Men seem to sense this reality. They know that if a woman wants a family... she is staring down the 35 ADVANCED MATERNAL AGE deadline. Time is TICKING, people! Eggs are shriveling! Dying! NAY screaming as we speak!
I experience this firsthand not too long ago. I met Jim when I was 29. We only went on one date because ummmm... he forgot to mention he has two daughters (ages 9 and 11). Oops. "Didn't I mention that?" No. No you did not. I politely explain to him that I just "am not in the place in my life where I'm able to date someone with children."
Fast forward two years. I run into him at the gym.
He knows it. I know it. The day when I will have to entertain dating someone with kids is nigh. I'm not *quite* there yet.
The older I get I AM much more open to dating someone who is divorced, disengaged, etc. because let's face it. The older we get, the more baggage we accumulate. And that's okay. I can honestly say that if I met someone I connected with (in person), it might not matter if they had been married before.
But that's the danger of online dating. I get to eliminate you because you're not my "ideal" match. You have children. You're divorced. You didn't finish college. You're not at least 5'8. You don't play accordion. I'm not saying you shouldn't have standards. But what I'm saying is that it's possible to "filter out" some great people because they carry extra baggage. I'm being filtered out now, in some cases, because I'm 31.
Where to draw the line, then? With Jim I didn't feel enough of a connection to deal with his baggage. Like I said: Check back with me in 5 years, buddy.
That video is fantastic. Ha!
ReplyDelete"The older we get, the more baggage we accumulate."
ReplyDeleteYep, as the line from that lovely musical says:
"Life's too short,
time is a flying,
I'm looking for baggage that goes with mine..."