5 of the Most Egregious Errors in Online Dating

Well, it's April in Chicago. I'm hoping that spring isn't too far behind.

I'm starting to grow my bangs out, so needless to say, I'm entering kind of an awkward stage in my life. So naturally, I thought it would be a good idea to start another profile on OkCupid. I know I quit my last one because I was spending far too much online and I found the whole process to be a little creepy. But I'm giving it another try, but this time with limits. I try not to check it too often and delete messages that give me the creeps. However, I have found quite a few common errors on these gentlemen's profiles:

1. Zoolander face. No one looks good with the Zoolander face. Not even Ben Stiller.

2. Wildly inappropriate messages. I'm sorry, but messages saying "Your really hott" are not only completely grammatically incorrect, but they're also incredibly creepy and not productive.

3. Creeping. The same people look at my profile over and over and over and never message me. That, sir, is creeping.

4. Not asking questions. When you actually do message me, ask questions. Don't just talk about yourself. How am I supposed to respond to that? With the same level of narcissism?

5. Generic profiles. I'm pretty sure every guy on OkCupid is a world traveler, an adventurous eater, and really good at making people laugh. But I already assumed that, so tell me something else about yourself.

4 Things I've Realized Lately

As I move through life and become older and (hopefully) wiser, I'm realizing things about myself that I didn't see before. This doesn't need much buildup, so we'll just go right into it.

1. I'm more like my mom than I once thought. I was talking to my dad today and said something that I've heard my mom say, and I said it with my mom's tone and inflection. It made me take pause and think, "Oh crap." But a good "oh crap," not a bad one. I'm realizing that I have a lot of my mom's personality traits. I'm fiercely loyal, crazy efficient, and extremely persistent. But I'm also a little impatient and I don't suffer fools gladly. But my mom is an amazing woman and I can only hope to become half the person she is!

2. I really value my "me time." I'm very thankful that I live alone because I'm starting to see the introverted side of my personality come out more often. Please don't read "introvert" as "shy." Introverts aren't necessarily shy, and more often than not, they only seem shy to extroverts. I enjoy talking to people (maybe a little too much..read on for explanation) and love hanging out with groups of people. Conversely, I also find those two activities to be extremely draining and after a particularly busy weekend, I usually need to sit on my couch and stare at a wall.

3. I'm turning into an old woman. I go to bed at 10 pm and wake up at 5:30 am (ok, closer to 6:30 am). My free time finds me paying bills, balancing my checkbook, and worrying about laundry, cooking, and dishes. Well, I guess instead of "old woman," I should just say "domesticated."

4. I talk WAY too much sometimes. Remember how I mentioned I was going on a date with a guy named Jon? Well, I went. And it was a nice time. But then he never called. I was reflecting on the evening and I think that I may have scared him. I drank a little wine and started talking. And talking. And talking. I'm afraid I did the same thing with a new acquaintance at a party on Saturday. I never thought I would be the one to talk too much, but I guess I am.

That's all for now. Have a lovely evening, friends!

*I know the picture is random and that I usually try to make my picture match the subject. However, how can you resist gerbils in teacups? That's right. You can't.

Thursday Thank Yous

Really quick one tonight, guys, because I *need* to clean and go to bed! Anyway, here's what I'm thankful for at the moment (and always)!

1. My friends. I know I've been thankful for this in the past, but it's always good to have a reminder. My friends are the best people in the whole world and I love them SO much. Added bonus: I get to see my darling Morgan tomorrow! (Hence the necessity to clean clean clean..)

2. Daylight Savings Time. While I bemoan the lack of sleep and the inability to wake up on time, I love having daylight left when I get home from work! When I started work, I was leaving for work in the dark and getting home in the dark. This is much better.

3. Community. I love the communities I'm creating. I can't really define it, but I'm so thankful that I have the ability to live in community with people I care about.

What are you thankful for today?

Top 5 Things That Have Happened To Me Recently

Wow guys, sorry. My name is Melissa and it has been 17 days since my last confession (of a listaholic). Life has been so busy! But here's a fun post to catch you all up on my life. So without further ado, the top 5 things that have happened to me in the past two weeks and a few days:

1. New phone! I got a smartphone, but it is very capable of making me feel dumb. It's an HTC Incredible and I'm still figuring out how to make it work.

2. Online dating! I had a brief adventure into the world of online dating and found it creepy and time consuming. However, I did go on two agreeable dates with a nice guy named Alex (who I decided I wasn't interested in) and I have a date tomorrow with a guy named Jon. I have deleted my account, though, because I was spending so much time online creeping profiles.

3. Work! No, seriously. I love work and it's exciting. As of today, I have worked there an entire month. It's lovely. We go bowling and to hockey games and to Cubs games (in April) and spend a lot of time hanging out. Oh, and I guess we work too.

4. Parties! I had my housewarming party last weekend and I had fun. I think everyone else did too. And then this past weekend I partied myself out and had to lay low on Saturday, one of the biggest party days in Chicago! Oh well. I don't think I'd like green beer anyway.

5. Starbucks! In celebration of their anniversary, they decided to give away treats between 2 and 5 on March 10-12. I went on the 11th and the 12th. I've also decided that my new goal in life is to get a Starbucks Gold Card, so I've registered my gift card (and I may have purchased a gift card solely for this purpose) and am only using that at Starbucks!

Well, those are the most exciting things that have happened to me in the last two weeks and a few days. I'm off to celebrate the birthday of Enrique the goldfish, who is turning 1 today, with Paige, Kate, Ashley, and Ashley!

PS-I love this picture! It's so adorable!