Saturday, June 20, 2009

Okay another theory- from a woman's point of view

http://collegecandy.com/2008/08/02/why-%e2%80%9ci-don%e2%80%99t-think-of-you-in-that-way%e2%80%9d-is-so-damn-complicated/http://

well kinda a woman's point of view-it seems she is still in college------ so maybe a mature- mature student.
However--- or I guess I should say "Whatever dude, we still think the same way"

OKay the link did not work- complete with the very hot very young man--- gosh I feel like an old pervie!

I have had, on multiple occasions, the uncomfortable conversation that always ends with the words “I don’t think of you in that way.” I have sat down with many a guy friend to clarify that we’re just friends. I have explained to guys numerous times that I like to keep my friendships and my relationships separate, and that I don’t date my friends. I always mean it when I say it. I always want to stick to it. But the line between friendships and relationships always seems to blur in my confused little world. Why is “I don’t think of you in that way” so hard for me to say?
There have been several occasions this year where I have had to have this conversation. What troubles me the most is that I can’t seem to avoid it. I’m a huge flirt, especially when I’ve had too many whiskey sours, so I can understand why some guys might get the wrong idea and think I’m interested in more than just a shoulder to rest my head on when the room starts to get spinny. But even with guys I don’t get super flirty with, I still have to have the conversation. It’s always approached one of two ways:


The first is a situation in which I have heavily flirted with, or mildly hooked-up with, a guy friend and I have to explain to him that this doesn’t mean we’re meant to settle down, get married, and procreate. The second situation, and the more annoying one because it’s unavoidable is the, “How come we never hooked up?” conversation.


I’d like to clarify my position on this friendship/friends with benefits/relationship conundrum once and for all. Guys, listen up.

First things first –– we never hooked up because I never wanted to. You’re not my type. Get over it.

Second, “The Ladder” theory is absolute bullsh*t. I’ve had many guy friends point me toward this folk psychology explanation of how men and women rank potential friends and lovers. It’s bull. According to the theory, guys place women hierarchically on a ladder ranking them potential lover or potential friend, judging their sexual desirability first, as in, “She’s hot, but not Jessica Alba hot, I give her a 7.”


Women, reversely, place men they meet on one of two ladders: a “Potential” ladder, for those they might sleep with, and a “Never” ladder, for those they just want to be friends with. I can tell you definitively right now that girls do not think this way. When we meet a guy we don’t immediately categorize him as a potential anything. And when girls say, “I just think of you as a friend,” what we’re really saying is, “I don’t find you attractive.” We’re just trying to spare your feelings.

There, I said it.

When I flirt with you, it’s because I enjoy flirting, not because I’m in love with you. When I hook-up with you, it’s because I want to hook-up with you, not because I’m in love with you and want to have your babies. It’s really that easy.

What it takes to get me to commit to a relationship is a lot more complicated now than it was when I was in school. Back then if I met a guy whom I was attracted to and who had at least one or two good personality traits (could make me laugh, was smart, wrote pretty poetry) that was enough to make me want to label him my “boyfriend.” Not so much anymore. A bad relationship can be a great learning experience. I’ve had several bad relationships. I’ve learnt enough. So when I say that I just want to be friends, it’s because I think we’d have a “learn something” relationship. I’m an adult now, I don’t have time to learn things, I’m just trying to pay my rent.
That being said, just because I want to be friends right now doesn’t mean I won’t change my mind later. I had the unfortunate experience this year of realizing that I had feelings for a guy friend way too late in our relationship. I had my window to turn our friends-with-benefits situation into a relationship, I decided that I wasn’t into him in a boyfriend way, and I passed on the opportunity. Months later, I realized I was in love with him and it was way too late. Needless to say, we’re not friends anymore. I got my heart broken and I broke it all by myself.
“I don’t think of you in that way” is, more often than not, a lie. That’s like a guy denying he’s though about having sex with his female friends. Of course he has. He probably thinks about it all the time. I’ve considered different dating possibilities among my friends, even when we’ve been friends for a while, and, yeah, I’ve thought about what my guy friends would be like in bed. (Guys, you’re not the only ones with dirty minds!)

So, guys, here’s the deal, the next time I say to you, “I don’t think of you in that way,” I mean one of two things:

A. I’m not physically attracted to you. But I’d still love it if we could hang out.

B. I care about you deeply as a friend and I’m too mature to f*ck that up by trying to date you for a couple of weeks and then have it not work out. But you might want to check back in a few months because maybe I’ll change my mind.

It’s up to you to figure out if you’re a group A guy or group B guy.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

"Why is “I don’t think of you in that way” so hard for me to say?"

Because you know deep down that it's about as big an insult as you can give to a man.

"just because I want to be friends right now doesn’t mean I won’t change my mind later"

You might change your mind? Is that the whole "women's prerogative" thing?

That's weakness. It means that you (not necessarily you personally, but "you" in the collective sense) can't be counted on to keep your word.

Say one thing, then do another. No matter what a guy does, he can't count on her to stay true. Why? "Because I might change my mind based on nothing more than a feeling."

And, as ever rational person knows, feeling lie.

So if you DO change your mind and DO eventually turn a friend into a partner, there will always be this nagging suspicion in your partner's mind: "She changed her mind once. She might do it again. I'd better protect myself, so I'll stay as remote and unattached as possible."

Then she'll wonder why he's distant.

Anonymous said...

Look, let's just call this what it is rather than babble about ladder theory.

It's about power. 100%.

Women want, and often get, an existential power rush when they decide whether to be with a man or not.

That's also why many women are so quick to call themselves "liberated," "strong" and all the rest but still insist that a man make the first move.

Seems that equality is only occasionally preferable when it serves their purpose. When it comes to women making the first move on a man, those same women who call themselves "modern" and "liberated" and so forth are lightning-fast to talk about "traditional values" and "it's up to the guy to make the first move."

It's their decision, and anything that starts to erode that power will be viciously attacked.

That's what the ladder theory does. It chips away at that power that women like to have, which is why so many women see ladder theory as bullsh!t. It's not actually the theory that they're railing against, it what the theory represents and how it minimizes their power.

Nobody gives up power without a fight.

Ladies, we're on to you. We have been for quite some time.

Chanel said...

Interesting comments--
Okay I agree with the one comment about women changing their minds- hey by the way- I did not write this- just throwing out different ideas of stuff out there.
Personally I have never 'changed' my mind about a friend- my friends started out as friends and stayed friends- a couple of boyfriends ended up as friends- but not the other way around.
I agree women can be flaky- that is why I am so glad I am a straight woman. The last thing I would want to do is be a man trying to figure us out!
PS- In the invisible rule book of woman once a man has us figured we must change! So, dont waste your time trying to make sense of us--- just accept what is when it is.
Just my opinion