Skip to main content

Have You Ever Tried Not Dating?

I think I may have found my very own "He's Just Not That Into You."

You know, the direct catchphrase that changed the way women think about dating with a dash of cruelty and a big lump of honesty?

Yeah, I think I found another one of those.

Here it is:

"Have you ever tried not dating?"

Think about it--it fits almost every bad dating situation.

Your girl friend tells you that she keeps winding up with guys who steal her car and use her ATM card.

You respond with: Have you ever tried not dating?

Your guy friend tells you he always winds up with crazy girls who try knocking him unconscious and taking him to an all-night wedding chapel in Las Vegas.

You respond with: Have you ever tried not dating?

At first, it just sounds means, but then they think about it--

Wouldn't most of their problems be solved if they had time to reflect on what was going on with them?

At the very least, they're not going to get into any more trouble because they just WON'T be dating.

And you, their friend, won't have to hear stories about how they kidnapped their ex's cat or lit their mailbox on fire.

So often, we say to ourselves--You know, I really should take a break from dating.

Then, of course, we're asked out by people.

Why?

Because life likes to tempt us after we make broad, sweeping statements like--

"I'm not going to date for awhile."

--and--

"My car runs just fine. I doubt it'll need work done on it at for the next few months at least."

The trick is, when you adopt "Have You Ever Tried Not Dating?" what you're saying is--

No, don't just avoid pursuing people. When people pursue you, tell them you're on a break from dating.

That oughta separate the boys from the breakers.

I think all of single society would be a lot better off if everyone collectively decided to take a few months off from interacting with each other romantically or otherwise, and evaluated themselves.

Believe me? Of course you do.

Who doesn't believe a good catch phrase?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

A List of People Who Can Go to Hell Now That I Can't Have Elizabeth Warren

So today was a rough day for everybody who isn't a @#$%-ing #$%hole. Let's just start there. If that upsets you, by all means, go straight to hell. This entire rant is going to be exactly what it sounds like. I am mad and I am going to exercise my right to BLOG ABOUT IT LIKE IT'S 1995, SO BUCKLE UP, BUTTERCUP. I really don't even know where to start, so let's just jump right in with the first person who comes to mind. Bloomberg, go to hell.  You really didn't have anything specific to do with today, but you can just go to hell for spending an ungodly amount of money on literally nothing.  I mean, you could have lit millions of dollars on fire and at least warmed the hands of the homeless, but instead, you made tv stations across the country that are already owned by Conservatives rich, so kudos to you and go to hell. Amy Klobuchar, I STUCK UP FOR YOU AMY.  I got into FIGHTS on SOCIAL MEDIA while DEFENDING your sorry, self-interested ass.  You know ...

Theater and the Outbreak

After last week's interview, a representative from a theater that recently experienced the results of opening too soon reached out to speak with me. I want to thank this person for coming forward in the hopes that it'll change some minds about what's safe and what isn't when it comes to the performing arts. Here's the interview: ME:  So this wasn't a full production or-- THEM:  No. It was us trying to do a little something for friends and donors. ME:  Who is 'us?' THEM:  The board of _____. ME:  And how long have you been on the board? THEM:  Three years. ME:  What was this going to be? THEM:  There's a, uh, beautiful park here in town, and we wanted to do an outdoor performance of a Shakespeare as a benefit, because, as you know, theaters are having a hard time right now paying the bills. We checked with the local government and the health department for the state to make sure we were doing everything the way we needed to in order to keep everyon...

The Community and The Hypnotist

  Two years ago, I started interviewing people in the theater world about the problems within that community. All the subjects of the interviews remained anonymous to encourage people to speak directly and plainly without worrying that there would be consequences down the line. (Of course, even then, some people felt like outing themselves and getting in hot water, but we're going to leave that water under another bridge.) When I decided it was time to bring the series to a close, it was partly because I thought it had run its course, and partly because I had a new topic I wanted to tackle. While I've had my issues with theater and the people who do it, I've never felt like I didn't belong there, whereas from the moment I came out, I've never truly felt like a part of the gay community. To be clear, that probably has way more to do with me than the community, but it's something I wanted to explore, and I knew how I wanted to do it. The theater interviews were al...