On re-entering dating after eighteen years. What I've learned. What still terrifies me. I went on my first date in eighteen years. I want to let that land for a second. Eighteen years. The last time I went on a first date, smartphones did not exist the way they exist now. Dating apps were not the primary mechanism. There was no algorithm deciding who you might want to spend time with based on a set of preferences you selected on a Tuesday afternoon while eating lunch. I came