I have recently found an extraordinary woman. Since some have found joy in this profile I'll leave it up.

I'm the kind of guy who loves going out and having fun but can also enjoy a night cuddling on the couch watching a good movie.

AND - I happen to know EXACTLY what you want too. Oh, it's true.

You want men sending you more messages that open with such witty retendre as:

- "Hey, sup? watz up? You're hot. We should hook up. Like to have sex. u r gorgeous and i am single - lookin 2 have some sex and fun see where it goes from there ...if u r down hit me back with msn addy we talk go from there. Maybe a threesome? I don't have any STD's. And I'm huge. Know what I'm saying? I'll be your sugar daddy. I'm a tall tanned guy with fit body wide chest and other stuff lol lol wana chat n cam on msn? lol by the way nice pics..you are sexcie ..:) Cum play with me. - i saw all pics. u r very very crazy girl. u r absolutely stunning not to mention the full firm lady lumps. very nice. but i have to ask you...Masterbation??? do u think its nasty or hot??? im not being rude, just curious. maybe bi-curious. HA! HA! i have a webcam would u like to cam to cam?"
- "So, uhm. Sorry to bother you but uhm you looked interesting and I thought what have I got to lose right? Golly. I don't mean to be a bother. You're probably busy so . . . So, I think you're really pretty and uhhhhh . . . my ex is still in the picture. is that okay. oh my gracious i'm nervous . . ."

And then when you hit their site there they are - glistening, flexed, a beer in his hand, his pants unbuttoned suggestively and shirtless (and possibly balding, married and old enough to be your dad) . . . in front of their massive pick up truck. ohhhh. and further on their love of "watching hockey, drinking, partying, and their truck and drinking." How can you resist? Doesn't this tell you all you need to know about the character of this man? How can he be so raw and revealing?

Wait! Here's some intimate revealing details! "I love good movies and good food." WOW! That's the same kind of food YOU like. You have sooo much in common already.

You glance down and - how cute - they have the spelling and grammar skills of a mildly retarded chipmunk. And chipmunks are so adorable. How can you NOT want this man?

Or maybe he messages you and you delete it or don't respond (because you don't find him attractive or really just aren't interested). And he keeps sending you message after message filled with guilt trip statements such as " I guess you're not interested in someone who could treat you better" or "I'm what you want and you deleted me???" oooh. a charmer. take him, now!

I bet when you meet him you might be lucky enough to discover he's jealous, insecure, needy, clingy, and controlling. And maybe you could spend endless hours watching him sit on his ass in front of the TV inspiring you with his utter lack of ambition or goals. Maybe not. But you can dream . . .

I know.

Scary how I know that.


THIS IS WHY YOU ARE COOL:

I'm a hippie at heart. Down with capitalism and up with community.

(I've recently discovered that I'm incredibly attracted to indy girls. Swoon).

I want to meet someone who shines inside and out to ME. There's no one mold but generally I am attracted to EARTHY women who appreciate a more natural vibe and do not obsess with societal pressures to fit in. I just want real honest connection and someone who is natural and comfortable with themselves.

If you are the kind of woman who doesn't even consider looking at the contents of a your laundry soap to make sure you aren't polluting the earth please pass me by as we will have nothing in common.

I'm going to keep my eyes open until I find that woman. If I'm interested - believe me - you will know it. If I'm not I won't waste your time (or mine) by responding. I'm not looking for more friends than the ones I already have.

You probably can't help being provocative and curious and original. You are open to the world - extremely bright, funny, well read and people are happier and better for being in your presence. You're spontaneous and love the outdoors. You're a doer more than a watcher, a creator more than a consumer.

You're fit and slim. You're physically active and love the outdoors. And you are strong both in obvious and secret ways. You are confident, intelligent, social, empathic and warm, a bit sarcastic and bad ass but someone who really cares deeply about people. You are grounded, down to earth, and healthy.

You don't overdo it on the makeup or perfume (if you use any). You love real, honest communication.

You can't believe you're actually reading a profile on POF. But you are tired of the bar scene and you're not here because you can't find men who are interested IN you - you're trying to find a man who's interesting TO you.


ABOUT ME:

I like to take life (and dating) one day at a time. It's going to be what it is and I find that as long as I'm honest with people it seems to work out just fine.

I don't shy away from confrontation just because it might be 'scary' or someone's feeling might be hurt. I say what's on my mind and am pretty strong willed when something is important to me. I don't change my mind just to appease people and make them happy. If you want a spineless man to fetch things - move on.

My life has been a crazy mix of stuff.

I grew up in Edmonton going to an alternative hippy school called Waldorf. In kindergarten we would sit carting wool, then spinning it and then knitting our own recorder cases. I was, possibly, the only child at my school who never really learned how to play.

We learned Greek, Roman and Norse myths in elementary school, having Homer's Osyssey told to us by the teacher from the front of the room. We would bake our own bread in class, play capture the flag in Mill Creek ravine and somehow consistently persuade our french teacher to let us play soccer during french class ("Okay! But you guys need to speak in french while we play!").

My best memories are the Summer Solstice bonfires at Hawrelack Park where are the families and children would get together for a big end of the year picnic and celebrate. Then, when it was dark, we would gather around the fire for stories. So many happy memories from those times. The school, to my immense heartbreak, collapsed when I was in grade 6 due to politics I have never fully understood.

I went to public school in junior high and then to Victoria School for the Performing Arts (then Vic Comp). It was a wonderful, open and creative environment and I was blessed with incredible teachers across the board.

To the utter dismay of many of my teachers, I never went to university after high school.

Since then . . .

- I've done close up magic (card tricks etc) since i was 12

(CONT)

- street performing magic (which i have discovered is unspeakably harder than it looks),

- improv comedy more or less weekly since I was 16,


- led over 80 day long workshops for student councils and peer support teams from around Alberta over a span of about 7 years. They were a lot of fun and very well received and seemed to really have an impact on some of the youth who came. I miss it.

- worked under the table on and off for three years in california leading enviro/social justice summer camps all around north america for youth ages 15-25 where we'd spend a week exploring environmental issues, what it was like being young men and women in the world, stereotypes, racism, and sharing our feelings in a safe space - www.yesworld.org

- convened gatherings of leading young changemakers from every inhabited continent around the world - www.youthjams.org

- traveled a lot (Sweden, Brazil, Mexico, Hawaii, most of the USA and a lot of Canada)

- Spent a year in Nova Scotia learning Scottish Gaelic and then 5 months on the Isle of Skye in Scotland at a Gaelic college

- I now do marketing consulting for hippies as a job working with green, local, conscious businesses and helping them get more clients - www.tadhargrave.com

- I'm also am helping to found a local network in edmonton around green business, buying local, sustainable living etc. www.e-sage.ca


MY GUILTY PLEASURES: Comic books. I'm can be pretty sarcastic and not PC. I can quote new age stuff but am not a new ager. Long road trips with good friends.


THINGS I LOVE TO DO: Long, late afternoon walks in the river valley in the fall, enjoying the smells of autumn, making delicious and healthy food, deep and honest conversations with friends, advocating for social justice and environmental sanity, and wandering the farmers' market on Saturday mornings.

I've been successfully self-employed since I was 18 and I travel a lot around North America with my work which often makes it hard to meet women in Edmonton. I'm bored of dates with women I find cute and cool but don't feel inspired and challenged by.

PHOTOS AND THE PHYSICAL ATTRACTION PARADOX: "Beauty" (as magazines define it) is something you’re born with or you pay for. But what's rare is a great energy and outlook on life. What matters is not your beauty but if underneath all that, you still have a good heart. Having said that - no pictures likely = no response. This IS a dating website after all and physical attraction, while not everything, is important. I have pictures up - it's only fair. I'm not here to make new friends - I'm just here to meet a cute girl I find interesting.

MEETING IN PERSON: I don't mind talking online for a bit to get to know each other but I am interested in actually meeting people at some point so please do not contact me if you never intend on meeting.

IDEAL DATE: We'll figure something out.