A Wise Man Once Said...

My friend Eddie and I have had some pretty good conversations lately, re: Our Failed Romances (with other people, not each other). He always has such cogent remarks.

On my ex-boyfriend, who claimed that he was harboring some "secret":
It is an immense change from 20-25 years for a guy, almost twice the assimilation that occurs between say 17-20 years of age. It is a time of heightened awareness of knowledge
and responsibility, fears, and dreams that aren't coming to fruition. Sometimes a man might think the need to justify his behavior and to blow things out of proportion. Sometimes that manifests itself in this desire to be mysterious and deep.

On the difficulty of dating:
I have no idea how anyone gets married. So much confusion and misery involved in getting there.

On the trouble with having an "us" talk:
One of the problems with speaking so plainly about these things is that words can never be un-said. Guys want to get everything off their chest when we reach a certain point with a girl. Contrary to what you girls think, men really do want to talk about these things-I hesitate to call them feelings-but more along the lines of a status report.

On the existence of "social diseases":
I thought those were all scare tactics hoisted upon us by Health Class teachers.

On my satisfaction with seeing a former flame "make his bed" (which he will, at some point, have to lie in):
Not at all wrong to be a little satisfied that they'll get their comeuppance. If you don't, then you are nothing more than the doormat they believe you to be.

On the importance of men having to "work" to get what they want (re: women):
I think that something that just falls into my lap has no value. To paraphrase Thomas Paine, what we obtain too cheaply isn't properly esteemed.

On not "settling" for someone you don't love, just because that person loves you:
Certainly no one should feel they should be with folks just because the latter is enamored. If it were easy for the unrequited to move on, I think most would be happy to cut loose of such strong one-sided affection.

On the importance of not generalizing:
I will caution you against a mistake I often make: That how one person behaves is not really an indication of how other people behave.

On my tendency to dwell on points that are moot:
Let me just say though that you are examining something that is sort of irrelevant. It's like worrying about your seatbelt when the car has went off the cliff. Whether your seatbelt's on or off doesn't really matter now does it?

On whether he minded if I posted portions of his emails on my blog:
Edification of the masses is a noble goal. Maybe someone can learn from our recent troubles and all this won't be for nothing.

I think everyone should have an Eddie.