Is there a MeFi of relationships?

April 25, 2006 7:19 AM

Where can I find and participate in high-level, Metafilter-style discussion of relationships?

I love to talk about an analyze relationships. Everything from friendships to marriages to dating. I like to read other peoples' thoughts on their own relationships, and I like to post questions that occur to me. Yes, Anonymous AskMe is one of my favorite things in the world.

So I'd like to find a discussion group that would be something like pure Dear AskMe. The big problem is that most discussion groups out there are kind of crappy. I'm spoiled by MetaFilter and MetaChat. Is there anything out there similar to what I'm looking for?

posted by agropyron to Human Relations (10 answers total)

I think you just invented a new website.
posted by Saucy Intruder at 8:10 AM on April 25, 2006

The Sauncy Intruder may just have given you the best idea you'll ever hear. Now run with it.... :)

Maybe you could start with a simple Yahoo group. Post the details, I'm sure I would be interested in joining. (Unless this is some bastardised variation of self-linking...)
posted by Jofus at 8:25 AM on April 25, 2006

Count me in!

My personal interests are sociobiology, especially as genetics influence mating and mate choice behaviors.

I'd love to find a group that wasn't part of a personals web site and that didn't have a constant subtext of finding a sex partner.
posted by FauxScot at 8:26 AM on April 25, 2006

Response by poster: Yep, I had thought of starting a Google group on this. I wanted to see if it existed first. :)
posted by agropyron at 8:26 AM on April 25, 2006

It is a good idea, but I'd put a strike against something like Yahoo/Google Groups -- I just think it would work much better as a real website. What you could have is something simple (like AskMe), with three functions:

post a question
list questions
comment on questions

The simpler you can keep this to view and use, the better it will be, I reckon. Shoot me an email if you need any help throwing something together.
posted by reklaw at 9:33 AM on April 25, 2006

Best answer: Salon's Table Talk has pretty good relationship threads (both in Private Life and Families Who Think).

Threeway Action's Lovers and Friends bulletin board tends to be pretty thoughtful.

The nice thing about bulletin boards is you can actually follow people's relationships, rather than just doing one-off Q&As.
posted by occhiblu at 10:04 AM on April 25, 2006

Seconding 3WA (Threeway Action). They also have private forums for members that cover a lot of these issues.
posted by Maisie Jay at 11:19 AM on April 25, 2006

Response by poster: This is kind of funny, because Sara Astruc was telling me about her web site at a meetup a few years ago. I browsed around a little, but didn't get into it.
posted by agropyron at 12:25 PM on April 25, 2006

That can be your first relationship question: "How do I listen better when friends make suggestions?" :-)
posted by occhiblu at 12:32 PM on April 25, 2006 [1 favorite]

I know that there was a company called "ning" (www.ning.com) that let you make your own social applications. It is out of beta and ready to be used.
posted by lukeomalley at 2:04 PM on April 25, 2006