“When you see a girl like me bustin’ perps, there ain’t no time to be pretty.” -Mariska Hargitay
1. Our Intern. This morning our intern, Erin, sauntered into the office in her usual crop top and shorts ensemble. She looked a little tired.
Me: Cute crop top, Erin.
Erin: Thanks, let’s be real, I wore this last night.
Me: Glad you’re having a fun summer.
Erin: I mean, the makeup too. I woke up and it still looked good.
Ah, to be 21.
2. Dating Again. When I broke up with my last boyfriend a few weeks ago I was initially really upset. In fact, I had 2 solid days of “wow this feels like crap.” But then, sort of suddenly, a light bulb went off in my head and I stopped feeling crummy and missing him altogether. I was just over it. 8 months of pretty serious dating and all it took was 2 days of bleh for me to get over it. I feel tremendously guilty even writing this, because I know it sounds cold and unaffected. I do love him, I just realized that I loved the idea of his kid and the way our kids interacted more than I was actually in love with him… and that doesn’t exactly make a perfect, long-lasting relationship. So with relative ease I started dating again…
3. Young Dudes. The guys that have been approaching me lately have been much younger than I’m used to. We all know my type has been 40-ish, salt and peppery, running around the world in fancy suits, and typically being a little too nonchalant about life for most people’s palates. Now they’re filtering into my life in the form of late 20’s, early 30’s and surprisingly unscathed by the fact that I live a fairly public life, run a couple businesses, and make being a mom my first priority (especially in a city where most women don’t go down the mom road till at least 30 or so). This obviously makes me a little nervous, because it can only mean one thing: either I’ve been blind to the fact that some young dudes aren’t as immature as I previously thought, or they’re just not that smart and have no idea what they’re getting into.
I spoke to a close guy friend about this last night, asking for his opinion. He and I are the same age, and he’s straight enough to give me good advice and sensitive enough for me to actually heed it.
Me: Do you think dating guys my own age is just asking for trouble?
Dave: No, I think it’s a good idea, but if you’re going to date a dude your own age he better have a REALLY strong personality.
#true
4. Good Muzak. Love this… It’s on my playlist like every single day:
I was once in the same mindset that dating men well older than me would save a lot of heartache. Just imagine for a moment dating a guy (of any age) that has no baggage, no previous relationships that f’ed him up beyond belief and made him so jaded, not so set in his ways and a little open minded enough to consider your (and your child’s) needs. It’s not too good to be true. Some men are incredibly immature, and sadly, some never grow out of this. Age has nothing to do with it.