Everyone Into the Pool

I have not been in the dating pool since 2001. I know, I am surprised when I stopped to think about it as well. On a sunny afternoon in late 2001, I approached a tall bald man frantically scribbling away in his artist pad. I asked for a date. This continued until the week I started blogging. My first blog post was about his move to New York, to start his new life. What seemed a millisecond later, I stood in the Denver Eagle as a leather-clad Italian man shoved a crumpled piece of paper with his phone number on it into my hand. After all of that, I'm dating. Me. dating. It goes without saying that the last time I was casually dating there were no hook-up sites held in the palm of your hand. There was, if I remember back that far, websites to post fake information about yourself. I feel I was more of an "early adapter" to technology, rather than to say I was a slutty whore.

The major difference between 2001 and now isn't the technology. It is me.  Obvious to say there are massive  and obvious changes from the twenty-nine year old to the forty-three year old me. Muscle mass, credit rating, patience and courage, and Need verses Want. Back in the day, attempting to find someone was a need. A desperate pit of need. This stemmed from not being comfortable in my own skin. That state that is so common in one's twenties.  I noticed this last night as I sat across a table on what would be considered a "first date." The driven attempt to be liked and desperation to do and say the right thing wasn't there. The so common pit of desperation prevalent during my last round of dating was noticeably missing.

Things have changed a lot since my last round of the dating game. It is faster and more convenient to find the nearest frat guy of your liking. I; however, am thankful that I am diving into the crazy dating pool now, after I have aged to a point where become comfortable with me. Making dating a Want, not a Need.