Cram 22 dates into two months and what do you get? Hopefully, the perfect guy.
It's Time!
On my 41st birthday, I opened my mailbox, anticipating over-the-hill gag cards. Instead, I pulled out a Dear Resident Singles letter and a brochure informing me that "It's never too early to think of investing in a burial plot." I suddenly felt poised between middle-aged spinsterhood and death.
Since my last relationship, I had become quite comfortable with my evening ensemble of sweatpants and slippers. Though I've never been married, a satisfying career and close relationships with my young niece and nephews had kept me content. But when friends my age started talking about PTA meetings and anniversary getaways, I realized it was time to step back into the dating game.
But where would I find available men in Manhattan? The bar scene had become saturated with 20-somethings and, thankfully, I'd exhausted my friends' supply of blind dates.
It was time to boldly go where I'd never gone before: organized dating services and singles' events. Giving myself a deadline of two months, I approached dating as if it were a job. I set up short-term goals (spending a pleasant evening chatting with an appealing man) and long-term goals (finding a person to share the rest of my life). I knew that the hardest part would be taking the first step.
