One of my interests is "coloring outside the lines", so how can I possibly confine myself to this tiny box?

90 percent of online daters hate filling out this section. Shameless self-promotion isn't my thing. Every sentence has to start with "I" and we're supposed to list all our appealing qualities and hide all our flaws. Here are my "I" sentences, one of which is true:

* I spend so much time volunteering at the animal shelter and food pantry that I haven't had time to put my Pulitzer prize on the bookshelf

* I have a Mensa IQ but would rather discuss Marvin the Martian than Nietszche

* I blah blah blah

"You can make more friends in two months by becoming more interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get people interested in you." (Dale Carnegie)

My purpose for being on POF is to make friends. I'm not looking for a LTR, but I'm not opposed to one. Friends don't have to be my clones, just people who share some common interests. You march to the beat of your drum, I'll march to the beat of mine, and if our lives happen to intertwine that's cool.

I'm not looking for an "online relationship" with countless email and IM exchanges. If you want to be friends, be prepared to talk on the phone or meet for coffee/dinner. Real relationships are face to face, not keyboard to keyboard. I would much rather talk than type.

I'm just looking for friends, not an f-buddy or short term fling. I'd LOVE an intimate encounter -- as long as it lasts the rest of our lives.

COOL QUOTES:

Life is short, break the rules, forgive quickly, kiss slowly, love truly, laugh uncontrollably, and never regret anything that made you smile. Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

(This quote has been attributed to Mark Twain, but the attribution cannot be verified. The quote should not be regarded as authentic.)

When you fish for love, bait with your heart, not your brain.
(Authentic Mark Twain)

Random thoughts:

Chocolate is a food group
Love is a verb
Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive
He who laughs last didn't get it
You had me at "Get lost creep"
Beauty is fleeting, your mind and soul are everlasting
Live simply but with intensity

My quirky contradictions:

I buy DVDs and books but sometimes never get around to watching/reading them
I like tattooes and piercings but have neither
I care about the environment but nuke my weeds with chemicals

UPCOMING RUNS

Fall Color 5k - Lisle - October 4 (awesome colors at Morton Arboretum)
Chicago Marathon - October 11 (volunteering)
Columbus Marathon - October 18 (doing the half marathon)
Sycamore Pumpkin Festival 10k - Sycamore - October 25 (never miss it)
Carrera De Los Muertos 5k - October 31 - Chicago (gotta get one of those cool shirts)
ReggaeMarathon - Negril Jamaica - December 5 2009 (tentative/wishful thinking mainly)
Galena Duathlon - Galena - May 22 2010

If anyone else likes to run and wants to meet up at one of these events please let me know.

Do friends "date"? Let's arrange a first meeting. If there's any chemistry we can discuss dating later.