craig's casual encounters

About 2 months ago, I was kinda sorta not really dating someone to whom I was madly attracted...he went to NYC for 2 weeks and I found myself alone & restless one Saturday night. This is when I discovered Craig's List Casual Encounters.

This has led to many sociological discussions with my girlfriends on men -- their attitudes, obsessions, injudiciousness to sex -- our theories will be in at least one future post, don't you fret! If you haven't discovered this plethora of entertainment and cross section of human behaviour, it is a place where people post ads looking for nsa connections (is that an oxymoron?). Most are men, in fact roughly 96% are men, and perhaps 80% of that are hetero men. Looking for a sexual partner. Just for that night. Perhaps, "if the chemistry is right", for an extended period. But most posts clearly state the poster is home alone with nothing to do and nowhere to go and horny as hell so he's hoping a woman will come over to let him nail her- no names exchanged, no conversation, nothing more than some hot fun in the city tonight. "call me by 10pm, after that this post will be deleted"

ok, I confess, as a single, sexually charged woman, this is a fun past time as I get to see quite a variety of excited men all from the comfort of my HermanMiller 198 position ergonomically correct chair, in my favorite cotton jammies, while sipping red wine and listening to KCRW's evening broadcast streaming online. Most of them are very good looking- from the neck down. Only the VERY daring or crazy post their face here. But for my purpose on this excavation, faces are not necessary. Seeing lots of well-developed pecs, washboard stomachs, toned bums, perfectly hairy torsos...well, it's nice to absorb without having to give anything in return.

The posts are frequently accompanied soley by close ups of the man's erect penis. Sometimes with a ruler held next to it. Sometimes a beer can. Sometimes from all different angles. I suppose if a woman or man is ONLY looking for sex, this would indeed be the most important selling point. ahem. I said point. hee. Some point east. Those are my favorite

It's been over a month since I last studied the Casual Encounters and just now I was delighted to find this ad-

IF YOU WANT TO GET A GOOD RESPONSE FROM YOUR AD, IT HELPS TO HAVE PHOTOS THAT MAKE YOU LOOK YOUR BEST.
ALL DIGITAL SERVICE HERE.
ONLINE PORTRAIT PACKAGE
60 pictures burned to a disc
1 retouched favorite image of your choosing
$50.00
from mild to wild

Hmmm there's a guy on there tonight who could use this service. At first glance, he's a scroll-by, but on closer inspection I evaluate him as a possible grower given his scrotum and girth.

oh wait- he's got another post.... no, poor guy, he's a show-er.

So if you're looking for some nsa on Craig's list, your competition might get steeper unless you, too, put the webcam away and invest in some professional quality digitals of your genitals. And at the very least, you get to quench your exhibitionist thirst.

When do *I* get to be France?

Before I moved out to LA from Chicago, I’d heard nothing good about dating in LA. Hollywood. Land of movies stars and shallow bars. Spinning hubcaps and lips that look like they’re filled with lumpy jelly. So when my mid-west boyfriend and I broke up I knew I was in for, as Betty Davis said, a bumpy –and I don’t mean collagen injections- ride. In the past 4 years, I’ve dated a LOT, but every guy, after two or three seemingly great dates, calls and apologizes to me letting me know his heart is pining for another woman. My most recent experience was the son of a Forbes “100 Most Powerful” CEO. In ten days, we had three great dates with him gushing about how he’d treat me to a long, luxurious evening out when he got back from the family trip…to Paris. Upon his return, he sent an email explaining how he’d met a woman during his May trip to Paris and, over his 2-week December trip, had changed his mind about her deciding he was in love and wanted a commitment. I lost an amazing guy to France. Yep, France. Bitter bitter I was… Even more since learning he married her 9 months later in a lavish ceremony in the south of, yep, France.

Sometimes she’s an ex he thought he was over, sometimes she’s someone he met and decided not to date, but his time with me magically brought to light his true love and devotion to her. Let’s see the pattern, shall we?

The 36 year-old Toy Collector: He nearly cried to me on our first date about how his wife broke his heart when she walked out on him on his birthday the year before. They reunited a month later. Actually, that reunion didn’t bum me out because his home was literally filled with toys – the stove, the fridge, the ENTIRE 2 bedroom home littered with toys arranged to recreate famous scenes from films. uh-huh. And now he’s someone’s dad….raising our future. mmmm Well at least he’s not violent.

The MFA Shakespearean Actor: We were in a show together. Comedy of Errors- an appropriate description of my dating life in LA actually. For three weeks he clung to me during rehearsals and chased me to my car serenading me with his guitar. So I finally agreed to go out with him---he’d broken me down with his relentlessness. Three weeks later as I had decided he was possibly a good catch, he bolted. He and I are now friends so I now know I was the third woman he’d tried to date after he’d caught his fiancé cheating on him. Oh the drama.

The Magician! Hmmm yes, he was quite charismatic. And, well, magical. After two fun dates and two weeks of daily calls from him making all sorts of future plans for us, he emailed me letting me know he thought he was over his ex but, well, dating me stirred emotions he didn’t know he still had for her. Poof! Disappeared into thin air!

The Web Cutie: Chased me for three months then, when I finally decided to go out with him, he recoiled. He told me he’d dumped another woman 3 months before because she was too old, but now he’s decided he’s in love with her. Apparently his HTML codes were a bit mixed up.

Thinking this was merely artists’ flaky commitment phobia, I decided to launch out to the grown up world and dated Mr. France mentioned above. Well, you know how THAT ended. The chemistry, the poetry, the music, the Mercedes, the home in Bel-Air, the family private jet all for France. Oh la tristesse…

Then came Little Warren the Quaker: After five, yes! Five! Woohoo! dates- he said, or shall I say, broke down in tears and said he had SO much fun with me and was convinced we’d have a great relationship for 10 months but no more than that so we should stop dating now. The following 3 months, he dated others, but continued calling me and flirting with me and acting quite fond of me. So I would giggle to myself thinking – “a-HA I will FINALLY realize the glory of being that woman for whom the man dumps others to return with a grande l’amour!” But it hasn’t happened. In fact, he’s quite enamored with his latest pursuit.

So I ask with great frustration and aggravation-

“When do *I* get to be France?!”