Re: 70863 Dealbreakers
Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2013 10:42 pm
Your missionary?Zedability wrote: I do like your list. Maybe just because it describes someone I know
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Your missionary?Zedability wrote: I do like your list. Maybe just because it describes someone I know
Does this need a question?squirrel wrote:Your missionary?Zedability wrote: I do like your list. Maybe just because it describes someone I know
Sigh. Of course you said it better than I did. I feel comfortable putting a "inasmuch as he values education, speaks well and reads expansively" addendum in there. I have had some bad experiences with people in my circle who don't value school and also are unambitious, but then, I've dated guys who were overeducated and not willing to get their elbows dirty.Katya wrote:Regarding dealbreakers, one thing that's been helpful for me is to learn to analyze and articulate the difference between internal personal characteristics and the surface expression of those characteristics.
So, when Portia says that she would only want to date a college student or graduate, my first instinct is to agree with her, but when I think more about why I would want that, I realize that the underlying characteristics I'm looking for are things like valuing education, being well-informed and curious about the world, and being comfortable around people who are college educated (because I am and those are the circles I move in). And while there is a significant overlap between people who have those characteristics and people who are themselves college educated, I can also think of some personal acquaintances who are exceptions, for various reasons, and I still respect and value their company in the same way as I do with those who are college educated. So, it turns out that a college education isn't a dealbreaker, for me, although it's still a likely characteristic in someone I would be interested in.
My reaction to some of the dealbreakers posted in the original question is that I'm not sure what underlying characteristic they're supposed to indicate. I imagine that Chrysanthemum's white shirt and dark socks rule indicate, for her, someone who is respectful, and that is a quality that I certainly admire. However, I've also known men and women whose insistence on a white shirt rule (for themselves or others) seemed to be rooted in judgmental attitudes or a belief in convention for its own sake or a focus on superficiality. And those are qualities that I find very troubling. And I've known men who I found respectful who eschewed the white shirt rule, mainly because they were also rejecting the second set of characteristics. So, I conclude that the white shirt rule wouldn't be a good litmus test for me, either way, because the qualities that I'm looking for might express themselves as wearing a white shirt or not.
And, frankly, I find this to be the case with almost all absolute "dealbreakers," as such. (The only one I can think of off the top of my head is abuse. If a guy were ever to hit me, threaten me, or attack me in any other fashion, I'd be out of there, with no regrets.)
Good point.Zedability wrote:Does this need a question?squirrel wrote:Your missionary?Zedability wrote: I do like your list. Maybe just because it describes someone I know
And this is why you are one of my favorites. I'm the same way. Also this made me laugh.NerdGirl wrote:I don't handle stuff like that real well and it makes me want to say a lot of swear words.
Are you trying to start a rumble?Craig Jessop wrote: doesn't want to stay at home
thinks she HAS to stay at home to be a good Mormon
No rumble from me at least; I totally get the appeal of having one parent stay at home. It's so much nicer than hiring a nanny and so much easier than trying to fit chores, cooking and errands around two people's work schedules. I want a stay-at-home spouse too! Sometimes I tell LJ that we need to bring back polygamy so we can both work and the second wife can take care of our kids and cook us dinner.Zedability wrote:Are you trying to start a rumble?Craig Jessop wrote: doesn't want to stay at home
thinks she HAS to stay at home to be a good Mormon
your first item means i can never marry you, josh lyman-lite!!! why do you break my heart?!Craig Jessop wrote:DEALBREAKERS:
not an active Mormon
doesn't want to stay at home
thinks she HAS to stay at home to be a good Mormon
not nice
not funny
crazy conservative
cat person
sanctimonious (aka, she has to be irreverent)
hates bow ties/crazy socks (as i refuse to wear the regular kind of either anymore)
Oh, his criteria perfectly describes my position on the idea, I just remember a few months ago there was a LOT of discussion on the issue.Eirene wrote:No rumble from me at least; I totally get the appeal of having one parent stay at home. It's so much nicer than hiring a nanny and so much easier than trying to fit chores, cooking and errands around two people's work schedules. I want a stay-at-home spouse too! Sometimes I tell LJ that we need to bring back polygamy so we can both work and the second wife can take care of our kids and cook us dinner.Zedability wrote:Are you trying to start a rumble?Craig Jessop wrote: doesn't want to stay at home
thinks she HAS to stay at home to be a good Mormon
Interestingly, that was one of the big defenses polygamist women made for their lifestyle. They shouted far and wide that polygamy liberated them to fulfill their dreams. Multiple women in the household meant they didn't have to stay home all the time to clean and feed. Lots went to medical school or law school, served in the legislature, and played a prominent role in the national suffrage movement... all because a sister-wife or two stayed at home to do the traditional wifey things.Eirene wrote:Sometimes I tell LJ that we need to bring back polygamy so we can both work and the second wife can take care of our kids and cook us dinner.
I totally don't have a problem with this being a dealbreaker -- I think it's important for couples to be on the same page about this kind of thing. But it does annoy me when guys use this as a dealbreaker without being in possession of the relevant facts. Some guys seem to use "professional job" as a proxy for "doesn't want to stay at home," so they automatically rule out any girl with a good career. It's annoying when you can sense a guy suddenly losing interest as soon as you mention your job, especially when you really do want to be a stay-at-home mom if the opportunity arises. I guess that sort of ties back to what Katya was saying -- it's important to make sure that you're actually looking at the internal personal characteristics and not just the external things that you associate with those characteristics. (Not saying that Craig has this issue -- just that I've been annoyed by some guys' application of this dealbreaker in the past.)Craig Jessop wrote:DEALBREAKERS:
doesn't want to stay at home
Men only, please. I know I went to a lesbian school, but I'm crazy enough on my own. I need a dude to mellow me out.Craig Jessop wrote:Interestingly, that was one of the big defenses polygamist women made for their lifestyle. They shouted far and wide that polygamy liberated them to fulfill their dreams. Multiple women in the household meant they didn't have to stay home all the time to clean and feed. Lots went to medical school or law school, served in the legislature, and played a prominent role in the national suffrage movement... all because a sister-wife or two stayed at home to do the traditional wifey things.Eirene wrote:Sometimes I tell LJ that we need to bring back polygamy so we can both work and the second wife can take care of our kids and cook us dinner.
Also, I have no issue if the husband wants to stay at home. I just don't think I'd be able to do that.
As for you, Imogen... I know of a pair of young men or a pair of young women who'd LOVE to meet you!