Now I am not about to give you an ultimate “how to” guide here because I’ve not properly used a dating site before. I usually log on to them, search through the men on offer and become throughly depressed that someone actually wants to make me pay to talk to these ugly rotters!
Not only are some of them related to Shrek but they think up the worse usernames they possibly can. Here are some examples I’ve found today on one of the free dating sites out there;
1. Vibrator Terminator - This guy would give any girl the need for an Ann Summers loyalty card more like.
2. Biglad27 - Looking at his profile he’s 5ft 6, looks about 10 when he says he’s 27 and if what his profile leads you to believe is true his name should be; Bigliarliarpantsonfire10.
3. Adoness - Not only can he not spell it right but I just hope to god he’s being ironic.
4. Junglefun - Am I going to require immunisation to go near him?
5. SpunkyJon12” - Ahhh man, where do I even start with this one?
So I try, in the name of research, to force myself to read some of their profiles, here’s a few examples of what they have written.
1. Well im type of guy who tends to get on with everyone, Im always up for a laugh, & thinks you shud never regrets anything that makes you smile. I live for today as you dont know what tomorrow bring. I treat people like i would like to be treat myself. I hate liers,cheats, and crulety and snooty gets who think there better than others, Also dislike two faced people
Ok, firstly, he is using text speak on the internet. A place where there is no character limit and nothing stopping him using the full and proper spelling of words. Massive flaw in my eyes, what else is he going to cut corners with?
He finishes his badly written description with. “How about you sit on my lap and we'll talk about the first thing that pops up?”
I don’t know whether to be disgusted, to pity him or report him for the worst line EVA (see what I did there)
2. I am a keen rugby player who is looking for adult fun with suitable ladies aged between 18 and 40. I am able to travel and would also consider a perminant relationship with the right person.
So basically he’s after no strings sex with a shed load of women whatever age they are and rings sex lines in his spare time and probably visits “massage parlors”
3. i love to have lazy days cuddle up in front of the fire watching movie with a special someone to share the sofa and blanket with.
you bring yourself and i will get the choc out the fridge and i'll chill the bottle of wine ready with two glasses
Ummm, someone pass me a bucket? And a dictionary.
4. Imagine hearing your name in a song...how would you feel if you knew it was about you? Your hopes and aspirations; your dreams and passions; how your wary exterior melts as you get to know someone; how I notice the goose pimples on your soft flesh raise when you’re shaking with nerves; how a devilish twinkle can be seen through your sultry eyed stare; how the curve of your smile lights up the room; how your long luscious hair blows in a Summer's breeze; how the curves of your silhouette dance across the crisp grass in the Autumn moonlight...well maybe I’ll write it for you...one day...
I’m sorry, give me a second, I need to catch my breath from laughing too hard. Do women actually fall for this? Am I a cold hearted bitch or is this super vomit inducing?
5. Never know what to write on these things so message me if you’re interested.
I see this one has a huge creative flare, I bet the conversations would be immense.
Granted among these, um, gems, there are some profiles that are interesting to read but then a good percentage of these let themselves down with some god awful pictures. Lads, you in a skanky towel that’s clearly not been washed in months, in your bedroom that’s not been redecorated since your 7th birthday and pouting (what you think is seductively at the camera) will only win you ladies that want a “project” and there aren’t very many of those around.
So gentlemen here are my top 5 tips to help you on dating sites.
1. Learn the English language and use spell check just to make sure.
2. Get a close female friend to vet the picture you’re putting on, or even better get her to take one of you.
3. Don’t write the words “cuddles, smoochy, snuggles, kwisses or huggies” anywhere in the public domain. For your self dignity alone.
4. Likewise do not use these terms “up the arse, hard and fast fuck, spunk junkie, 12” throbbing trojan or big tits” You will appear to be an arse.
5. Be yourself, don’t hide behind the fact it’s internet dating. Believe me you’ll get busted eventually.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010
“The English simply cannot talk about sex without making a joke of it” - Kate Fox.
As part of my research for a client I am working for I am looking into the English culture and how we conduct ourselves on a daily basis. Although this article for them will not include our outlook on sex and dating my research has stumbled on people documenting our behaviour and it has certainly raised a few questions for me.
Kate Fox, who’s written in length about how the English react to certain social situations, basically believes that we are unable to talk about sex in a serious or straight forward manner but prefer to make “Carry-On” style jokes and quips about it to deflect our embarrassment. In some respects I agree with her, I’ve been guilty of spinning one liners about my sex life (see all previous blogs) in an attempt to deal with its consequences but I don’t believe every Englishmen is incapable of knowing what they want from their sex life and knowing how to get it.
English men have gained an unenviable reputation for being awful flirts, the term socially inept has been used to describe them by our international counterparts in the past. Our chat up lines are probably the worst around the world and we are often unable to talk to strangers in unfamiliar situations unlike the Americans for example. We are taught to be wary of people we don’t know, if you walked up to someone in a train station for example and attempted to strike up a conversation you would almost certainly be shot down with a look that could kill.
I spent three months in Florida not that long ago, for the majority of the time I was quite content toddling off exploring on my own but to begin with found it extremely unsettling at how many people were quite happy to chat away to me even though they’d never seen me before. Two months in and I began to let my guard down and return the initiation but certainly to start with I only reciprocated the conversation as I was on their turf and worried I might appear ignorant.
It is such an alien custom to the English to talk to strangers so how we have ever managed to keep our population going for so long is almost a mystery! My interaction with the American men was totally different to how English men approach me. I think in the 3 months I spent in Florida I got chatted up in bars etc more times than I have in a whole year in the UK. We have much stricter barriers when it comes to the do’s and don’ts of approaching the opposite sex, we dance around the issue quite awkwardly before any kind of direct contact is made. Thank god the internet came along when it did.
What would we do if flirting on the internet or via text messages wasn’t an option? Doesn’t really bare thinking about now we have it. I am a self confessed flirt, I am quite skilled when it comes to innuendos and eye fluttering, probably to the point where it has become to be an addiction but I know plenty of people both male and female that find it extremely difficult to put themselves out there. Is this because of our culture then? To be born in England makes us naturally designed to be totally crap at showing we are interested in the hot piece of ass holding the bar up?
Something else Kate Fox mentions in her book is what she called the “SAS test” which stands for “Sociability, Alcohol and Shared Interest” She certainly has a point about the need for alcohol when it comes to flirting. What she means by this is that you need each element for an English person to be successful at bagging a potential mate. So if you are in a bar for example you have the social aspect and the booze but you might not have the shared interest... they could be train spotters but you on the other hand could be a stamp collector. There’s no way of telling when you’re in your local pub. Transfer this into a club however each person is in there because they enjoy that type of music so you have an instant connection but another thing she rightly points out is the ‘too cool for school’ element that factors in when you’re in a nightclub, exceptionally so when it’s a specialist nightclub (not your cheesy pop 1’s and 2’s)
I know from first hand experience that certain types of people that are fully immersed into their favourite music can be pretentious to say the least. I’ve been part of that fraternity. My friends and I went regularly to a club to experience the music together, we certainly never went to “pull” and if anything it was frowned upon to be seen kissing or even flirting with someone whilst on the dance floor. You were there to listen and boogie, not to get your leg over.
I won’t warble on about all the other examples given but if you fancy reading more go and check it out at your library - ‘Watching the English’ by Kate Fox.
What I found most striking at the things I’ve read over the last few days is that if you were an outsider looking in the English would appear to see flirting / dating as an after thought and not a priority as other cultures might. Of course this isn’t the case but because we are instinctively an awkward race we prefer to outwardly focus on our hobbies, interests and friends for example rather than appear to be actively searching for a partner.
It begs the question why? Why is it seen as a taboo subject to be on the look out and trying to discover the person for you? Why do we see it as almost shameful?
Questions I am yet to discover the answers too... back to the drawing board for me.
Kate Fox, who’s written in length about how the English react to certain social situations, basically believes that we are unable to talk about sex in a serious or straight forward manner but prefer to make “Carry-On” style jokes and quips about it to deflect our embarrassment. In some respects I agree with her, I’ve been guilty of spinning one liners about my sex life (see all previous blogs) in an attempt to deal with its consequences but I don’t believe every Englishmen is incapable of knowing what they want from their sex life and knowing how to get it.
English men have gained an unenviable reputation for being awful flirts, the term socially inept has been used to describe them by our international counterparts in the past. Our chat up lines are probably the worst around the world and we are often unable to talk to strangers in unfamiliar situations unlike the Americans for example. We are taught to be wary of people we don’t know, if you walked up to someone in a train station for example and attempted to strike up a conversation you would almost certainly be shot down with a look that could kill.
I spent three months in Florida not that long ago, for the majority of the time I was quite content toddling off exploring on my own but to begin with found it extremely unsettling at how many people were quite happy to chat away to me even though they’d never seen me before. Two months in and I began to let my guard down and return the initiation but certainly to start with I only reciprocated the conversation as I was on their turf and worried I might appear ignorant.
It is such an alien custom to the English to talk to strangers so how we have ever managed to keep our population going for so long is almost a mystery! My interaction with the American men was totally different to how English men approach me. I think in the 3 months I spent in Florida I got chatted up in bars etc more times than I have in a whole year in the UK. We have much stricter barriers when it comes to the do’s and don’ts of approaching the opposite sex, we dance around the issue quite awkwardly before any kind of direct contact is made. Thank god the internet came along when it did.
What would we do if flirting on the internet or via text messages wasn’t an option? Doesn’t really bare thinking about now we have it. I am a self confessed flirt, I am quite skilled when it comes to innuendos and eye fluttering, probably to the point where it has become to be an addiction but I know plenty of people both male and female that find it extremely difficult to put themselves out there. Is this because of our culture then? To be born in England makes us naturally designed to be totally crap at showing we are interested in the hot piece of ass holding the bar up?
Something else Kate Fox mentions in her book is what she called the “SAS test” which stands for “Sociability, Alcohol and Shared Interest” She certainly has a point about the need for alcohol when it comes to flirting. What she means by this is that you need each element for an English person to be successful at bagging a potential mate. So if you are in a bar for example you have the social aspect and the booze but you might not have the shared interest... they could be train spotters but you on the other hand could be a stamp collector. There’s no way of telling when you’re in your local pub. Transfer this into a club however each person is in there because they enjoy that type of music so you have an instant connection but another thing she rightly points out is the ‘too cool for school’ element that factors in when you’re in a nightclub, exceptionally so when it’s a specialist nightclub (not your cheesy pop 1’s and 2’s)
I know from first hand experience that certain types of people that are fully immersed into their favourite music can be pretentious to say the least. I’ve been part of that fraternity. My friends and I went regularly to a club to experience the music together, we certainly never went to “pull” and if anything it was frowned upon to be seen kissing or even flirting with someone whilst on the dance floor. You were there to listen and boogie, not to get your leg over.
I won’t warble on about all the other examples given but if you fancy reading more go and check it out at your library - ‘Watching the English’ by Kate Fox.
What I found most striking at the things I’ve read over the last few days is that if you were an outsider looking in the English would appear to see flirting / dating as an after thought and not a priority as other cultures might. Of course this isn’t the case but because we are instinctively an awkward race we prefer to outwardly focus on our hobbies, interests and friends for example rather than appear to be actively searching for a partner.
It begs the question why? Why is it seen as a taboo subject to be on the look out and trying to discover the person for you? Why do we see it as almost shameful?
Questions I am yet to discover the answers too... back to the drawing board for me.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Sleeping killer..
Mentioning “pump, pump, squirt” in my last blog jogged memories of other cringe worthy or slightly shocking incidents that have entered themselves in the index of my colourful life. A lot of these stories have given my friends many hysterical laughing fits so I thought I’d share the love and give all of you a giggle too.
One of the all time funniest and also scary episodes of my story is when I was dating a chap from Leeds that I’d met through mutual friends. We’d been together for about a month and it was going really well, we’d have some fantastic dates, spent hours on the phone talking and had so much in common that I really thought I was onto a bit of a winner.
The weekend arrived that we’d planned I was going to stay at his for the first time, he’d cooked me a fabulous meal, we’d spent the evening chatting and getting cosy in his local bar then as time progressed it was clear that the chocolate brownies he’d made weren’t the only thing we’d be having for dessert.
We retired to his room and began getting down to business. It was nice, pretty standard if I’m going to be brutally honest but sometimes the first night with a guy isn’t all fireworks and you have to give it a while to get to know each other so this wasn’t a negative point in my mind until we snuggled up and drifted off to sleep.
Now unlike some ladies I don’t enjoy having someone’s body wrapped around me all night, an arm over me to begin with is acceptable, suffocating me for a whole eight hours is not what adds up to a great night’s sleep for me so I gave it a little time for him to fall into a deep enough slumber for me to carefully untangle myself and break free.
I had noticed he’d begun to grind his teeth and make some particularly odd noises as he obviously began dreaming which I found highly amusing but it also made me want to roll away even more. My foot was under his at this point, I was lying on my back and he was on his side with his arm over me. I gently removed his arm and went to slide my foot away from his so I could turn over.
To my horror this movement made him jump upright in bed and shout “MOVE YOUR FUCKING FOOT BACK, MOVE IT BACK NOW!”
“You what?!” I gasped. No reply.
I looked over in utter bemusement and noticed he was still asleep and carried on making some massively loud and strange mumbling noises, at this point I can safely say I thought I was laying next to a sleep talking axe murderer.
So I move my foot back and remain rigidly still for at least another hour as I frantically thought about what to do next. I couldn’t lay there until he wakes or risk him doing that or more! Then the arm comes back over, this time much nearer to my neck than I’m comfortable with, is it this point where he begins to squeeze the life out of me?
I managed to reach my phone and send an emergency “get me out of here” text message to my friend who was also spending the night in Leeds and I’d given a lift to. She rang with some fake crisis that woke him up and I made my excuses, got dressed quicker than I had ever before and ran out the door with only one shoe on.
I was back home before the sun had risen and thanked my lucky stars I’d not been a story line for the 9 o’clock news.
It goes without saying I didn’t ever see him again.
One of the all time funniest and also scary episodes of my story is when I was dating a chap from Leeds that I’d met through mutual friends. We’d been together for about a month and it was going really well, we’d have some fantastic dates, spent hours on the phone talking and had so much in common that I really thought I was onto a bit of a winner.
The weekend arrived that we’d planned I was going to stay at his for the first time, he’d cooked me a fabulous meal, we’d spent the evening chatting and getting cosy in his local bar then as time progressed it was clear that the chocolate brownies he’d made weren’t the only thing we’d be having for dessert.
We retired to his room and began getting down to business. It was nice, pretty standard if I’m going to be brutally honest but sometimes the first night with a guy isn’t all fireworks and you have to give it a while to get to know each other so this wasn’t a negative point in my mind until we snuggled up and drifted off to sleep.
Now unlike some ladies I don’t enjoy having someone’s body wrapped around me all night, an arm over me to begin with is acceptable, suffocating me for a whole eight hours is not what adds up to a great night’s sleep for me so I gave it a little time for him to fall into a deep enough slumber for me to carefully untangle myself and break free.
I had noticed he’d begun to grind his teeth and make some particularly odd noises as he obviously began dreaming which I found highly amusing but it also made me want to roll away even more. My foot was under his at this point, I was lying on my back and he was on his side with his arm over me. I gently removed his arm and went to slide my foot away from his so I could turn over.
To my horror this movement made him jump upright in bed and shout “MOVE YOUR FUCKING FOOT BACK, MOVE IT BACK NOW!”
“You what?!” I gasped. No reply.
I looked over in utter bemusement and noticed he was still asleep and carried on making some massively loud and strange mumbling noises, at this point I can safely say I thought I was laying next to a sleep talking axe murderer.
So I move my foot back and remain rigidly still for at least another hour as I frantically thought about what to do next. I couldn’t lay there until he wakes or risk him doing that or more! Then the arm comes back over, this time much nearer to my neck than I’m comfortable with, is it this point where he begins to squeeze the life out of me?
I managed to reach my phone and send an emergency “get me out of here” text message to my friend who was also spending the night in Leeds and I’d given a lift to. She rang with some fake crisis that woke him up and I made my excuses, got dressed quicker than I had ever before and ran out the door with only one shoe on.
I was back home before the sun had risen and thanked my lucky stars I’d not been a story line for the 9 o’clock news.
It goes without saying I didn’t ever see him again.
Friday, January 15, 2010
To sow or not to sow, that is the question...
You know who I’m sometimes jealous of? People who fall in love and marry their childhood sweethearts. They don’t have to go through years of hellish dating disasters, kiss hundreds of frogs and see their faith in the opposite sex slowly dwindle.
They do however have to sleep with the same person for the rest of their lives and what if it was the only person they’d ever slept with? The thought alone makes me screw my face up.
If I had stayed with the person I’d lost my virginity with I’d be having a hell of a lot of boring, over within the blink of an eye, sex. Granted this lad could go again as soon as he’d finished but is that still impressive when the actual act only lasts about 2.37 minutes? (yes I actually thought to time in once, thats how “into it” I was). He has come to be known as the “pump, pump, squirt” phase of my life.
If I’d stayed with the second person I’d slept with we’d be humping like rabbits, literally. POW POW POW. He was the type of guy that thought he was really adventurous and kinky but sadly he was mistaken and even at this stage in my experience I knew he was shit. Foreplay to him was “shall we shag now or after dinner?” How romantic.
The third guy I ever slept with had the biggest schlong I have ever, even to this day, seen. I mean this member was intimidating! I remember this thought passing through my mind; “That could well be capable of splitting me in two”. Although he was the first ever guy I’d been with that was tender, caring and thoughtful of my needs so I did get over my initial shock at the size issue but certain positions were definitely out of the question otherwise I may have choked or suffered some severe kidney bruising.
Then I moved onto the fourth and first serious relationship of my younger years. This was much more than just sex, I experienced what it was like to sleep with someone who you really did love and not just lust after and I can safely say this is the point where I really began enjoying making love to someone. I think when you reach the point in your sexual life where you begin to understand what it’s really all about and it’s not just a way to release your hormonal urges it turns into something much more fulfilling yet also something much more complicated.
As a woman this point is where you figure out what you’re into, where your limits are and how to truly please your man. Before this point you tend to feel like your winging it and keeping the last issue of your favourite women’s magazine with a “how to” guide page left open to check at points throughout the act.
After the first time you start to feel like your more in control the world becomes a different place, for me it did anyway. I was not going to settle for any pump, pump, squirts and knew for a fact that there was some brilliant, head rushing love making to be had in my future.
Yes there’s been more disasters along the way but there’s been plenty of screamingly amazing chapters too. Unfortunately not all men’s sexual prowess matures alongside their age, I’ve slept with men that are well into their 30s who have been shockingly clueless but thankfully there are those that have clearly been taking notes and revising as they go.
My point is this; although many of us find the grind of searching out our match to be tedious at times, look back and be grateful for what you have learnt from all these adventures and keep in mind that when that special someone does find you you’re going to be able to realise that the chemistry blows all of their competitors clean out of the water.
Don’t settle on your first, second or even third because you’re concerned that might be as good as it going to get. Take it from me, the journey is all part of the fun and you’ll get some cracking laughs out of it! That “pump, pump, squirt” guy has given me 11 years of hilarious flash backs!
They do however have to sleep with the same person for the rest of their lives and what if it was the only person they’d ever slept with? The thought alone makes me screw my face up.
If I had stayed with the person I’d lost my virginity with I’d be having a hell of a lot of boring, over within the blink of an eye, sex. Granted this lad could go again as soon as he’d finished but is that still impressive when the actual act only lasts about 2.37 minutes? (yes I actually thought to time in once, thats how “into it” I was). He has come to be known as the “pump, pump, squirt” phase of my life.
If I’d stayed with the second person I’d slept with we’d be humping like rabbits, literally. POW POW POW. He was the type of guy that thought he was really adventurous and kinky but sadly he was mistaken and even at this stage in my experience I knew he was shit. Foreplay to him was “shall we shag now or after dinner?” How romantic.
The third guy I ever slept with had the biggest schlong I have ever, even to this day, seen. I mean this member was intimidating! I remember this thought passing through my mind; “That could well be capable of splitting me in two”. Although he was the first ever guy I’d been with that was tender, caring and thoughtful of my needs so I did get over my initial shock at the size issue but certain positions were definitely out of the question otherwise I may have choked or suffered some severe kidney bruising.
Then I moved onto the fourth and first serious relationship of my younger years. This was much more than just sex, I experienced what it was like to sleep with someone who you really did love and not just lust after and I can safely say this is the point where I really began enjoying making love to someone. I think when you reach the point in your sexual life where you begin to understand what it’s really all about and it’s not just a way to release your hormonal urges it turns into something much more fulfilling yet also something much more complicated.
As a woman this point is where you figure out what you’re into, where your limits are and how to truly please your man. Before this point you tend to feel like your winging it and keeping the last issue of your favourite women’s magazine with a “how to” guide page left open to check at points throughout the act.
After the first time you start to feel like your more in control the world becomes a different place, for me it did anyway. I was not going to settle for any pump, pump, squirts and knew for a fact that there was some brilliant, head rushing love making to be had in my future.
Yes there’s been more disasters along the way but there’s been plenty of screamingly amazing chapters too. Unfortunately not all men’s sexual prowess matures alongside their age, I’ve slept with men that are well into their 30s who have been shockingly clueless but thankfully there are those that have clearly been taking notes and revising as they go.
My point is this; although many of us find the grind of searching out our match to be tedious at times, look back and be grateful for what you have learnt from all these adventures and keep in mind that when that special someone does find you you’re going to be able to realise that the chemistry blows all of their competitors clean out of the water.
Don’t settle on your first, second or even third because you’re concerned that might be as good as it going to get. Take it from me, the journey is all part of the fun and you’ll get some cracking laughs out of it! That “pump, pump, squirt” guy has given me 11 years of hilarious flash backs!
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
So here’s a story for you...
In previous blogs I’ve alluded to my fantastically drama filled dating existence but for this entry I thought I’d be brave and give you a full, no holds barred, look at once of my recent, um, incidents.
What happens to me a lot is it’ll all be quiet on the western front for a little while and then all hell breaks loose and I don’t know my arse from my elbow, December pretty much padded out like that.
The tale includes my ex boyfriend, a guy I met randomly and another, lets call him a flirting diversion. I shall start with a little background on my ex so we can paint a clearer picture and we’ll call him Alan.
Alan and I were together for less than a year, the beginning of the relationship was pretty fantastic but 6 months in the cracks began to appear. He was 27, had never had a girlfriend before (he wasn’t a scutter by the way, actually fairly fit) and had some how gained a storage container’s worth of emotional baggage / self confidence issues. Suffice to say thanks to my ability to not admit defeat easily we soldiered on for a little while longer until it all fell apart.
At the time I was fairly hurt but on the scale of heartbroken I wasn’t reaching wrist slitting heights and within time I laid it to rest as much as I could with unanswered questions still looming. It seemed he had other ideas on this though and for the next 4 years popped up every now and then sending me messages like “I think I...” (yes that was it) and then recently peaking at “I’ve always regretted what I did, I wish you were here”
We had attempted the friend thing after 2 years of us splitting up but due to this look he has a habit of giving me and the questionable circumstances of the ending I always had an air of caution when I spent time with him, and rightly so it turns out.
So now to dip into the information on the guy I met randomly. First date probably featured on some of the all time worst first dates to start off with. He had a severe tendency to take the piss, now I can be about as sarcastic as they come but this fella totally blew me out of the water and for a good few hours he just laid into me in an attempt to be funny. In my mind, this was a disaster, but I stuck with it and the end of the date spun things around and changed my perspective on him.
Half way through said date and I get a text from flirt diversion asking me if I was in town and if I wanted to “hook up” later, I tried to hide the shock on my face in front of random guy and speedily put my phone back in my bag and decide FD can wait for now.
5.30am on the morning after this date I get a message from Alan “Yo DC, how you doing?” not the best timing in the world I think you can agree. He’s obviously pissed, obviously reminiscing and once again gets under my skin when my new date is sleeping sounding in my bed. Winner. I ignore the message, for the time being.
Time goes on, I see the random guy a few more times. He states his thoughts on dating, appears to very strongly believe that dating more than one person at a time is morally wrong (this scuppers me as I’m actually dating someone else at the same time too aka flirt divert) which puts me in a quandary as to whether random guy is worth me ditching divert guy and Alan to concentrate on just him.
I spend the next few weeks deciding whether or not I can put up with his piss taking, settle for one guy and be able to cut loose on the others... this was debated back and forth for quite some time.
Technology then conspires against me, I’ve text random guy and not had a reply... for 2 whole weeks. I see this as a blessing in disguise, one less decision to make and continue on with the rest of my dramas.
Then something came out of complete left field. Alan decides (when pissed of course) to insinuate he might want me back. Then I hear he’s been talking about this with his friends and these friends then decide to get involved and attempt to help us get back together.
At this point I really had nothing to lose and felt like I was being swept along with this anyway so decide to meet up with Alan and discuss this development.
He comes round, we have tea and watch a film and as the night goes on it dawns on me that, if I let him, he isn’t going to address the issue so I make the decision to be the one to grow some balls and go for the jugular.
For the next 2 hours we go over everything, one of the most intense conversations of my life and for a short while I even dare to think he’s changed and it might be different this time round. The chemistry was still there and it really felt like we could pick up where we left off. How wrong you can be!
One week later and it’s back to the old story of him going radio silent, freaking out and generally being an emotional retard and sending my head firmly up my jaxxy. I give him the benefit of the doubt for a short while but after he fails to turn up at my house after I’d told him I needed to get something off my chest a moment of clarity descended on me and I called it a day.
Next bit... Random guy’s silence is broken by me receiving 4 texts, one after another, at 4.30am one morning. These texts are basically what he has sent me over the last 2 weeks and for whatever reason they’d only just made it to my phone. I reply, firstly being cautious and explaining I didn’t think we were a good fit but after he’d told me I was the best sex he’d ever had my strong stance weakened immensely which lead to me being in his bed the next night... slut I know but my ego had been bruised so give me a break!
Flirt divert had also been in contact and that scenario was still on going but never really getting anywhere, especially after I’d found out he’d offered to show some ‘personal’ messages from me to one of his mates.. “Oh no you diddddnn’tt” but he did.
Moving on.... I attempt to eat humble pie with random guy, thinking I’d been too hasty the first time round, maybe he wasn’t all the annoying things I thought he was as I do have a habit of picking holes in someone until they resemble a crater and I wanted to stick to my new year’s resolution of not being so god damn picky. I get little response but to be fair I was really forcing myself into it so I didn’t become too suspicious too soon, until I hear the tail end of some gossip. Random guy has got back with his ex girlfriend.
I swear to God, I honestly laughed out loud. First at the shear ludicrousness of this situation, then at his massive hypocrisy (he’d said, and I quote “If I’ve learnt anything in my years getting back with an ex never works, people don’t change” after I’d told him about Alan) and finally at the fact that my love life continues to be one massive balls up after another. You have to laugh though don’t you!!
So, to summarise, in just over a month I have partially dated 3 men, one who turn out to be a wanker, one who remained to be a wanker and one who didn’t reach being a wanker. Not bad for a months work I don’t think!
What happens to me a lot is it’ll all be quiet on the western front for a little while and then all hell breaks loose and I don’t know my arse from my elbow, December pretty much padded out like that.
The tale includes my ex boyfriend, a guy I met randomly and another, lets call him a flirting diversion. I shall start with a little background on my ex so we can paint a clearer picture and we’ll call him Alan.
Alan and I were together for less than a year, the beginning of the relationship was pretty fantastic but 6 months in the cracks began to appear. He was 27, had never had a girlfriend before (he wasn’t a scutter by the way, actually fairly fit) and had some how gained a storage container’s worth of emotional baggage / self confidence issues. Suffice to say thanks to my ability to not admit defeat easily we soldiered on for a little while longer until it all fell apart.
At the time I was fairly hurt but on the scale of heartbroken I wasn’t reaching wrist slitting heights and within time I laid it to rest as much as I could with unanswered questions still looming. It seemed he had other ideas on this though and for the next 4 years popped up every now and then sending me messages like “I think I...” (yes that was it) and then recently peaking at “I’ve always regretted what I did, I wish you were here”
We had attempted the friend thing after 2 years of us splitting up but due to this look he has a habit of giving me and the questionable circumstances of the ending I always had an air of caution when I spent time with him, and rightly so it turns out.
So now to dip into the information on the guy I met randomly. First date probably featured on some of the all time worst first dates to start off with. He had a severe tendency to take the piss, now I can be about as sarcastic as they come but this fella totally blew me out of the water and for a good few hours he just laid into me in an attempt to be funny. In my mind, this was a disaster, but I stuck with it and the end of the date spun things around and changed my perspective on him.
Half way through said date and I get a text from flirt diversion asking me if I was in town and if I wanted to “hook up” later, I tried to hide the shock on my face in front of random guy and speedily put my phone back in my bag and decide FD can wait for now.
5.30am on the morning after this date I get a message from Alan “Yo DC, how you doing?” not the best timing in the world I think you can agree. He’s obviously pissed, obviously reminiscing and once again gets under my skin when my new date is sleeping sounding in my bed. Winner. I ignore the message, for the time being.
Time goes on, I see the random guy a few more times. He states his thoughts on dating, appears to very strongly believe that dating more than one person at a time is morally wrong (this scuppers me as I’m actually dating someone else at the same time too aka flirt divert) which puts me in a quandary as to whether random guy is worth me ditching divert guy and Alan to concentrate on just him.
I spend the next few weeks deciding whether or not I can put up with his piss taking, settle for one guy and be able to cut loose on the others... this was debated back and forth for quite some time.
Technology then conspires against me, I’ve text random guy and not had a reply... for 2 whole weeks. I see this as a blessing in disguise, one less decision to make and continue on with the rest of my dramas.
Then something came out of complete left field. Alan decides (when pissed of course) to insinuate he might want me back. Then I hear he’s been talking about this with his friends and these friends then decide to get involved and attempt to help us get back together.
At this point I really had nothing to lose and felt like I was being swept along with this anyway so decide to meet up with Alan and discuss this development.
He comes round, we have tea and watch a film and as the night goes on it dawns on me that, if I let him, he isn’t going to address the issue so I make the decision to be the one to grow some balls and go for the jugular.
For the next 2 hours we go over everything, one of the most intense conversations of my life and for a short while I even dare to think he’s changed and it might be different this time round. The chemistry was still there and it really felt like we could pick up where we left off. How wrong you can be!
One week later and it’s back to the old story of him going radio silent, freaking out and generally being an emotional retard and sending my head firmly up my jaxxy. I give him the benefit of the doubt for a short while but after he fails to turn up at my house after I’d told him I needed to get something off my chest a moment of clarity descended on me and I called it a day.
Next bit... Random guy’s silence is broken by me receiving 4 texts, one after another, at 4.30am one morning. These texts are basically what he has sent me over the last 2 weeks and for whatever reason they’d only just made it to my phone. I reply, firstly being cautious and explaining I didn’t think we were a good fit but after he’d told me I was the best sex he’d ever had my strong stance weakened immensely which lead to me being in his bed the next night... slut I know but my ego had been bruised so give me a break!
Flirt divert had also been in contact and that scenario was still on going but never really getting anywhere, especially after I’d found out he’d offered to show some ‘personal’ messages from me to one of his mates.. “Oh no you diddddnn’tt” but he did.
Moving on.... I attempt to eat humble pie with random guy, thinking I’d been too hasty the first time round, maybe he wasn’t all the annoying things I thought he was as I do have a habit of picking holes in someone until they resemble a crater and I wanted to stick to my new year’s resolution of not being so god damn picky. I get little response but to be fair I was really forcing myself into it so I didn’t become too suspicious too soon, until I hear the tail end of some gossip. Random guy has got back with his ex girlfriend.
I swear to God, I honestly laughed out loud. First at the shear ludicrousness of this situation, then at his massive hypocrisy (he’d said, and I quote “If I’ve learnt anything in my years getting back with an ex never works, people don’t change” after I’d told him about Alan) and finally at the fact that my love life continues to be one massive balls up after another. You have to laugh though don’t you!!
So, to summarise, in just over a month I have partially dated 3 men, one who turn out to be a wanker, one who remained to be a wanker and one who didn’t reach being a wanker. Not bad for a months work I don’t think!
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
To give and to receive.
Now before you get all kinky I don’t mean THAT giving and receiving! Deary me, dirt you lot! I mean giving and receiving advice. Knowing when to ask for it and also knowing when not to give it.
I’ve had countless discussions with my 20 something and 30 something friends about moves we make, the people we’ve chosen to spend time with and more often nowadays (when I’m sure this shouldn’t be the case) our utterly increasing clueless status on what the hell we’re playing at!
More recently I have found myself in the barren world of the idealess. I am a creative person, I’m full of ideas, literally brimming with plans, concepts and suggestions, but not too many weeks ago I found myself handing over my mobile phone to a friend to reply to a chap on my behalf as I was absolutely inept of writing something myself... I’m a writer for crying out loud!
To my younger readers I’m afraid I’m going to have to break some earth shattering news to you; this does not get easier the older you get, it becomes harder. Mainly due the fact we have realised our mistakes, yes this sounds strange but stay with me.
The more mishaps you make in your dating life make you more wary of the things you consequently do in the future, therefore instead of wildly jumping in and being utterly fearless you begin to second guess your gut instinct and look upon friends to guide you. Then as time goes on your friends checkered past begins to pull the reins on their ability to dish out the advice and you will now often hear the words “I really have no idea hun”.
Things become far more messy the older you get, kids come into it, scars from past heartbreaks, emotional issues, the whole debacle turns into a fricking minefield! Then when you momentarily think “F it, I’m just going to go for it” you instantly regret something you said / sent / done.
I’m sure when “the one” comes along this will all vanish, so please don’t go reaching for the valium just yet, but in the mean time be prepared to grow a much thicker skin and buy some germaline for the many cuts and bruises your feelings will attain.
One positive I will throw into the pot here is the inner strength you’ll gain as you go, I have turned into a master when it comes to best foot forward and as mentioned in a previous blog the “NEXT” method. What I am attempting, and probably very badly, to explain here is that if we accept our failings for what they are we can begin to understand what our next moves should be and in turn regain our ability to hand out advice and to receive it.
I must also mention here knowing when to keep your mouth shut, which is a massive issue with me. I’m all for saying it like it is to my friends and this can sometimes land me in some seriously hot water. If I see a guy / girl treating my pal like a fool, I’m either going to thump my friend / the guilty party or go for a no holds barred verbal onslaught. Of course there is a time when people need to hear the bitter truth but they also need to make the mistakes all by themselves, yes it is hard to stand by and watch someone fall into the pitfalls that love and emotions bring but knowing when to step in and when to back off is key. This comes only with experience and awareness of how your friend will take you calling them an idiot.
In turn we must learn to be able to take it from our friends. I am extremely lucky to have people around me that aren’t afraid to let me know when I’m being a plonker, sometimes I listen to them, sometimes I don’t and I usually go on to wish I had.
What we really need to do is remember that we aren’t alone in the dramas that unfold before us and we need to regroup and share what we’ve experienced. Two heads are better than one, ten heads are better than two. So (without sounding cheesy) don’t bottle up your fears and weaknesses, try your best to tell your mates what is going on and work through it together. Always remember though, when handing out advice that’s as sharp as a Swiss Army blade you must be prepared to take it via the jugular.
I’ve had countless discussions with my 20 something and 30 something friends about moves we make, the people we’ve chosen to spend time with and more often nowadays (when I’m sure this shouldn’t be the case) our utterly increasing clueless status on what the hell we’re playing at!
More recently I have found myself in the barren world of the idealess. I am a creative person, I’m full of ideas, literally brimming with plans, concepts and suggestions, but not too many weeks ago I found myself handing over my mobile phone to a friend to reply to a chap on my behalf as I was absolutely inept of writing something myself... I’m a writer for crying out loud!
To my younger readers I’m afraid I’m going to have to break some earth shattering news to you; this does not get easier the older you get, it becomes harder. Mainly due the fact we have realised our mistakes, yes this sounds strange but stay with me.
The more mishaps you make in your dating life make you more wary of the things you consequently do in the future, therefore instead of wildly jumping in and being utterly fearless you begin to second guess your gut instinct and look upon friends to guide you. Then as time goes on your friends checkered past begins to pull the reins on their ability to dish out the advice and you will now often hear the words “I really have no idea hun”.
Things become far more messy the older you get, kids come into it, scars from past heartbreaks, emotional issues, the whole debacle turns into a fricking minefield! Then when you momentarily think “F it, I’m just going to go for it” you instantly regret something you said / sent / done.
I’m sure when “the one” comes along this will all vanish, so please don’t go reaching for the valium just yet, but in the mean time be prepared to grow a much thicker skin and buy some germaline for the many cuts and bruises your feelings will attain.
One positive I will throw into the pot here is the inner strength you’ll gain as you go, I have turned into a master when it comes to best foot forward and as mentioned in a previous blog the “NEXT” method. What I am attempting, and probably very badly, to explain here is that if we accept our failings for what they are we can begin to understand what our next moves should be and in turn regain our ability to hand out advice and to receive it.
I must also mention here knowing when to keep your mouth shut, which is a massive issue with me. I’m all for saying it like it is to my friends and this can sometimes land me in some seriously hot water. If I see a guy / girl treating my pal like a fool, I’m either going to thump my friend / the guilty party or go for a no holds barred verbal onslaught. Of course there is a time when people need to hear the bitter truth but they also need to make the mistakes all by themselves, yes it is hard to stand by and watch someone fall into the pitfalls that love and emotions bring but knowing when to step in and when to back off is key. This comes only with experience and awareness of how your friend will take you calling them an idiot.
In turn we must learn to be able to take it from our friends. I am extremely lucky to have people around me that aren’t afraid to let me know when I’m being a plonker, sometimes I listen to them, sometimes I don’t and I usually go on to wish I had.
What we really need to do is remember that we aren’t alone in the dramas that unfold before us and we need to regroup and share what we’ve experienced. Two heads are better than one, ten heads are better than two. So (without sounding cheesy) don’t bottle up your fears and weaknesses, try your best to tell your mates what is going on and work through it together. Always remember though, when handing out advice that’s as sharp as a Swiss Army blade you must be prepared to take it via the jugular.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Are you an emotional retard?
I am. I wasn’t but I’ve grown into being one. With each set back I’ve suffered through my dating existence and every notch it has etched out of me has turned me into an emotional oasis.
I laugh and joke about it with my friends and find some of my actions ridiculous but I have built this barrier that prevents me from saying certain words, paying someone compliments and admitting I might actually “like” (let’s not go too over the top and try to utter that other L word) a guy.
Getting someone interested in me (without sounding egotistical) isn’t a thing I find all that difficult. I’ve got a decent arse, I’ve managed to restrain myself from pigging out so much that I gain a muffin top and my face doesn’t look half bad either. I have a diploma in flirting and creating saucy innuendos but back me into a corner and ask me to vocalise my feelings for someone is another matter entirely.
Example; a guy tells me he loves spending time with me, I reply that I LIKE spending time with him too. I’m not even saying I love him but I can’t managed to instantly echo the sentiment. Ridiculous isn’t it? I want to say it but I appear to have a clamp in my mouth that prevents me. I wonder if I have to pay a fine to get rid of it?
I fear if I compliment a guy, he’ll assume I’m really into him and then lose interest, I would have put myself out there only to have the door slammed in my face and hear the words “actually, I’m not that bothered” = I am an emotional retard.
I am jealous of women that can be open about how they feel, don’t get me wrong I don’t want to be a needy, squeaky, I love you and I’ve only known you a week girl, but I am jealous of people that are brave enough to lay it all out in the hope they’ll get something in return.
Maybe these people haven’t ever really failed, really experienced the anguish of something blowing up in their face, or maybe they are just so much stronger and believe the saying “it’s better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all”
The older I get the more cautious I get, to the point I am ruining possible relationships before they even begin and I annoy myself for it. Can I really put the blame on the men that have wronged me or is this totally my issue?
Another part of my problem is that I enjoy being single, an alien statement for those who don’t feel whole without someone on their arm, but I’ve learnt to stand on my own two feet, have fun and not have to worry about all those sticky ‘feeling’ issues. I am aware that it’s not healthy to remain (and I hate this term) ‘alone’ for the rest of my days but how do you break the cycle of cut and run when it looks like it could be a goer?
I very much know I need to work on it and also know I am definitely not a one man band when it comes to this issue. Lots of people my age are suffering from the same affliction; the inability to jump in with both feet and not concern myself with the consequences.
My theory is when I find someone that’s prepared to work me through this, warts ‘n’ all, I will then begin to change my mind set, I honestly don’t think it’s something we can do by ourselves. It’s discovering that person who’s willing to take on an emotional retard though, because I have to say I’ve been confronted with the prospect of taking on someone that had issues before and I’ve given it a whirl but now I prefer to just leg it in the other direction.
So I guess what I, and so many other people need, is someone that has their shit together, that isn’t afraid of saying it like it is, who’s prepared to bring me out of myself but is there anyone that isn’t twisted? I ruddy hope so. And I do honestly believe there is, because I’ve pushed many of them away before as I’ve not been ready to accept that.
Can people that class themselves as emotional retards recover and go on to lead a happy, contented and drama free life? In short, yes, but the first step is admitting you have the problem, second step is to find someone that can understand the problem and third step is to work on it, together.
You can remove the clamp, turn off the mute button and put yourself out there.
Don’t just be jealous of people that have the enviable ability to wear their heart on their sleeves, try to take a leaf out of their book and face your fears.
I am determined that in 2010 I am going to change, give up my friend that has kept me protected and cut loose.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. What’s the worse that could happen? Keeping Kleennex in business? We all need to do our part to keep the economy afloat after all...
I laugh and joke about it with my friends and find some of my actions ridiculous but I have built this barrier that prevents me from saying certain words, paying someone compliments and admitting I might actually “like” (let’s not go too over the top and try to utter that other L word) a guy.
Getting someone interested in me (without sounding egotistical) isn’t a thing I find all that difficult. I’ve got a decent arse, I’ve managed to restrain myself from pigging out so much that I gain a muffin top and my face doesn’t look half bad either. I have a diploma in flirting and creating saucy innuendos but back me into a corner and ask me to vocalise my feelings for someone is another matter entirely.
Example; a guy tells me he loves spending time with me, I reply that I LIKE spending time with him too. I’m not even saying I love him but I can’t managed to instantly echo the sentiment. Ridiculous isn’t it? I want to say it but I appear to have a clamp in my mouth that prevents me. I wonder if I have to pay a fine to get rid of it?
I fear if I compliment a guy, he’ll assume I’m really into him and then lose interest, I would have put myself out there only to have the door slammed in my face and hear the words “actually, I’m not that bothered” = I am an emotional retard.
I am jealous of women that can be open about how they feel, don’t get me wrong I don’t want to be a needy, squeaky, I love you and I’ve only known you a week girl, but I am jealous of people that are brave enough to lay it all out in the hope they’ll get something in return.
Maybe these people haven’t ever really failed, really experienced the anguish of something blowing up in their face, or maybe they are just so much stronger and believe the saying “it’s better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all”
The older I get the more cautious I get, to the point I am ruining possible relationships before they even begin and I annoy myself for it. Can I really put the blame on the men that have wronged me or is this totally my issue?
Another part of my problem is that I enjoy being single, an alien statement for those who don’t feel whole without someone on their arm, but I’ve learnt to stand on my own two feet, have fun and not have to worry about all those sticky ‘feeling’ issues. I am aware that it’s not healthy to remain (and I hate this term) ‘alone’ for the rest of my days but how do you break the cycle of cut and run when it looks like it could be a goer?
I very much know I need to work on it and also know I am definitely not a one man band when it comes to this issue. Lots of people my age are suffering from the same affliction; the inability to jump in with both feet and not concern myself with the consequences.
My theory is when I find someone that’s prepared to work me through this, warts ‘n’ all, I will then begin to change my mind set, I honestly don’t think it’s something we can do by ourselves. It’s discovering that person who’s willing to take on an emotional retard though, because I have to say I’ve been confronted with the prospect of taking on someone that had issues before and I’ve given it a whirl but now I prefer to just leg it in the other direction.
So I guess what I, and so many other people need, is someone that has their shit together, that isn’t afraid of saying it like it is, who’s prepared to bring me out of myself but is there anyone that isn’t twisted? I ruddy hope so. And I do honestly believe there is, because I’ve pushed many of them away before as I’ve not been ready to accept that.
Can people that class themselves as emotional retards recover and go on to lead a happy, contented and drama free life? In short, yes, but the first step is admitting you have the problem, second step is to find someone that can understand the problem and third step is to work on it, together.
You can remove the clamp, turn off the mute button and put yourself out there.
Don’t just be jealous of people that have the enviable ability to wear their heart on their sleeves, try to take a leaf out of their book and face your fears.
I am determined that in 2010 I am going to change, give up my friend that has kept me protected and cut loose.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. What’s the worse that could happen? Keeping Kleennex in business? We all need to do our part to keep the economy afloat after all...
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