Ever think about how your perfect match could be that attractive guy whose armpit you’ve been thrust up against on an overcrowded subway car, but you’ll never know?

No? Me neither.

But people who watch too many Meg Ryan movies seem to be particular fans of this serendipitous ‘star crossed lovers’ view of romance. In those films, you watch the hero and heroine just miss each other twenty-five times while you (the viewer) pull your hair out in frustration until the couple finally crosses paths in the most romantic way possible moments before the credits roll.

Thanks to changing technology, we’ll never have to suffer through crappy plots like this again. A radical new service called BluePont now gets your phone to alert you whenever the right person is close so you can meet right then and there (if you wish). For people involved in the Russian roulette that is online dating, this service can also save you GINORMOUS amounts of time.

Imagine that instead of having to schedule and attend dates, your phone just buzzed when someone you might be interested in is close by – within feet or city blocks. Even if you’re rushing to enter the subway or about to go to the gym, chances are you could spare 5 seconds to shake the person’s hand if you liked the look of their photo and profile (all visible via your phone). Then you shake, exchange numbers for real or continue about your busy day. There’s no hard feelings and no time wasted over glasses of Merlot.

For better or worse, humans form impressions about each other immediately – usually in 30 seconds or less. And this isn’t just based on looks or those pheromones I keep writing on and on about – it’s also that indescribable vibe you get from someone that triggers your brain to think ‘yeay’ or ‘nay.’ Maybe I’ve been doing too much yoga, but I truly think people have auras, or at least send our certain kinds of energy. Our senses allow us to quickly discern if this is someone we will like or not.

Think about it: It takes you less than 5 seconds to asses that the sneering dreadhead in the corner with psycho-eyes is bad news and the cute guy who just started chatting you up gives you butterflies. The way I see it, a service like BluePont could save you hundreds of hours (not to mention dollars) a year on blind dates. And no more dead-end Match.com emailing with someone whose voice the minute you meet up in person makes your skin crawl. As someone who’s been a victim of the blind date, let me tell you, 90% of the time I know within a minute if I’m feeling it or not, yet we still have to waste time getting drinks or dinner together for potentially an hour or more.

Oh, and just to clarify, I’m categorizing dates in which you’ve seen photos of one another also as blind dates. This is the era of Photoshop and digital imaging. Anyone can look Brad Pitt in a Match.com profile. In contrast, some people are drop-dead gorgeous in real life, just photograph terribly. It’s ‘blind’ for all intensive purposes until you meet face-to-face.
So now you can meet someone just for the necessary 10 impression forming seconds while going about your day-to-day activities (NO scheduling anything). You’d then save the Merlot for people you already knew you had butterflies for. Cool, no?

Of course it’s not just about romance. BluePont can help you find friends with common interests or a tennis partner too, but that’s not nearly as fun.