The Texting Game

We’ve all been there.  It’s a Wednesday night at dinner in the d-hall and the conversation begins with, “So . . . he still hasn’t texted me.”  Whether the dilemma is your boyfriend taking too long to write back to a message you sent or a lagging late night hook up, text etiquette has become one of the determining factors of whether a guy likes you or not.  While some girls think this is a completely legitimate way to measure his undying affection or douchey disinterest, others believe that by judging a guy based on his ability (or inability) to send you a quick hello after your quick three hour makeout is simply judging him too harshly and too soon.
Here are some common situations where the waters of virtual communication become a little . . . complex, to say the least. Our staffers at HC have been there too — and here’s how we would warn you to approach the texting game.

Situation 1:
You exchanged numbers at a party and the next day, you’re not sure who texts first.  Is it okay to send a quick message saying “nice to meet you!  Let’s grab lunch sometime?”  The solution varies on a situation-to-situation basis and mostly depends what you personally feel comfortable with.  Some girls are more stubborn than others aka, “If he really wants to talk to me, he will make it happen” (shameless He’s Just not that Into You reference).  Others are afraid of letting the chance slide.  In the end, it depends on what you think will get you that lunch date but be wary of sounding too clingy too fast.

Situation 2:
You met randomly through a mutual friend and have hung out a few times since then. He texts you at 12:30am on a Friday night with a simple: “Hey, what’s up?” You’re excited to hear from him, but at the same time probably have that pit in your stomach about what he may really want to be up.
Translation:  This. Is. A. Booty. Call. Okay, so there’s a chance that’s not his intention, but we wouldn’t bet on it. And if he uses the words “watch a movie or something” . . . well, don’t say we never warned you. If you’re into that, want that, or don’t particularly care, then by all means, go for it.  But proceed with caution, because you may not be the only one that week and you may not get a text the next day.

Situation 3:
So you went over and hooked up and he doesn’t text you for days after. While it’s possible that he may just be playing it cool, if you text him and get a nonchalant, one-word answer and he drops the conversation, drop it like it’s hot and realize that he’s not worth your time anyway.  If he can’t give you the time of day during the week, then you certainly cannot give him the time of day when he wants it . . . at 1am on a Saturday night.

Situation 4:
You really like this guy that you met recently and have been talking to him almost every day.  The only problem is, you play this weird game where your pride dictates who texts first and you never know when it’s “alright” to text.  
This is a tougher one, and it changes on a situation-to-situation basis.  Of course, you never want to be that person who is really clingy about texting all the time and forces him to reconsider a relationship with you, but this game can get exhausting really fast. Our best advice is to simply text when YOU want. After all, it doesn’t do either of you any good to sit and stare at your phones and wonder whose turn it is to start up the conversation again.

So is texting important?  Some say yes, some say no.  In today’s society it’s a simple way to show someone you care and that you’re thinking of them.  Interpreting texts these days is about as simple as trying to unravel Morse code but when it’s really meant to work out, texting won’t give you such a headache.

Now…WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!  What are your thoughts on the texting game??