Ah, the New Years Eve! Perhaps the most pressured evening to couple up (with notable exception of Valentine’s day, of course.) Probably because I’ve been single for most New Years (and V-days) of my adult life - my relationships seem to be sprinkled in between traditionally romantic holidays - I am perfectly serene about my singlehood this time of year (or is in it denial?) However, both in talking to friends and reading the latest dating industry statistics, it’s obvious that I am in the minority.

Apparently, desire for love and relationships strikes singles most during the holiday season (and tough economic times). Dating websites like Match.com, Plentyoffish.com,Craig’s List, e-Harmony and others are reporting record sign-ups. The holiday season, paired with recession, apparently pushes us to seek companionship, support and encouragement, a sense of safety in the world. According to the dating industry, the week after New Years generally sees the highest number of new subscribers. With sign-ups already skyrocketing, I wonder what 2009 will bring!

So knowing that you might be writing your own personals ad soon, I propose the following dating resolutions to get the maximum results with the minimum rolled eyes from your dating efforts.  [Read more →]

Have you ever evaluated your date’s eating habits to determine how s/he might be as a lover? Just read a cool article suggesting there might be a connection. Although my own “sensuality correlation theory” has more to do with dance partnering than eating (I promise to share it with you soon) this eating thing makes perfect sense. People who eat with pleasure and delight, share and deliberately take their time to enjoy the food possess the qualities of sensuality and generosity that could very well translate to other areas. I suppose conversely not as much should be expected of people who don’t take time to savor their food or, worst of all, don’t like to share! Yeah, I can totally see it!

Consider the people you’ve dated and their relationship with food - any light bulb moments? I know I had a few. Remember Mo, my beastly Egyptian Gaston? I didn’t tell about you the food portion of the date as I greatly respect your time and attention span (who would have thought that one little date could produce so much material and food for thought - no pun intended!)

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Mo, Egypt (#3 in my quest for “18 dates around the world“)

When a man describes himself in the first email as “tall, dark and handsome”, includes an attractive picture and interesting facts about himself - eclectic educational background, interesting job and extensive travel experience - AND happens to have one of those amazingly deep, seductive voices on the phone, any red-blooded girl would be wondering 1) is he my dream man? and 2) what’s the catch?? I couldn’t wait to meet Mo to find out in which category he belonged. You know which I was rooting for… and I’ll give you one guess which it ended up being!

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As verified by my friend Liz - who by the way owns a cat - men with cats are not to be trusted! Especially if you’re someone whom cats don’t like in general. Enter Dean…

Dean, China / US / Greece (#2 in my quest for “18 dates around the world“)

I go into all blind dates with a mix of healthy realism (translation: pessimism based on previous experiences) and a secret hope that he will be THE one. When I met Dean, I did a happy little dance inside my head. Not only is he gorgeous and funny, Dean is also one of those intriguing people you want to keep talking to (and did I mention, he is gorgeous??) Half-American-half-Chinese, Dean was brought up in Greece; speaks several languages; has traveled all over; owns a business and is environmentally conscious. And delightfully-surprising, the chemistry between us was electric! We were talking and laughing and flirting for over an hour - including mentions of subsequent dates and only-half-jokingly joint travels - when SHE entered the coversation…

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Disclaimer for my male readers: this video may be more educational than funny for you. Then again, this was forwarded by a man so please feel free to disregard the slightly sexist assumption. I laughed out loud! Brilliant piece of advertising - enjoy!

You may remember my last not-so-hot date with a guy who had an open fly and a shrill bark (so wish I were kidding!) Thankfully my latest date kept his pants zipped up. But alas, this story once again involves flies… this time of the insect variety.

Jay, Haiti ( #1 in my quest for “18 dates around the world“)

From first email Jay was VERY enthusiastic, quirky and entertaining. Jay is a scientist at the National Institute of Health and cute according to a very smiley picture. Entertaining, cute and smart - great combination, at least for one date, I thought. I couldn’t have quite predicted the direction our date would take, but I have to say my instinct were right on! I had a ball meeting Jay - just not the Cinderella kind of a ball.  [Read more →]

I am a self-admitted travel junkie. And I am (clearly) single. So when I came across a book entitled Around the World in 80 Dates, it definitely had my attention. Former Lonely Planet editor Jennifer Cox realizes she meets more interesting men when she travels than in her home town of London and decides to go on 80 dates while traveling around the world. The book probably won’t win any Pulitzers but it’s cute and most importantly, I was totally intrigued by the concept!

I figured I could date cross-culturally without devoting six months of my life and remaining savings to the process. I’d much rather go on the trip around the world with my future partner, rather than in search of him (although I’m making great headway in covering territory in the meanwhile!) The awesome thing about DC is that you can just walk down a street and meet people from 18 different countries (yes, eighteen rather than eighty because you know, there is no way I’m putting myself through 80 dates, not even for your entertainment). And honestly, I am hoping that like the 5th date will be the last, at least for a while!

So what does a girl do to quickly wrangle up some “qualified” international dates? Enter Craig’s List. [Read more →]

When my colleague Sandy joined It’s Just Lunch a few months ago, not only was I hoping she’d finally meet that special someone, I was selfishly excited to vicariously live with her through $1300 worth of dates. In case you’re not familiar, It’s Just Lunch is a dating / matchmaking service - or so they claim to be - that charges $1300 for six dates or six months of membership, whichever comes last. They claim to have 2000 members evenly split between men and women in the DC area. Notice I keep using “claim” because upon further investigation, I must report, there seems to be very little truth in advertising.  [Read more →]

I just had one of those dates that inspired me to start blogging - a bit horrifying for me, potentially good reading for you! Not sure if you want to know more? Here’s a sneak peek (no pun intended): unzipped pants, Madonna singing impersonations (with corresponding dance moves), and barking sounds ALL in one fun-filled first-date package!

Curious yet? Ok ok, here’s the scoop. [Read more →]

Can you think of a more awkward moment on a date (ok, get your mind out of the gutter… at least for now) than when the check arrives? Who pays? This question has been plaguing modern daters since “dutch” entered the picture. Wasn’t it so much simpler in the “good ol’ days”? Everyone knew the rules - the man pays at a restaurant, the woman reciprocates with a nice home-cooked meal. No longer is there a tidy solution to this dating etiquette dilemma and, as you know, that often causes all kinds of awkwardness. [Read more →]