Just looking for friends in the area. Apparently, people fall in love with me but then decide I'm not worth the risk. Gotta love the whole "I love you BUT" business! I've met nothing but flakes here on POF.. Must be the area I live in. LOL.. I still have hope that there are people with more between the ears than just a pretty face! ;o)

I officially give up looking for love and romance. If it comes, great, but it seems to be all a hoax. There are far too many liars and immature people wanting to play games out there. No one takes responsibility for their own actions anymore and everyone wants to pretend they're the victim, not caring who they hurt in the process. Between the flip-flopping and the not saying what you mean or meaning what you say, I'm so done with flakey people who don't know what they really want. Wishy-washy people FTL.. Who's with me on this? =oP

Really, we all have our insecurities and defenses but if you don't give people a chance, you're only becoming the very thing you loathe in others. I'm so done with it. I know, people that deserve a chance are probably paying the price but I just don't want to put myself out there anymore. I guess I've finally been broken and I'm sure, amidst whomever may be reading this, someone out there knows just what I mean and isn't just reading bad signs from this and getting scurred. ;o)

Simply put, I am looking for friends and, no, that's not guy talk for "booty call". Meaningless sex is so passe and pointless. I want to make real connections and develop lifelong bonds, hopefully finding someone of substance that can be my companion, best friend, muse, lover, and all that good stuff. In the meantime, I'll be enjoying the soundtrack to my life... [o=

* Taylor Swift "Cold Like You"
* Three Days Grace "Just Like You"
* Secondhand Serenade "Vulnerable"
* Theory of a Deadman "Make Up Your Mind"
* Fuel "Bad Day"
* Hinder "Better Than Me"
* Rick Ross "Here I Am"
* Coldplay "Fix You"
* Breaking Benjamin "Breath" (You left a hole where my heart should be...)
* Hoobastank "The Reason"
* Puddle of Mudd "Take It All Away" (No one left that's real...)
* Puddle of Mudd "Blurry"
* Akon "Dangerous"
* Nickelback "How You Remind Me"
* Queens of the Stone Age "Tangled Up In Plaid"
* Serj Tankian "Charades"
* Three Days Grace "Home"
* Duran Duran "Box Full O' Honey"
* Robbie Williams "At Least We Tried"
* Hinder "How Long"
* Within Temptation "Destroyed"
* PJ Harvey & Thom Yorke "This Mess We're In"
* Aerosmith "Jaded"
* Puddle of Mudd "Blurry"
* Tim McGraw & Faith Hill "It's Your Love"
* Three Doors Down "Here Without You"
* The Strokes "You Only Live Once"
* Theory of a Dead Man "It Ain't No Surprise"
* The Cure "If You Leave"
* The Doors "Hello, I Love You"
* Lady Antebellum "All We'd Ever Need"
* Aerosmith "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing"
* Nickelback "Savin Me"
* Lady Antebellum "Love Don't Live Here Anymore"

...Too many to keep on listing. I'm a pretty sentimental kinda dude so anyone that says that sensitive, romantic guys don't exist anymore needs to get off the crackpipe. Oh yeah, and just cause a guy is nice doesn't mean he's boring, a pushover, indecisive, etc. Stop generalizing, folks.. There are people that break the mold, I assure you - I'm still looking for 'em but I believe they're out there, somewhere under the rainbow!

*****

For those that read my profile and think I am too much trouble to take a risk with, I quote Marilyn Monroe:

"If you can't take me at my worst, you don't deserve me at my best." (or something to that effect)

*****

I don't like pre-packaged or cliche things, really.. So there is no such thing as a first-date formula to me. The absolute must to me is being able to actually talk and interact somehow. A simple walk in the park can often be better than dinner and a movie but sometimes the "classics" do the trick just fine.

It all depends on the person I am dating. I'll try to find a common comfort zone so we can both be ourselves and open up. I've wined and dined all the wrong women and, now, I rather just keep things simple in the beginning, pace ourselves, and see if there is really something worth building upon.. That way, no one wastes their time.

Don't get me wrong, I am totally the chivalrous, romantic type but I guess part of me harbors a jaded cynist. I rather streamline the dating process and get to know someone as much as possible before we officially "go out". Time is a resource many of us do not really have to spare and you can never get lost time back. As I grow older (and hopefully wiser), I have much more appreciation for my time and the time of others. Needless to say, being able to communicate with each other, whether it's via music, text messages, short stories, phone conversation, face-to-face encounters, or whatever is a MUST. That sets the stage for a truly worthwhile "first date"...

I think really getting to know each other and setting a reasonable pace helps prevent broken hearts and drama. People these days are quick to drop the L word or set great expectations.. They rush in blindly then try to take back everything that has been said and done (sorry, it just doesn't work that way). I believe friendship sets the foundation for any worthwhile relationship but some people act like friends and lovers are mutually exclusive entities.. Crazy talk! =oX

I think dating should be about building bonds without the worries of past mistakes or future prospects. Just take things as they come and enjoy what you have today, rather than what you could have. A first date should embrace those principles and be spontaneous, natural, memorable.. a series of truly warm connections that are built up to with a little TLC and lots of honesty - hey, that rhymes! =oP