swimming with sharks...

does this graphic make you cringe?  it should.  i know.  i know.  look who's calling the kettle black?   as we all know i have been princess peach, not something i am terribly proud of, but i can't take it back now.

i can however not be in this position again.  but...did you feel that but coming?  how do you know if someone is really single, unattached, and available for you?

several months ago i was belly up to a bar, a handsome gentlemen (without a ring, i always look) sat next to me.  we chatted and eventually i found out that he indeed was sort of with a woman.  i wrote about this knowing my limits.  you might be surprised to know that i exchanged numbers with this taken man.  i had no intentions of starting any type of relationship, romantic or otherwise with this man, which i made very clear, but he was interesting and you just never know when you might need someone's expertise.

the other night i was at an event with my sister.  there was a gentleman there with really nice eyes and no ring.  i made the mistake of sharing this info with my sis.  she proceeded to jot down my number, march across the room and deliver it to the gentleman with the nice eyes.  low and behold he called, but not for what you think.  he called to tell me that he is recently seperated (recently like two weeks ago recently) and we should reconnect in six months or so.  uh, thank you for the call.

as i have shared before (the post this was a first is a good example), just because a gentleman happens to be on a dating website does not mean he is single.  i have encountered more than once a married man looking for a little action on the side to "spice things ups".  seriously?  not something i want to be a part of.  i am not interested in being number two to your wife or contributing to the break up of your marriage.

as much as the graphic makes me cringe, it is very possible that this can happen without you even realizing it.  we can only rely on the information that is presented to us.  unless the human you are dealing with has an iota of integrity and is honest, they may very well be in a relationship and choose to omit that tidbit.  sometimes interacting with humans is like climbing into shark infested waters.

as far as i can tell there is no formula for figuring out someone's availability.  in my book either you are available or not, but there seems to be a lot of gray areas.  there is dating but not exclusive, married but open to new adventures, you're straight up single completely unattached, and i'm sure others that i can't begin to decipher.  the best advice i have is don your chainmail suit and tread carefully.