This Month on For the Girls: Introducing Mr. Right

This month at For the Girls, I'm talking about that tricky moment when you introduce your Mr. Right to everybody else:

When I told them Mr. Right had proposed – bended knee, tears, huge rock for my hand – they were aquiver with excitement. One jumped up and down and screamed. Another stared at the ring and burst into tears. There were hugs and kisses and the round of ‘I told you so.’ Breaking the news of my upcoming marriage was like New Year’s Eve on Times Square. Everybody was happy, and nobody was worrying about what the future might hold, because it had to be perfect – right?

Navigating those waters is not all smooth sailing, and this month, I'm talking about what to expect when the "Congratulations" turns into "But..are you sure?"

And next month, look for a brand-new column on For the Girls, when I move from talking about the dating game to discussing the even bigger game: The Committed Relationship.

Enjoy the column, and as always, let me know what you think!

"You Think I Owe You...What?"

This month at For the Girls, I'm talking about dating disasters...like those times when a date seems to think spending money on a good time means he might get much more than a little kiss at the door...

"The one that really got to me was Andrew. Not his real name, of course – I’m changing his name to protect the undeniably guilty, even though he probably doesn’t deserve it. That was Andrew’s problem, really. He thought he deserved much more than he got, but we’ll get to that in a minute..."

Visit For the Girls to read my dish about dating disasters: the bad, the worse, and the unspeakable.

Test Drive, Lease, or Buy?

This month at For the Girls, I'm talking about men...and cars.

“You would never buy a car without a test drive, right? A man is the same way. Take him for a little spin. See how he feels. Take him around the block. Do wicked things to him, and with him, and see how he holds up. By the time you’re done, you know if you like him or not. Then you have the decision on whether to walk away from him, lease him, or buy him.” She grinned. “Men objectify women all the time. What’s wrong with deciding whether a guy is a hot rod or a lemon?”

What do you have? A sexy yet reliable Cadillac? Or perhaps a Corvette with a souped-up engine and a wild streak?

As for me, well...I'm all about the bad-ass Hummer type...


Men are like cars, and so are the dating choices: Test Drive? Lease? Buy? Or perhaps go with the ever-popular but commitment-shy Rental?

Visit my Learning Curve column at For the Girls to get in on the fun!

Dating and the Single Mother

This month on For the Girls, my Learning Curve column is all about dating and the single mother:


"You’re going to deal with a hell of a lot more than nerves on that big date night. First, what to do with the little ones? If you happen to have a family member nearby who loves to spend time with your kids, you’re in luck. If not, you have to secure a babysitter, preferably one who looks clean-cut, can offer a gazillion references and actually likes to play Candyland for three hours at a time. You will pay any amount of money for this peace of mind. If the babysitter knows this, your bank account is in trouble..."


Read more of this and all of my monthly columns at For the Girls. (Adults only, subscription required, worth every penny!)

Older Men Get Me Going

I have a thing for older men. It's no secret -- my friends delight in sending me pictures of men with just enough gray in their hair and sexy laugh lines around their mouths. They know it makes my day...well, spicier.



Ooh, look...a picture of an older man. Indiana Jones, at that! How in the world did that get in there?

Older men are sexy as hell for sooooo many reasons, but the one that ranks at the top of my list would have to be sexual. These fellas know the ropes, ladies. They've been around the block once or twice, and they know how to satisfy the woman who is fortunate enough to get between their sheets.



Oh, my. Another one!

In my Learning Curve column at For the Girls this month, I'm talking about older men. Older men like this one, perhaps...



Wait a minute. Stop right there. We need more of that...



Ummmm...

Where was I?

Ah, yes. The older man. The appeal of older men has to start somewhere, and for me, it was with that high school music teacher...he was forty-four and I was barely legal...

I watched the motion of his hands and the way he swayed on the bench with the music. I studied the lines around his mouth, the stubble on his jaw, the gray in his hair. For some reason, the gray kept my attention, and I was staring at his head when he finally stopped playing that piano, opened his blue eyes, and looked at me.

I don’t remember the conversation we had. I know it was entirely above-board and kosher, until the moment he rose from the bench. The dress slacks fit him just right, and the suit jacket had long since been discarded over the back of a chair, the long sleeves of his shirt rolled up to the elbows, the tie loosened enough to show me the sprinkling of salt-and-pepper hair on his chest.

“My God, you’re beautiful,” I said, and I remember well the way he smiled...

Oh, my. Do I ever.

I've got a lot more to say about the older man at For the Girls. Won't you go over there and enjoy a bit of eloquent gushing over fine specimens like this...



Ah, hell. Excuse me, I must go -- I'll head back to my writing while you head over to For the Girls, okay? Those men have me in the mood to write some smut.

More of Those Sexy High Heels!

What's the easiest way to get a man's attention? Read on...

Catching a man’s attention is simple. In fact, it’s so easy, it’s often overlooked. It doesn’t have to be expensive or extravagant. It doesn’t have to take a lot of time, or even a lot of thought. It just has to be at least three inches, preferably with a sharp point.

At For the Girls, I'm talking about high heels. Not only what they can do for you outside of the bedroom, but the fireworks they can create behind closed doors, too!

Click for more...

Celebrity Dating 101

This month on The Learning Curve, I talk about the paparazzi-riddled world of celebrity dating...

"When you date a celebrity, your life is no longer your own. Check your bags at the door, because once you’re in the public eye, you will never get away from it again, as long as you both shall live.

Anyone who has ever picked up a tabloid knows the downsides are obvious. Every move you make is scrutinized. Every word you ever said, to anyone at all, is a potential blurb in a gossip column. If you have any scandal in your background, it will be dragged into the light and held up for anyone who cares to look. You will be judged on your outfit, your weight, your hair, your eye color, and the kind of car you drive. You will be followed when you are out on dates, you will be discussed in chat rooms by strangers who think they know you intimately, and you will learn quickly who your true friends are. More importantly, and much more painfully, you will learn who your true friends aren’t..."

But then there are the upsides...and that's just the beginning! Visit For the Girls to read my monthly column.

Brace Yourself -- It's the Blind Date

Invariably, the blind date turns out badly from the beginning. Your date is late. Or he shows up on time, but is ten inches shorter than you – and you're wearing flats. He actually does wear a pocket protector. Or he's covered with tattoos, which wouldn't be too bad, but all the ink on this guy was used on naked pinup girls. He's got serious social anxiety and asks you to let him sit facing the door – just in case. Perhaps he goes on and on about how much he still loves his ex-wife. Or maybe his womanizing reputation leads to snarky glances from every woman in the restaurant. Then there are the ones you will never, ever forget.

My latest Learning Curve column is up at For the Girls! This time I take on that dreaded rite of passage for every single person who ever dove into the dating pool -- The Blind Date.

Eeek!

Diving Into the Mariana Trench

The Mariana Trench is the deepest part of the ocean. It reminds me of internet dating:

"I had been swimming merrily along in the dating pool, sometimes hopelessly lost but still with my head above water, but now I was headed into the deepest, darkest, most mysterious part of the ocean..."

And the mysteries are just as deep as that of the Mariana Trench, too:

"My first lesson about internet dating was that most men lie their way through the profiles with enough aplomb to make Jerry Springer proud..."

Read about my forays into internet dating in my monthly column at For the Girls.

Adults only, subscription required -- but well worth the money!