Truth be told, as the father of a 9 year old ginger and a 7 yr old blond imp, I have to be good at laying down the law... Compassionately and in a way Much different from when I used to do Collections. Yeah, I was That Guy. I even shut down a few car dealerships back in '09. That sucked, but I was good at it. But I am tangenting from my intended point... As The parent, I have to be able to dole it out And be the one they run to for crying about it and saying its not fair.
I'm not saying that I will ever date again or re-marry, nor am I saying that I am all that, the bag o chips, and a plate full of cookies and brownies... I'm not. Some days I'm more like Just two slices of bread and a dill pickle spear ("Hey, where's my sandwich?")
...I am saying that there's not a whole lot wrong with me compared to the majority of the single men my age. I think if I do ever decide to cast my net on the other side, that I may find myself with more than one option. I just have a long road of learning to trust again, taking time to heal, and generally focusing on letting God work in my life before I'm ready for anything much like that.
I guess the biggest deal-breakers I've got are 1)I'm still married 2)I'm So not there yet. 3)Some folks turn their nose up at divorced men. 4)I've got kids & we're a package deal. {There is no way I'm gonna fight this much for sole custody of my kids, with nothing more than Supervised visitation to her and then me give them up Ever. Not happening. They are my prince & my princess; I am their knight and I will stand by them and defend them.} 5)I'm still married. 6)I'm only about 5'6" 7)I'm Sooo not there yet. 8)While most divorced people talk about their crazy ex, mine Actually Is Crazy. Seriously. Crazy. Some view her as having a "manageable lifelong mental illness." They've not spent much time with her, but now that she left & filed I feel like I can honestly say this. She is not and will not be right betwixt the ears, and it is getting worse over time. It's not like it was something that showed up on the Carfax paperwork when we wed, but I did choose to try to hold the marriage together "In sickness and in health" to include mental health. The kids are better off this way, but it is the path she chose. 9)I'm Sooooo not there yet. and 10)I am Sooooooooooooooooooooooo not there yet.
someone take away my soap box, please before I say more.
(and right on time, my lil imp shows up [He's home sick from school, today, remember?] asking me to come play Mario Kart, God Bless Him!)