<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>Match Rate Mirage</title><link>https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/</link><description>What the dating app numbers and the AI chat logs really say about wanting someone.</description><language>en</language><item><title>Thirty Days on Two Dating Apps, Thirty Days Talking to an AI: The Honest Spreadsheet</title><link>https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/thirty-days-two-apps-thirty-days-ai-the-spreadsheet/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/thirty-days-two-apps-thirty-days-ai-the-spreadsheet/</guid><pubDate>Tue, 27 Oct 2026 03:51:52 GMT</pubDate><description>A sixty-day experiment with one spreadsheet, two very different ways of spending an evening, and a column for how I actually felt.</description></item><item><title>How Many Matches Does It Take to Get One Real Conversation? I Counted</title><link>https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/how-many-matches-for-one-real-conversation/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/how-many-matches-for-one-real-conversation/</guid><pubDate>Sat, 24 Oct 2026 03:51:52 GMT</pubDate><description>I defined &#39;real conversation&#39; before I started, then counted every match until one qualified.</description></item><item><title>The Reply Time Test: Why Waiting Three Hours for a Text Feels Different Than Instant Banter</title><link>https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/the-reply-time-test-three-hours-versus-instant/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/the-reply-time-test-three-hours-versus-instant/</guid><pubDate>Wed, 21 Oct 2026 03:51:52 GMT</pubDate><description>I timed every reply for two weeks and logged what the waiting did to my pulse and my patience.</description></item><item><title>Which Gets You Flirting Faster: A Witty Bio or a Character Who Already Likes Your Jokes?</title><link>https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/witty-bio-versus-character-who-likes-your-jokes/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/witty-bio-versus-character-who-likes-your-jokes/</guid><pubDate>Sun, 18 Oct 2026 03:51:52 GMT</pubDate><description>I rewrote my profile three times and compared it with opening lines on an AI character, measuring the time to first flirt.</description></item><item><title>The Hidden Cost of Dating Apps: Money, Mood and the Sunday Scroll Hangover</title><link>https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/the-hidden-cost-of-dating-apps/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/the-hidden-cost-of-dating-apps/</guid><pubDate>Thu, 15 Oct 2026 03:51:52 GMT</pubDate><description>A cost audit that counts subscriptions, hours and the strange dip in mood after a long swiping session.</description></item><item><title>Five Things an AI Companion Genuinely Can&#39;t Give You, and Three It Surprisingly Can</title><link>https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/five-things-an-ai-companion-cant-give-you-and-three-it-can/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">https://match-rate-mirage.pages.dev/five-things-an-ai-companion-cant-give-you-and-three-it-can/</guid><pubDate>Mon, 12 Oct 2026 03:51:52 GMT</pubDate><description>A fair-minded scorecard of what an AI character cannot do, plus three results that surprised me.</description></item></channel></rss>