the work, joining Events & Adventures is a great way to take part in legendary bashes and meet new people without having to buy all the booze and handle all the planning!

ALS Ice Bucket Challenge Events and Adventures Houston!

September 4, 2014
Ice Bucket Challenge singles houston

We’d like to thank The Seattle E&A club for nominating us for the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.  We had over 15 people answer the call and we raised over $250 for ALS research.  While we are all busy getting ready for the big Labor Day Weekend Adventure it was great to see all the support for charity this week.  Our group here in Houston donates hundreds of hours of community service and donates thousands to great causes here in Houston and worldwide.  We’re very proud of our club and we’d like to especially thank all those who have come out and supported us this year.  We’re looking forward to our first ever volunteer event at Project C.U.R.E in September. 

All of our clubs took part in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and we raised over $2000.00 for ALS! Check out our YouTube at  www.youtube.com/user/EventsAndAdventures to see all of our ice bucket videos.

You May Think You Know Someone…But Do You Really?

December 23, 2013
murder by chocolate

They might just be a murderer as we found out last Friday at Murder by Chocolate; Houston’s best murder mystery experience. It’s so fun to see people change into character and participate. It’s not just putting on a funny hat or a wig; watching your friends act and participate in the theatre production makes for a hilarious night. We always find out who’s hiding their real acting talent at these special events! If you missed this one don’t worry, this is a club favorite and we’ll be back!

Reid Event Manager Houston

Fighting Our Fear Of Heights….

December 9, 2013
High Ropes Challenge Course5

Rain, cold and bad weather was no match for our will to have fun!  Fighting our fear of heights, making new friends and getting the adrenaline pumping was our only goal last week as we took on the high ropes challenge at the Conroe YMCA.  We all got harnessed up and did our best not to fall off!  It was a little too muddy for the team wall so we’ll save that for next time! We may not be ready to join the circus but it sure was a heck of a time!

Reid Event Manager Houston

Being Thankful and Giving Back!

December 8, 2013
Sunday Funday

Thanksgiving is the time of year to give thanks but it doesn’t mean we can have fun!  We had a grand event at our clubhouse that saw over 30 singles stop by for good food, football and new friends.  Our turkey wrapped in bacon came out perfectly and we fryed up everything we could find in the deep fryer including Armadillo Eggs (stuffed jalapeño’s wrapped in sausage & ritz crumbs).  The football was good and we ended up with more food than we knew what to do with!  It was a fun day to celebrate after Sunday’s volleyball tournament/canned food drive that raised over 80lbs of food & $200 for the Houston Food Bank.

Reid Event Manager Houston

Wallyball…What is it?

November 29, 2013

 Most people don’t have a clue but we sure do.  It’s a wacky game of volleyball played indoors in a racquetball court.  Every month we reserve a court just for our members to go in and whack away!  Wallyball is really unique because unlike volleyball, where height and jumping ability is superior, knowing how to hit off the walls in wallyball is just as important!  It takes some getting used to but when you figure it out it is a lot of fun…not to mention a really fun way to burn some calories before our Thanksgiving feast!

Amazing Seats for Houston Rockets!

November 20, 2013

You couldn’t have written a better script for our first Houston Rockets basketball experience of 2013!  First off; our lower level seats were amazing.  There’s nothing like being right down by the action for a sweet discounted price!  The Rockets showed off their talent as Dwight Howard had a big first half and Jeremy Lin finished the game strong with a game high 31 points!  It wasn’t easy though as The Rockets needed double overtime to defeat the Raptors.  Meeting new people, having fun & cheering on our hometown team is a winning combination!

Reid Event Manager Houston

Halloween Parties are so nice we did it Twice!

November 2, 2013

One of our favorite events is themed Pub Crawls so we decided to dress up on Friday for a little fun before our big Halloween Party.  About 40 of us hit Washington Avenue in full costume and we made a splash.  We started with a free beer party at Blue Moose and end up doing the Monster Mash at Taps.  Saturday night though was the main event!  90 of the single best people of Houston gathered at the E&A clubhouse for dancing, crystal ball reading, photobooth, food, drinks, blackjack & prizes.  We had a dance off for Backstreet Boys tickets & the 8 foot tall Sasquatch won the big costume contest taking home 2 tickets to see Zedd & a ticket to our annual NYE bash! 

Reid Event Manager Houston