"The Coffee Shop Girl You Never Spoke To"

You've replayed it a hundred times. She stood three feet away, scrolling her phone. You had an opening. You composed the perfect line — after she was gone.

For all you know, she's married now. To some guy who said something. Anything.

Openers are cheap. Almost any sentence works when it's delivered within three seconds. The expensive part is the standing there, drafting and deleting, while the window quietly closes.

The "22 Rules" stripped out my hesitation. What to open with, how to keep it alive, and the one habit that costs guys more women than anything else: waiting for perfect.

Read more...

I don’t know about you, but these beauty filters starting to get silly

"She Wants a Man, Not a Boy"

You asked her if she wanted to grab coffee. Then you asked if the time worked. Then you asked if the place was okay. Then you asked if she'd prefer tea.

Four questions. Four chances for her to say no. Four signals that you're terrified of making a decision.

Plan it. Pick the place. Pick the time. Tell her where to meet you. She'll either show up or she won't.

Either way, you look like a man instead of a scared little boy.

Read more...

Sega Genesis

Master Don Juan
Joined
Sep 9, 2024
Messages
1,026
Reaction score
794
The irony TM is the woman on the left in her natural state with very minimal makeup looks WAY better than the same girl on the right who frankly looks a bit silly IMO.

Can't say how you guys feel ('cept you TM).

When I did OLDing (I don't anymore as I prefer meeting men IRL), or chatting with a man I met online, I always sent a low key natural looking pic usually after yoga/pilates or while out and about on any given afternoon with very minimal makeup (like girl on left).

And always received compliments. Then if/when we met, he was pleasantly surprised as I make a bit more effort for a first meet or date.

Also a picture doesn't reflect your energy, which is a big part of attraction imo.

Same for me when it comes to men's pics and plenty of men do same with the lighting, camera angle, heavy grooming, filtering etc.

A man sending me a professional shot making him look like a model - NO thanks. Straight to trash.

Why?

Because it speaks to the type of man he is, too focused on his appearance and trying too hard to impress. Shallow typically even though I know that's not always the case. But first impressions count especially online.

I realize not all women feel as I do about it and go gaga over such model-looking pics. In fact I would say most women do and consider myself a bit of a weirdo in that regard.:D

I value a great physique over a face anyway. A face you're born with, your physique involves working out, training and EFFORT!

I am watching a reality series right now about various couples who meet on the internet, then eventually meet in person.

A few of the man complained because the pics they received were either old pics or heavily filtered.

Most of the couples were long distance and talked for MONTHS prior to meeting. They became quite emotionally close, many felt they were "in love" even!

Then when they met in person, it was like meeting a completely different woman because of the pictures they had sent!

One man became openly pissed off!!! The.pics had obviously been filtered and reflected a young looking woman with a slim body who kept herself in shape.

While the "real" her was older looking, different hair style and a bit overweight. Not sure quite what she was thinking by doing that but whatever. :oops:

This did not happen with the women, as most men (not all) sent genuine looking pics usually doing some activity or something

Anyway I agree with you TM, I will never understand the mindset of sending overly enhanced, filtered or old pics.

I mean what did these women think would happen once they met in person?

Might be too harsh but I find it disingenuous.
 
Last edited:

BaronOfHair

Master Don Juan
Joined
Feb 14, 2024
Messages
5,560
Reaction score
3,037
Age
37
@Travel memoir21 "Whatever happened to natural beauty and just being yourself?"

Became antiquated, the minute humans began throwing on make-up, styling their locks, altering their bodies via weight loss or bulking up, etc etc
 

BackInTheGame78

Moderator
Joined
Sep 10, 2014
Messages
16,972
Reaction score
19,301
@Travel memoir21 "Whatever happened to natural beauty and just being yourself?"

Became antiquated, the minute humans began throwing on make-up, styling their locks, altering their bodies via weight loss or bulking up, etc etc
Well, got news, the makeup industry goes back over 6,000 years with the first recorded instance appearing in Ancient Egypt around 4000 BC.

There never really has ever been a time in the last 6000 years that women relied on "natural beauty".
 

"She Laughed All Night. Then She Ghosted You. Here's Why."

Dinner ran three hours. She laughed at everything. You walked her to her car thinking this one's locked in.

Then: nothing. Two texts. No reply. What happened?

You did what most men do on a great date. You filled every silence, answered every question, and left her with nothing to wonder about. No mystery. Nothing to sit with when she got home.

Rule 3 of the "22 Rules" changes the ending: tell her a little, hold back the rest, and let her imagination do the chasing. The ghosting stops too.

Read more...

Greggy

New Member
Joined
Sep 11, 2026
Messages
6
Reaction score
2
Age
36
the greater problem, in my opinion, is that people begin to compare themselves to an appearance that isn't real. filters can be entertaining when everyone is aware that they are filters, but normal faces start to appear "wrong" in comparison when heavily edited photos become the norm. that may interfere with one's perception of oneself and other people's expectations.
 
Top