The Real Her - Memoirs of an Immigrant
I'm not a chauvinist. Never have been. I was raised by women. I believe in traditional romance. I believe a woman should be wooed and dined. Nonetheless, I also believe respect should be mutual. But it's 2013, and women still have men running around helter skelter like the protagonists in Mario World, or better yet Donkey Kong Country. Nowadays, a polite act of chivalry or smile to most women on the street is sometimes unnecessarily followed by a strained look, a frown, or an acerbic riposte. My apologies if every single guy you meet tries to flirt with you or is plain improper, but some of us were just raised well and know how to be gentlemen.
Intimate yet knowledgeable conversation with the opposite sex isn't something men often stumble upon. Sometimes, it takes ages for any woman to be able to hold a man's attention, and besides a woman's vivacious beauty, a real man will always prefer conversation that focuses on a wide variety of subjects. The fact is most, if not all, men yearn to look across a restaurant table intently, observing a woman's every move, listening to every word she utters, and being the envy of every man seated close to their table.
I spoke to a few friends and we basically came with our utopian vision of a woman: She has to blow to smithereens the troika of attributes we look for in a woman: beauty (according to his standards, not society’s), present achievements and future aspirations (men hate to date a woman who will be an albatross financially or emotionally), and most importantly character (passionate, selfless, driven). Ok fine, maybe I willed the conversation to focus on characteristics I highlighted, but all the participants heartily agreed.
Then again, maybe I'm just too much of an idealist when it comes to love and women.