Photo: Joanne Wan

A 38-year-old woman sued one of China's largest online matchmaking sites after the "high roller" she met online turned out to be a married man from the countryside, Shanghai Daily reported on March 21.

The current Chinese law does not require dating services to verify the identity and marital status of their registered members.

Such is the wayward world of online dating!

Another lovely-looking girl I got interested in and got response from was blacklisted by the administrator on the suspicion of fraud, just like Ms H I met last time. Why always me?

It’s been a while since I embarked on this bumpy road where people would have to navigate pitfalls and traps in search of a soulmate. I felt I was becoming a little cynical in the process of reviewing profiles and sending messages. I hope I can wrap up the adventure soon. The following are some of the insights and oddities I have come across so far.

◆Many women claim to be “simple” and seek for a “simple life” with a right man. But access to a throng of “excellent” men profiled on the website makes them indecisive in settling on the right one. A wait-and-see attitude and fickle-minded approach make heavy weather of their original intention.

◆What is the point of using a default image if you want to attract someone? A number of women complete an exhaustive profile but leave a blank avatar. Be yourself and have fun.

◆Women wearing sunglasses in the profile are hiding something.

◆The most desirable height of a man is ≥173cm (5’8”). Some 80 percent of female members who vary from 150cm to 167cm invariably set the brutal threshold. A girl even said in her soliloquy that she refuses messages from men who are under 173cm because it will have negative impact on the offspring.

◆Stop messing about, girl

◆Unless you pay, you can’t see any profiles and hardly do anything on eHarmony, which claims to be the most trusted dating site. It includes a bulky questionnaire on  personality.

◆Here are some of the nicknames women use online: Streaky pork, Cow plop, A jumbled girl, Be foolhardy for you, A fish drinking boiled water, Poppy, Unripe pumpkin, A good name, Little meatball, Pond. The weirdest name I’ve ever seen is this-- Environmental protection is benevolent to the Earth.

◆The reason why my messages to my fancied ones went unanswered is that my profile photos look too childish, according to a female friend of mine.