I was on a cruise last week. We set sail from NYC to Bermuda for 7-Days on the glorious blue seas with all of the anticipation of two traveling singles, looking forward to a captive prospect pool of 4,000 people! Our own little city to navigate and charm. Exciting, glamorous…we even upgraded to a suite with a balcony…all the possibilities in the world!

We weren’t planning on any additional upgrades but two were no brainers: Ultimate Beverage option (unlimited drinks for $54 per day) – CHECK! We will save money on this plan! And the Wifi Package – CHECK! We must stay connected. And we can’t wait to see how all the Social Media and Internet Dating sites work on a cruise! How else are we going to bubble sort through the 4,000 on this ship and decide whom to meet?

All’s well and our spirits are high as we embark. Once on the ship and settled into a place at the first bar we spot, we stop to look around for the first time. All at once, panic sets in as we begin to absorb our surroundings: all the families, strollers, grandparents, couples….wait! WE MAY BE THE ONLY TWO SINGLE PEOPLE ON THIS BOAT.   Where are the rest of us? They must be on another special section of the boat waiting for us! I know, I know…let’s login to our dating apps and see who’s on the boat!

After dozens of attempts and dangerously high data usage we realize there will be absolutely no connecting by proximity to other singles on this ship – these apps simply do not work off stateside. OK – light bulb! We’ll get rich by developing an app for Cruise Singles Dating that works onboard. But alas, this is not going to help us for the next 7 days!

I’m happy to say after three days and 770 miles of cruising, our latitudes and attitudes changed dramatically. We can’t stop smiling. We are happy (cue “Happy” song that we danced to a good 10 times on the ship). You see, after finally accepting that being “connected “ through technology was something we left at the docks in NYC, we gave in and joined in with abandon and just quit fighting the system. We embraced it and started connecting with people in a way we hadn’t focused on in a long time……ORGANICALLY.

That’s right! We were actually meeting people on the ship organically instead of electronically. Without the ability to geographically “search” the Internet for potential singles we found ourselves actually connecting person to person in real time with conversations and EYE CONTACT!! One of the biggest limitations on a cruise turned out to be our saving grace and saved our sanity. Social Media was no longer needed to connect artificially first and “pre-screen” our in person meetings.

We are now spokespersons for meeting people on cruises and on cruise life in general!

Let us regale you with sailor’s yore and tales of the high seas replete with practical cruise advice! TIP: Double your 200 sq. ft. room’s counter space by ordering an iron and ironing board on day one (as a fire hazard, there won’t be one in your room). We left ours up the entire trip although we only used the iron once.

After a day on Bermuda on mopeds and hanging out on golf courses, bars and swanky restaurants we look at each other, “Let’s go HOME!” Home?? Did we just say that? Suddenly getting back on the boat was solace and comfort. We’d been re-engineered to WANT to be on the ship!

I actually got a text from someone I met on the cruise today. “Hi Bonnie, it was nice to meet you on the ship last week. Keep in touch.” How nice. An electronic communication from someone I have already met, connected with and got to know a little bit about. Too bad I can’t remember who he is??

Note to self: Do not take business cards to Bliss Nightclub after 4 Long Island Iced Teas.

Written by: Bonnie Browning
A little about Bonnie Browning: Bonnie is co-founder of AVID Productions, Inc. with founder and partner Glenn Morel. AVID Productions is based in Washington DC. Bonnie is based in Austin, TX but travels frequently for events around the world and to DC for AVID Productions corporate activities. Bonnie is 48, single and the proudest mom of two grown daughters, Caroline and Charlotte.

Publishers Note: The OTC thought it only prudent to give Lori and XXL a little time off since who wants to meet a column deadline while you are on your honeymoon!! We think Bonnie did a stellar job filling in!!