Name: Shaan Seth (above) Age: 24 Event: Singles party at Heat Ultralounge at Royal Plaza on Scotts, organised by Romancing Singapore Format: Eighty singles get to mingle at a party through games. Finger food and two free drinks provided.
I was not thrilled at the thought of going to a singles party. It's also referred to as social networking but a singles party is a singles party is a singles party. It felt awkward already.
However, my editor and colleagues urged me to go, saying: "So fun. You never know whom you might meet."
When I arrived, I found myself amid men ranging from the mid-20s to well into their 50s and women mostly in their 20s and 30s.
The women had on pretty tops and dresses, while the men sported spiffy shirts. Okay, no Manhunt-worthy contestants in sight, but the smartly-dressed crowd had made a good first impression.
I sat at a table, introduced myself and was promptly asked for my phone number. Score! Except the guest asking was a middle-aged woman with permed hair and oversized glasses.
"Maybe she has a cute nephew that she'd like to introduce to you," said a friend later.
A guy next to me who looked to be in his 30s admitted to being an old hand at this sort of event. The singleton - who worked for a bank, I later learnt - promptly asked if I'd like some wine. Yes, I said. Alcohol would surely help put me at ease.
The first game saw us mingling with a mission. Armed with sheets filled with neat rows of character traits, each guest had to get other guests to mark the characteristic that best suited them. The first guest to come up with a straight line of traits got a prize.
We were then split into groups of eight (which was less overwhelming) to start on the second game.
While the conversation was slow and strained at first, we were forced to communicate as we attempted to build a pyramid out of playing cards. The men became more vocal as pyramid after pyramid toppled. Interestingly, it was a woman who was doing the work of building the pyramid, while the men simply offered suggestions.
After the games, we were left to chat. The men were rotated by the organiser among groups so both genders got to meet as many people as possible. I was feeling decidedly more talkative. Never mind that I was chatting to women about shopping and pedicures. Then, as we took turns introducing ourselves, I found myself at a loss for words. How do I sum myself up in three sentences? I decided to keep it simple: "Hi, my name's Shaan, I work for the newspapers and I go out with my friends for fun."
Great, now I'm a simpleton with no hobbies.
My fellow singles had wide and varied interests from classical dancing to martial arts (which drew ooohs and aaahs) to a quest to figure out where they fit in in the universe.
A middle-aged man who claimed his name was Tango Charlie emerged as a clear winner with his brazen cheek.
After convincing a waitress (rather smoothly) that he had not had any glasses of wine in order to receive an unprecedented third glass, he summed up his entire presence with the words: "My name's Tango Charlie and I'm not worth getting to know. Cheers."
Brilliant.
I excused myself after two hours. Two hours with 80 singles at a bar got me two phone numbers (from two girls), a few good laughs, some awkward moments and the knowledge that Tango Charlie might just be on the right track as a single.
Perhaps all singles should simply be confident enough to do their own thing (sit in a corner and drink), be themselves (hi, I'm not worth getting to know) and go for what they want (I swear I haven't had any wine, please bring me a glass).
This article was first published in Urban, The Straits Times on Feb 14, 2008.
