In an attempt to steer this thread back onto its tracks:
Is age the most important factor for a person deciding to "give up" the search for a companion/spouse/partner, or do you think that age is just one of many factors and perhaps a person's life situation is more influential? As people mature and age, how much do they continue to believe things like "there's someone for everyone"? What about people the people who don't give up but instead push themselves away from the metaphorical table and simply say "no thanks, don't wanna play this game." - what do we say about them? This introduces the topic of a person's mental health...which not a single one of us can hold ourselves up as models of perfect mental health...we are all nuttier than squirrel poo.
Since I got dragged back into this thread last night, I've had a few things to ponder.