I hear ya! I know the Lex laws better than anyone! I failed on rule number one...no kids. At the time, I didn't drink...hadn't for years and years so I was comfortable stating I was a non-drinker. Since the kid flew the coop, I've opted to resume an occasional drink or two so I changed that on my profile recently.

As for the creativity streak and my intellect, Lex is quite aware of my capabilities and has actually been quite instrumental in trying to spur me to pursue my writing on a serious level. He's read some of my work and had nothing short of a glowing review for it. I'm sure he'd agree that I certainly meet his qualifications on those two domains.

I just wanted him to admit that someone cool and creative contacted him on here. I didn't say I wanted a marriage proposal or anything. We're actually the best of friends now...hell, I drove nearly 1,000 miles to lend him my truck for three weeks last Christmas. Like I said, I'm not the woman of his dreams but I do think I came pretty damn close! Maybe I'm just more delusional than my imaginary shrink thinks I am!

I'm not a therapist or counselor but I did just graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. Prior to that I was a 911 operator for nearly ten years so I'm trained how to handle stressful situations. I also can relate to many of the things you stated earlier about being empty and feeling alone. I have the utmost respect for our military members so if you need someone to talk to, please hit me up. I can't promise you that I can solve all your problems, but I can tell you that I will listen and do my best to help you figure things out. Again, I'm not a licensed therapist so this is strictly a friendly offer from one mingler to another. Send me an email if you want and maybe we can make arrangements to meet online at a certain time each week...

Breathing, willing and able to use brain cells on a daily basis, not married and NOT a Yankee fan. All the rest is up for discussion.

Whoa now Nellie. I know I'm a little late on adding my two cents to this topic, but I had to bring up a tiny little fact here. I contacted you and I not only have superb literacy skills, I had a first email that was damn near the length of your profile! Now I realize it's been years since you first heard from me, but you can't REALLY say that NOBODY with any creativity has bothered to contact you on here.

Okay, so maybe I wasn't a prospective romantic interest because I've dared to use my birth canal, but my "child" was a whisker away from being out of the house and on his own (which he is now!) and I think we hit it off pretty well as far as understanding each other. While I won't go so far as to say I was the woman of your dreams, I would like to think that I at least gave you pause for a brief moment in time. And although I'm thrilled that we've established a fantastic friendship over the years, it really gets my goat when you rant on and on about no potential interesting contacts. What the hell was I? Chopped llama droppings?

Hey now, you can do a little jig and create rain but you can't help a girl out with one or two little wishes? Geez, I underestimated your wonder powers my friend!

I've posted this numerous times but one of my favorite sayings is "A hungry closed mouth will never get fed." Speak up. Say what you feel. Accept that you may get shot down but know that you might not. Better to risk pain than live wondering what could have been.

Or you could just buy a t-shirt that says "I need a date. Yes, I'm talking to YOU!" Not advisable but you'll certainly get approached.

Win, win? Sweet!! What do I win? A new car? A man's heart? A trip to watch the Sox win the World Series this year? Or the Bruins repeat? I'll take any or all of the above, thank you very much!

My mother was hounding the hell out of me wanting to know why I've been single my entire life. She was constantly telling me that I need to look for "The One". In an effort to appease her and not be a liar, I put up a profile on this site. Voila, I could now say I was actively seeking a romantic partner.

Truth be told, I look all the time...at the guy driving in the slow lane parked at the red light next to me (I'm in the fast lane 99% of the time!), at the games for the guy rooting louder than me, pretty much wherever I go. But I'm not really "looking" per se. I figure if it's meant to be, it will be. I just go along being the best me I know how to be and hopefully, like a sucker punch you don't see coming, BAM, someday love is gonna hit me. Hopefully I'm as quick on the uptake as I am on the roadways and I don't swerve instinctively to avoid the collision.

Ha! You just sorta proved my point. So the guy is just being polite when all he wants is meaningless sex? Why not just say that? I would have more respect for the guy that walks up to me in a bar and says "Hey baby, I wanna take you home and screw the hell out of you and never call you again" than the guy who asks you out that night, kisses you on the cheek after the dinner date, says he wants to take it slow and then dumps you after you finally give it up once you've developed feelings for him. All he really wanted was meaningless sex but he wanted to be polite about getting it! The second guy is more of a bastard than the first in my book.

As for me personally, I'm blunt. If I want to sleep with you on the first date, fifth date, five months after we meet, whenever, you'll know it. I'm not ashamed of my feelings and I try to be as clear as I can be in my intentions. Like you said, if the guy is offended, he's not the guy for me. I keep on keeping on and someday I'm going to find someone that's on the same page and wants what I want. I get accused of being brutally honest though and I always plead guilty as charged. I'd rather lay my cards on the table and lose than hold my tongue and wonder what could have been. One of my favorite sayings is "A hungry closed mouth will never get fed."

Trust is a gift you should bestow upon yourself, not others. You can only control your actions, not theirs. If you trust that you can handle anything, emotional pain included, then the animosity and bitterness you feel towards women in general will fade. Perhaps it isn't the women you mistrust...perhaps it's your feelings that you mistrust. You may say "I was faithful, honest, loving and a good mate to her and I believed that she would be the same to me." She wasn't and now you may be questioning yourself...how can I trust that the next woman won't fool me too?

I personally don't worry about what my partner may or may not do. I invest my all in the relationship and hope for the best knowing that if they hurt me, I will get up, brush off the wound and carry on. Eventually I will find someone that has the same commitment, love, passion and honesty that I give to the relationship. And I trust that I will be enough for that person when I find him.

Good luck in finding what you seek.

I think the line between honesty and dishonesty is often blurred. Both terms are subjective. Everyone tries to make a good impression when first meeting a potential partner, so maybe you omit the total truth (call it lying if that makes ya feel better!) for fear of giving the wrong impression. In my experience, most people can't handle the absolute "truth"...

Some lies are easy to decipher. If you say "That chair is red." and it's actually green, well hello, that's a lie. But feelings and likes/dislikes are not so clear and concise, so this leads me to believe there are degrees of honesty/dishonesty when it comes to what we want/don't want in a relationship or partner.

If you're married and say you're single, you're being dishonest, no question there. But if you don't tell your date that you're sexually attracted to them on the first date because you don't want them to think you jump into bed with any Tom, Dick, or Harry, are you being dishonest? I think not even though you ARE honestly attracted to them. Sure you could tell them, but what impression would that give? I would guess they would think all you wanted was a piece of *** when in reality, it could be that you haven't had sex in years and find very few men attractive enough to spawn that kind of sentiment. So what's a girl to do? "Lie", or tell the "truth"? And therein lies the dilemma.

True colors show through in time. At least, that's how it seems to work in my delusional little world.

Yeah!! That gives me incentive to live for the next 31 years. Plus I'll need a boatload of money at 72 if I wanna have a dozen cabana boys to rub Aloe Vera lotion on my wrinkly old Florida sunburnt body!

I couldn't be with an Einstein that physically repulsed me, nor could I date a hot looking guy with the intellectual aptitude of a forest mushroom. I need a man that makes my heart beat faster both when he speaks and when he's silent. Go figure why I've been single forever.

This place has provided a wonderful opportunity for a hermit such as myself to come out of the shell a bit. Although I normally stay in the background and observe, over time I've slowly crept from the shadows and posted here and there. I was rewarded with acceptance and kind words from some really cool people. They make me laugh, share my tears, and genuinely try to help when help is needed.

This place isn't just a dating site...it's an oasis in an otherwise crazy world.

And Lex, my dear friend...kindness and friendship may have played a small role but I really did it for the autographs! Once you get that movie deal, I'll be able to say "See, I knew him way back when...".

Anything I could get my hands on! I was a bookworm at this stage of my life...hadn't gotten interested in boys yet, so other than playing baseball, I had my head stuck in a book constantly.

It's only in the high 90's down here in South Florida with the heat index rating of about 105. I love it...I baked in it for two hours today! My new favorite color is tan!

I have no idea how to meet people. Seems kinda awkward to walk up to someone you don't know and say "Hey, you look kinda cool. Can we be friends?". For now, I just go out and do my thing, whether that's walking the dog or hangin' out at the beach, and I wait for someone to want to meet me. If nobody approaches, I just go it alone like I always have. Suppose this isn't the ideal approach but I've never been a social butterfly and I'm probably not about to morph now.

About six Alabama Slammers does the trick for me.

My new roommate is an international chef so he does the cooking around here. He's making a steak and some kind of rice concoction tonight. I'm handling the dessert part though...strawberry shortcake! My favorite!