Dear Cary,
I've realized slowly over the last few months that I am one of those guys who is exhilarated by the chase but disappointed by the prize. My relationships never last for more than a few months because I lose interest in the poor girls so quickly once they've been "caught." It has gotten to the point where I am sometimes glad when my pursuit of a girl does not work out because I can still care for and about her. I've pressed the pause button on anything that has the potential to become a romantic relationship for now because I'm worried about what this says about me. I've just gotten out of college and looking back this has been a pretty rigid pattern for me. Is this something I can expect to grow out of? I don't know what to do aside from acknowledging that there is a problem.
Young and Fickle
Dear Young and Fickle,
Yes, I think you will probably grow out of this. Or, more accurately, your social life and your work life will solidify, and the networks of people you associate with will grow more regular. As that happens, it will make less and less sense to pursue a woman only to seduce her and then leave her, because you will want her to become part of your social circle. You will want to have the added enjoyment of her becoming friends with your friends.
You may be surprised to find that at times you are actually bored with your girlfriend, yet at the same time you do not want to leave her, because you have become accustomed to her company, your friends like her, and if you ditch her you will incur anger and recrimination not only from her but from your friends. Bit by bit, it just starts to seem like it isn't worth it anymore, all the drama and pain, when you can't go to any bar or club without running into some girl you'd rather not run into, all the dislocation, all the toothbrushes and underwear you can't remember whose house you left them at, all the CDs and shoes and stuff.
So you're going to probably end up with some girlfriend that you can tolerate long enough to end up really caring about, and then you don't want to leave her and make her cry and have her throw things at you and have all her friends hate you and say bad things about you, so you'll try to psych yourself for a long-term relationship. And that is when you will learn to modify your behavior a little, to appreciate things about her that take time to know. And then you'll find that things get better if you stick around. And that is how society works to civilize young men and protect young women from their savage predations.
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Want more advice from Cary? Read yesterday's column.
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