It's the most romantic time of the year.  Yay!  The period between Christmas and Valentine's Day is peak dating season, but that can turn annoying in a hurry thanks to these goofy new trends.  

Ghosting seems to be no big thing anymore, and in fact, spending any time at all on the dating apps seems to bring with it the expectation that ghosting is just part of the process.  Things seem to be going really well, and all of a sudden, poof, he's gone, most likely because he's talking to eight other women and doesn't have room in his brain for a ninth any longer.  And it's okay because we have other hot possibilities too.  Ghosting is a win-win in a weird way.

Plenty of Fish surveyed its members recently and the results show some interesting new dating trends.  Maybe you've already discovered some of them for yourself.  Me too.

Some of these are way more annoying than a little elementary-style ghosting and could make us head straight for wine and apps and a stress-free girls' night out and give up on the whole thing.  They're college-level dating trends that'll annoy the heck out of us this year.

Dating Trends to Watch Out for in 2020

Cause-Playing
Someone you've dated and dumped comes back to ask for something like a donation to a charity, a signature on a petition or asks you to volunteer on a political campaign.

Dial-Toning
It's kind of like ghosting, but this dating trend is when a prospect gives you their phone number but doesn't respond when you contact them.

Eclipsing
They copycat their partner's hobbies, pretending to be into cosplay, ceramics, soccer, just to get further down the road in the relationship.

Exoskeletoning
How do you get away from this?  Your partner's ex reaches out to you continuously, either to befriend you or to cyberstalk you.  Creepy, and perhaps a red flag.

Fleabagging
Scared to be alone? Fleabagging is the phenomenon where you date the wrong person even though you know better. It's prolly not gonna work out well.

Glamboozled
Getting canceled on after you've spent the past hour primping and finding the perfect outfit.  Most of us will phone a friend and go out anyway.

Kanye'd
This is when you can't get a word in edgewise because they're rolling on about themselves so much.  Again, it's probably a red flag.  Unless you're Kim Kardashian.

White-Clawing
He's a hottie so the physical attraction is there, but there isn't a whole lot of substance beyond the surface.  Eye candy only works on social media.

Despite the mess, the dating apps are still fun and I'm holding out hope that they can bring a love connection.  If you have a favorite one, let me know!  I've used Tinder, Bumble, Plenty of Fish, and Facebook Dating off and on, and I started to fill out an eHarmony profile once but it was too long and involved so I gave up.  Let me know what's working for you, and may you never be glamboozled.  Good luck.