Manuela López-Restrepo

And a lot of times, it's not really even about the reaction that you get from the person you're speaking to, but more about reminding yourself, I am willing to make an effort to find happiness, and I am willing to make that effort for myself.

Well, I haven't had huge success.

Otherwise, I wouldn't be here talking to you.

I mean, it's mostly just been going to parties, even if I don't feel like it.

What's that one quote?

The cost of community is inconvenience.

So just forcing myself to go to events where I might meet people, you know, within my community.

And, you know, I've tried some other things out.

I put a personal ad in a zine that I like to read.

And, you know, sometimes I've gone up to strangers.

But that one that one is rare.

No, but I've seen that they've been getting a lot more traction lately, especially in New York City.

And in the spirit of choosing to do a hard thing over convenient tech, I put a call out on Instagram to ask if anyone had any singles nights or speed dating that they knew about.

It was really looking quite dry out here post-Valentine's Day, but one friend sent me a flyer for a singles night at a food co-op in Bed-Stuy.

Hi, we are here in the storage room of the Green Hill Food Co-op.

Pretty good vibes.

It's like a very cute little store.

Everybody seems very nice and friendly.

Definitely saw some cuties in there.

I went with your producer and my good friend Liam.