For a certain generation, MTV's Cribs - in which celebrities give on-camera tours of their over-the-top homes - will always be a legendary TV show.

TechCrunch's take on Cribs might not have the same legendary status as MTV's version of the show (and you'll probably never see Mariah Carey make an appearance on it), but it's still interesting to see the inner workings of some of the tech industry's hottest companies. The latest episode of the series took a peek inside the office of eHarmony, one of online dating's biggest pioneers.

TechCrunch's Colleen Taylor met with Arvind Mishra, VP of Product at eHarmony, for a tour of the site's offices in Santa Monica. The first thing you notice about the interior of eHarmony HQ is that love is in the air (and everywhere else). eHarmony definitely doesn't skimp on the romantic decorations - there are hearts everywhere, signs that say "LOVE" in curling script, and pictures of happy couples lining almost every wall.

Upon entering the lobby, visitors and employees are faced with larger-than-life letters that spell out the name of the company. Mishra calls the massive sign "an homage to our larger-than-life mission: we're trying to lower the divorce rate." Big letters = big mission, he explains, as Taylor looks hilariously incredulous.

In addition to the constant reminders of the company's mission, the eHarmony offices are also home to many trophies. The office likes to hold challenges - like a pinewood derby race and a contest to display photos sent in by happy couples - to encourage bonding amongst the staff.

As Taylor and Mishra continue their tour, they pass an extremely yellow kitchen, the pet (stuffed) giraffe that makes its home amongst the social team, and a collection of bikes that employees can check out in order to take their lunch break at the beach 20 miles away.

eHarmony does its best to encourage creativity, individuality, and a sense of fun amongst its employees. Various colorful pieces of flair can be found on all the staff's desks. A beanbag-filled room named Malibu - so called after the site's recent redesign - was built to be a creative space. A game room features pool, foosball, and guitars on the wall. And a Donkey Kong machine with 200 games can be found in the main lunch room.

The heart of eHarmony, other than all the actual hearts that fill the building, seems to be the kitchen. Once every week, the entire company gathers to have lunch together (Hey there, Neil Clark Warren, sneakily making an appearance in the video while having lunch with your employees!). That sense of community is what really makes eHarmony special. "When you're this small," Mishra explains, "you want to make sure that everybody knows and likes everybody else."

When you’re actively looking for love, there’s one sinkhole that can be difficult to avoid: jealousy. Sure, jealousy is something that you can encounter in any facet of life, but in romance it seems to be particularly easy to stumble across, and can take many forms: the happily married co-worker, the teens making out in the mall. Even the obnoxiously attractive acquaintance on your social networking site can trigger feelings of jealousy (surely such an attractive person has no trouble finding a date, right?).

Jealousy is something you want to give a wide berth, because it’s kissing cousins with another attribute: bitterness. Not only is bitterness something to avoid in general - it will make you generally, even unnecessarily, unhappy in a self-perpetuating cycle - it’s also unattractive, so it’s doubly bad for dating. Avoiding jealousy is easier said than done, though; you have to essentially counter a gut, instant reaction with cool logic. With a little self-awareness, though, it can be done. Here are a few points to help you start out:

First, remember that you’re helping no one by getting annoyed, angry or jealous at someone else. You’re not making yourself feel better; you’re probably just making yourself feel worse. It’s in your best interest to lift yourself out of the doldrums, by distracting yourself, removing yourself from the situation, or whatever other technique works for you.

Next, remember that you’re only seeing a tiny piece of the real story. Picture your co-workers; do you think they truly see an accurate representation of you? Do they know your personal struggles? Likely not; and if you come into work smiling, upbeat and with a lottery ticket that’s won you five dollars, they might just think something like, “Man, that person always has it together.” Similarly, you have no idea what problems that person you know through social networking has. You have no idea if that couple who seem like they’re in love actually are - and if they are, you don’t know the work they’ve done or the trials they’ve overcome to get there.

Finally, remember that everyone has ups and downs and romantic dry spells in their lives. You notice those happy couples because love is on your mind; you’re seeing people at their best, on their highs. You aren’t counting the number of single people you pass on the street. You’ve had highs before, and will again.

It’s tempting to succumb to jealousy; it’s far easier to wallow than to rationalize, empathize, and cheer yourself up. But as you continue on your dating journey, try to keep an eye out for those jealousy sinkholes. It may be easier to wallow in the short term, but rationalizing yourself out of it is still far easier than lifting yourself out of the quicksand of bitterness.

Want to break away from the traditional coffee date? After an endless number of caffeinated meet-ups I don't blame you. Coffee dates are easy to arrange and you can leave quickly if it's not going well, but they can also feel forced. How witty can you be when you have half an hour to charm someone? The pressure for conversation and interesting stories can be high. This means that you and your date probably won't get a real sense of each other over one cup of coffee.

So why not try something else for a change, even if it takes a little more time? Think of things you like to do on a regular basis so you can spend time doing something you'd do alone anyway. Usually active dates are more engaging, because you aren't sitting across from each other thinking of things to talk about. You're doing something together, which feels much less pressured.

Following are some alternatives to the coffee date:

Walk your dogs together. Do you both have dogs, or perhaps just one of you? Then dog walking in a local park is an excellent way to get to know each other and get your pooch a little exercise in the meantime. Dogs are great ice breakers.

Indoor rock climbing. If you're both the adventurous type, then rock climbing is a good first date for you. Even if you don't live near a mountain, there are plenty of indoor options no matter the weather. Check your local athletic stores like REI and see where the best places to go might be.

Go for a run. Maybe it's not working out at your gym, but as long as the weather is nice and maybe a little cool in the evening, why not get together for a run? This is a great date for those of you who enjoy dating other outdoor/ athletic types. Plus, you don't have to worry about dressing up in heels.

Explore like a kid again. When was the last time you visited your local aquarium, or the zoo, or even played miniature golf? Some of those activities we really enjoyed as kids don't seem sophisticated enough for a first date, but often they help both of you to let your guards down and enjoy the moment. So give them another try.

Art galleries. Not into breaking a sweat on your first date? I love quirky little streets with boutique shops, galleries, and markets. Are you familiar with the city you live in and all of its unique neighborhoods? Search your local paper for exhibit openings. Sometimes they will offer receptions as well if it's opening night. Exploring galleries is a fun and creative way to spend a first date - and it's better than sharing cups of coffee.

"They've been calling me clairvoyant and I guess I am because I just get these weird 'flashes,' I call them, or premonitions at the oddest times and in the oddest places."

I know I'm not the only one who reads something like that and thinks "Oh God...no thank you. Not in a million years would I trust someone who speaks like that to find the partner I'm going to spend the rest of my life with."

For the past 21 years, however, Janis Spindel has been proving my prejudice wrong. As a professional matchmaker, she has helped everyone from politicians to business magnates find lasting love. She estimates that her matches have led to about 1,000 marriages, even more relationships, and over $5 million in revenue in last year alone.

Sure, maybe it's clairvoyance that tells her who's likely to hit it off, but I think the explanation she gave to Forbes is more likely: "I am a people person from the get-go," she said. "I can talk to anyone, anywhere, any time and in five minutes I can find out more than you could in dating somebody for six months. It's mind-boggling. I ask the questions, I fire them away, and they just answer them."

Spindel turned her natural talents into a professional pursuit after the fourteenth couple she'd introduced called to tell her they were getting married. She began with a 51-gues networking party at Ovo Café in New York City in 1993. 34 people connected in the party, and her business has been successful ever since.

Today her company has 17 employees and a yearlong contract with her (which is good for 12 introductions) runs NYC-based clients $50,000 upfront plus another $50,000 on the backend if they are successfully matched and stay with that person for a year. If you're out of state, the $50,000 on the backend stays the same but the upfront cost doubles to $100,000. And if you'd like Spindel and her staff to travel to you, you're look at a $250,000 fee and another quarter million on the backend if your match is found.

There are other options for those who have less disposable income, but nothing that comes close to "economic." Love is big business, and clients are expected to pay up for Spindel's unique expertise.

Janis Spindel explains her 3 date rule:

Most recently, Spindel has expanded her services to include a gay division and online dating. Her company has started its own free dating site, 2LoveToday, that uses her staff to make matches for customers who want to pay a premium fee. Her next move is to build a presence in India and begin her expansion into Asia. Clairvoyant or not, the woman certainly seems unstoppable.

eHarmony is having a free communication weekend right now. It started the day before Halloween and ends Sunday November 3rd just before midnight (PST).

These free communication weekends are the perfect time for someone who hasn't tried eHarmony to give the service a try. You can not only create your profile and answer the in-depth questionnaire for free but you will also receive your matches and be able to communicate with them at no cost, and with no credit card required. Free communication includes the guided communication process and email. The guided communication process is designed to allow matches to easily break the ice and introduce conversation starters. This is achieved by each match asking and answering a few questions so the person you are communicating with has a better understanding of you as a person. As always free communication events do not include photos, the secure call phone service, and skip to email.

The last free eHarmony communication weekend was at the end of September (see Story). For more on this dating site you can read our review of eHarmony.

How About We may be the first online dating site that offers a service especially for couples. Their latest venture, How About We For Couples, aims to plan, book, and arrange dates for people who are looking to spice up their relationships. They launched in New York and San Francisco and are planning other cities in the near future. So far, they have 130,000 couples signed up.

The founders noticed a trend among couples of relying on Netflix and take-out meals for entertainment, losing the magic that comes with the headiness and excitement of a new relationship. So instead of sitting on the couch, How About We for Couples provides ideas to get you both inspired and to cultivate relationships instead of letting them go stale.

How About We have been innovators from the beginning. When its founders Brian Schechter and Aaron Schildkrout first started researching the online dating industry, they noticed a fundamental problem: online dating sites don't push people to meet offline and build relationships from there. In fact, the industry's success depends on members sitting in front of their laptops scrolling through endless profiles rather than forming real life relationships.

With this in mind, the founders created an innovative new way to date online - by taking it offline quickly. Members post and view first date ideas, rather than scrolling through dating profiles. An example might be, "How about we...go for a picnic in the park, followed by live music at North Bar?" If someone found that idea enticing, they'd connect with each other and set something up. The focus is not on the dating profiles, but on the real-life meeting.

The problem? It became too successful. Many users of How About We started to couple up, and the company started to lose members. But instead of messing with its success, the founders extended the basic premise of great date ideas to those who are already in relationships.

The How About We editorial team comes up with the date plan, which centers on fun new places to go and creating opportunities for the couples to really connect. If you want to upgrade, you can purchase their concierge service to have How About We plan your date down to the smallest detail, like delivering flowers or hiring car service for the night.

"We're curating the dates for our couple members. The concept is still the same, but we've become the experts," Schildkrout told news magazine Business Insider. "This really filled out the whole vision of the company, which isn't only about helping people fall in love, but also about helping people stay in love."