Love In The Time Of .....what??

Every once in a while, a snippet on AOL catches my attention enough to make me click on something. This time, the attention grabber was "what made dating difficult for this girl". She was young, cute and what in the world would make dating difficult for her? I was expecting something horrible, like she is a hermaphrodite, or experiences selective mutism, but only on dates. None of those. She is gluten intolerant. And there is a whole dating site for those who live gluten free and who want to date others who are gluten free. I'm not making this up. The title of the web article was, "Love In The Time of Gluten Sensitivity". I've seen it all.

I thought dating was all about learning about someone, learning to compromise, seeing if you are compatible. What's next? A dating website for  people who are Steelers fans? (And if there is one, please let me know because that would totally ROCK!) I am starting to imagine things like: www.datemeifyouhatemushrooms.com, Obsessive Compulsive and Dating, or a matchmaking service for hypochondriacs between the ages of 29 and 34 who like big dogs, spicy food and video games. So that last one might be wishful thinking for a friend. Isn't part of the fun finding out about their likes and dislikes and then telling all your co-workers at lunch the next day? Bad date stories about the guy who doesn't eat lettuce or the one where the goodnight kiss was akin to getting my chin licked by a dog are the things to which marrieds look forward. How else will they appreciate their spouse?

Have I been so removed from dating that I missed the questionnaire period prior to dates? This seems so ultra-specific and doesn't leave room for things that might arise in the future. What if your perfect gluten sensitive date develops another allergy to seafood? If seafood is your favorite food, do you dump them?

My panic is based on the application of this to my life. I'm hoping our society isn't that superficial. I hope no one is ruling me out because I do eat gluten or I told them I like canning salsa and jam. If they are against multigrains or mason jars, I'm sunk. Rule me out based on something real. Decide not to date me because my jokes aren't funny (but really, they are- I am hilarious). Cast me aside because I use proper grammar, not because I don't eat red meat and you are a butcher. Although, this does remind me of a recurrent theme. I tend not to relate well to men who don't drink coffee. Hmmmm. Tea drinkers beware.