Do you wanna date me?

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Okay, so here's the deal. In the interest of cutting through some of the flak that comes with dating, I've decided to be brutally honest... so if you wanna date me, here's the real deal:

First off, I don't drink that much alcohol. I just don't... it's not that I don't enjoy a cold beer with a good burger or pizza sometimes, or a nice glass of wine with an aromatic pasta with meat sauce, and yes, I even like getting buzzed and giggly sometimes on "real" drinks, too. But, I don't do it often and I dont' drink that much. I like fruit juices and seltzer - how about a tequila sunrise sans the tequila? This doesn't mean that I don't like you, or that I don't want you to drink, or that I'm super-religiously-holier-than-thou, or that I don't know how to still have a pretty decently good time. It just means that I don't drink that much alcohol.

Second, I play video games. Yea, I'm a geek, nerd, whatever, but they're fun. Usually I like single-player adventure games, like the Myst series. I don't like things that jump and me and explode blood and gore all over my screen. But I've recently become addicted to World of Warcraft. I'm not addicted like South-Park-episode-addicted (I do have a normal job, friends and go out with people), but I do enjoy it. And this also doesn't mean that I can't carry on conversations about normal things, nor do I weigh 2,000 pounds and only eat Doritos and go to computer game conventions dressed up in ridiculous costumes. No, I just play it...and enjoy it. I just see it as more engaging than TV, and more interactive.

Third, I like skiing, but I don't LOVE skiing. That seems to be a big one lately... that just because you're single, in your thirties, and live in NYC, you *must love skiing*. Well, I have to say, it's highly OK. I'm not bad at it, I'm not good at it, but honestly, I'd rather spend a weekend driving up to Maine to see the coastline scenery, or take a nice weekend trip to Montreal, or go to Boston to visit the aquarium and do historical tours. This doesn't mean I'm not athletic or interested in activities - let's go white water rafting in July or sea kayaking in Florida, or snorkeling in Belize... but if it's snowing outside, I'd rather curl up with a good book, a warm fireplace, and a big, poofy comforter than hurl myself down a frigid mountainside with 2 thousand other crazy people with sticks tied to my feet.

Fourth, I do geeky things. I cross-stitch (my mom taught me); I taught myself how to crochet and don't quite know what to do with all the scarves I've made. I read Discovery magazine, Newsweek comics, and National Geographic instead of Cosmo. I watch very little TV, but when I do, it's usually documentaries or British in origin, or sci fi stuff like BSG. I hate wearing makeup, but put on undereye concealer and lip gloss every day cuz I'm getting older. I don't like shopping for clothes, and absolutely hate buying shoes (and won't wear heels except on very special occasions.) I'd much prefer to save my money for a trip to Peru or the Galapagos, or Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, New Zealand, Eastern Europe, Norway, Russia or the Amazon. I don't need room service, but I do prefer a warm bed; I don't require hand-holding, but I do prefer company; I do like adventures, but I don't like feeling unsafe.

So there's the skinny... some of the things that "normal" dating scene girls may not admit to, but having just turned 36, it's time that people who want to get serious start accepting me for who I am... or moving on to someone else. If you're still interested, I'll have a cranberry, OJ and seltzer, please.
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