AUSTIN FOLKERTSMA
campus editor
austin.folkertsma@my.tccd.edu

MEGHAN SCHILLING
campus editor
meghan.schilling@my.tccd.edu

Valentine’s Day is around the corner, but because of the pandemic, there has been an added difficulty to the dating game. 

“Dating during COVID is like being in a long-distance relationship with someone who isn’t far at all,” NW student Eduardo Magaña said. “It has its negatives and positives because while you’re at home quarantining, you get bored.”

It’s nice to be able to have someone to talk to, especially a partner, but it can also be negative because the more they talk, the more they’re going to want to hang out,  he said. 

For NE student Emily Spencer, COVID hasn’t slowed her down too much.

“It’s been great for me,” she said. “I got married.” 

Her experience dating her now-husband Graham wasn’t easy because of having to maintain a long-distance relationship. When COVID started in May, Emily and Graham had been dating for a year and a half and were considering getting married during that time.

“I found that it was stressful not being able to see him while we were deciding such a big decision,” Spencer said. “We dated in different towns, so we were used to seeing each other once a week.” 

She thought they would be great at dating long distance, but it was harder than they thought because they wanted to see each other all the time, but at the same time, they were fearful about getting sick. 

A similar fear of falling ill is shared by NW student Brandon Knight.

“Dating nowadays is very hard,” he said. “It’s like spinning the wheel of fate because you’re not sure if it’s safe for you or the other person.”

Knight has already had COVID before, so he couldn’t imagine irresponsibly passing it to someone.

“I have tried online dating, but it’s not the same,” NE student Robert Tarin said. “I would love to be able to connect with someone in person.”

But, because of the circumstances, it helped Tarin determine that the girl he was talking to was not compatible with him. 

NE student Kelly Zaccaria met her boyfriend at the beginning of the pandemic. 

“Unfortunately, he did end up getting it and I was near him,” she said. “I had to wait till I tested negative to even continue normal activities such as work.”

She said dating during this time had its difficulties because, even though they are both vaccinated, it was still a risk to be close to each other.