I posted a Google form application on TikTok to be my date for a wedding. I got 73 responses.

• I needed a plus-one for a wedding and posted a Google form on TikTok to find one.
• I got over 70 applications, and some of them were really creative.

I'm 28, meaning that I'm two years away from being 30 and that at any given moment, I'm five minutes away from receiving a wedding invitation.

So it was no surprise when, in June 2022, I was invited to be a bridesmaid at my cousin's wedding in Croatia. Given my single status, I immediately felt the threat of being seated at the dreaded "kids and singles" table.

I'd avoided thinking about the wedding for most of the past year. I'm not good at finding dresses, planning trips, or hunting down a plus-one. So when the summer rolled around, and with my cousin's nuptials on the Adriatic Sea fast approaching, I couldn't shake the nagging feeling that I would be the only bridesmaid in history without a plus-one. So I did what I typically do — I opened TikTok.

I posted a video on TikTok with a Google form to help me find a wedding date

I'm a comedian with a modest but sizable following on TikTok (66,000 at the time of writing). I host the viral digital dating show "Hot & Single," on which I interview New Yorkers about the woes of modern dating to find out whether they're the problem or everyone else is. As such, I have come to be known as a sort of de facto dating expert, despite often having zero romantic prospects myself.

I go to other creators on TikTok for advice, inspiration, and humor, as well as to look at hot guys doing pottery (my version of unwinding). So when the task of finding a wedding date appeared, it made sense to me to use the platform to find a solution. So I made a video inviting strangers on the internet to apply to be my wedding date. I created a public Google form, which I posted in the comments of the video and had prompts such as:

"Which convo would you bomb if seated next to my mom:

• "Deep Dive into Divorce: Why Her Marriage Failed & Why She Hasn't Taken Accountability.

• "The Bermuda Triangle: What We Knew Then and What We Know Now.

• "Vaccines."

Another prompt was:

"How hot are you on a scale of 1-1,000, and if you're above a 840, do you have a non-expired passport, and if you're above a 960 why are you still single, what's wrong with you, are you cheating on your wife and if so do you think she'd like me?"

I also made a prompt asking candidates to edit themselves into a picture of me wearing a dress to see how we would look together.

I got 73 applications to go with me to the wedding

Within hours, my TikTok post went viral, and applications started tumbling in. The response was overwhelming. Picture a digital deluge of charming men from all corners of the internet, each vying for the coveted role of my wedding date. It turns out, there's no shortage of men willing to step into the role of Prince Charming when a trip to Croatia is on the line (though some didn't seem to realize I would not be paying for their flight).

The next morning, I was knee-deep in a sea of prospective wedding dates. And people got creative, especially in the Photoshop section. One guy even made me a slideshow of all the weddings he'd been to so he could prove he'd be a perfect wedding partner. With 73 applications, I felt I'd never have to be single again.

As I screened these applications on my TV via AirPlay — with the company of my closest girlfriends and a bottle of cabernet sauvignon — I realized that this entire experience was hilarious, not because of the potential for romance but because of what I had created, all by myself.

I had taken matters into my own hands, turned a seemingly dreadful task into a fun game, and found a way to celebrate myself by getting a bunch of — no offense to them — simp-y guys to download the Adobe suite. I realized I could have a pretty good time on my own and didn't need a wedding date in one of the most beautiful countries to make the experience worthwhile.

I decided I was my own best company

So with a heavy heart (OK — I wasn't too sad about the prospect of not having to make awkward small talk about where I grew up with an internet stranger), I decided to decline all the eager applicants and venture to the wedding solo. Once I got there, I realized that being single didn't equate to being alone.

I could chat freely with everyone there without the burden of a guest whom I needed to stick by. I also MCed the entire rehearsal dinner and gave a great bridesmaid speech, which I believe is up for a Golden Globe. Most importantly, I found another single bridesmaid to sit next to who was willing to go halfsies on both the chicken and pasta dinner options with me (a move I commonly refer to as "couple privilege").

The best part? I got a bunch of solo pics in a gorgeous dress, which means my dating-app profile got a revamp. After the wedding, I was ready to go home and get back into dating at my own pace.

I met someone right after I got home from the wedding

As fate would have it, however, I met someone pretty soon after returning home (unsurprising, as I was tan and glowing after my relaxing solo vacation). He's also a comedian, and we met — you're going to want to sit down for this — in person, which these days feels almost impossible.

So for now, I'm one of those people who can check "plus-one" when I'm invited to a wedding. That doesn't mean I necessarily always will, though, now that I know how enjoyable my own company is. In fact, I might opt to go to a few more by myself.