On the subject of my unreasonable standards. Day 2

Date: 2010-08-04, 5:48PM CDT
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There are a lot of things that will immediately make the decision on whether to respond to a Craigslist ad into an immediate "no." And honestly, a lot of those things are, on some level, pretty arbitrary to patently unfair. There are a lot of things people say about themselves that aren't bad things, not characteristics I dislike, but including them in an ad irks me on a barely conscious level and moves me straight to the next ad down the list.

1) "I am pretty sarcastic." I don't mind sarcasm. I don't actively like it either, though. Sarcasm is so much a part every day conversation that I don't notice it. Specifically saying that you're sarcastic means either that you think you're edgier than you actually are, or that your friends are completely humorless.

2) "I love to laugh." Really? I hate laughing. (see #1.)

3) "BBW" Again, I have no problem with the underlying reality that's implied here. I'm not looking for a jogging partner. The first problem is that the acronym is an annoying and cutesy euphemism that's polluting the language. The bigger problem is that if you included a picture, I can already judge your size for myself, and if you didn't include a picture, I'm probably not so concerned with your appearance if I'm still reading.

4) "Looking for a normal guy." I don't know what that means.

5) "Tired of the bar scene." I've spent hours at a time several days a week in bars over the past 10 years or so. I haven't gone out of my way to talk to strangers, but I have met and spoken to a couple hundred people in that time. Not one of them has ever used the phrase "the bar scene." That term seems to only exist in personal ads.

I completely understand that this list, incomplete though it is, seems petty and self-important. But the hardest part of dating is convincing myself that there aren't more interesting and entertaining things I could be doing, so it seems wisest to start by picking a person who wasn't either boring me or annoying me before I ever clicked "Reply."

I guess, ultimately, I don't have to worry about passing over my soulmate because she's looking for someone normal.

I'm Dan. I'm probably free this Friday.

* Location: Suburban Minneapolis
* it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

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