Climbing in Skirts

I recently had a discussion with a friend about dating younger men.
She said we should just be Cougars, and be proud of it.
A Cougar, as I just recently learned, means a woman in her thirties or forties that prefers younger men, mostly just for sex. I saw it on Wikipedia so it must be true.

There is also a scientific name, Chronophilia, someone who likes having a disparate age difference between them and their partner. BTW, it's not considered normal, unless the man is older, the woman younger... hmm... double standards, alive and well...

So I had no idea there was a name for this sort of thing. But I have consistently dated men younger than myself as long as I can remember. And I am not alone.

"Here's to you, Mrs. Robinson. A 2003 survey conducted by the National Association of Retired Persons revealed that one-third of single women between 40 and 60 are dating younger men."


And the older I get, to quote Dazed and Confused, the men just stay the same age. In fact, I think some of them are getting younger. I wondered why 19 and 20-something men were sending me messages on MySpace. Perhaps they are hunting for Cougars?

So why is this? I am not sure. Perhaps it is because the men my age are married with children, look old as hell, or are busy dating 20-something Twinkies with fake tits and no brains.

Every time I go out, I meet younger men. This is not a conscious effort on my part, I just hang out with younger folks, and go to clubs where most of the patrons are in their twenties.
Something else I notice, most 38-year-olds do not go out to clubs and drink on a regular basis. My friends and I do, but again, we are not the norm.

Another reason that I meet young guys is that I look very young. I am holding it down pretty darn well. The average guess of my age by strangers yields 26. I will take that. My last hookup was with a guy who was 28. He thought I was younger than he was until he figured it out by when I graduated college. I need to keep quiet about that, but I graduated in 8 years, so telling folks the date still makes me 5 years younger.

So I thought it was no big deal, until the age difference really hit me when we realized we both were going to our high school reunions that month, his was his 10th, mine my 20th.
I am finally old enough to date someone 10 years younger who is not in high school... wow.

The last few guys I have met casually who seemed interested until they found out my age and fled have been 27, 25, and 30.. so at least I am consistant. But some do not go away when I tell them, which is always a mystery to me.

So perhaps it’s genetic? My Grandmother, who I look a lot like, had been with my Grandfather who was 16 years her senior. After he died, she found a younger model, my Step-grandfather, who was 15 years younger. He was nice looking too, and till the day he died he dressed to the nines and had widows swooning over him trying to bring him baked goods…

So in conclusion, I swear it is not me. I do not seek out younger men on purpose. In fact, when I did online dating, I tried to go out with older men, 40-42. I found that they are no more mature and responsible, and definitely not as fit… you cannot beat 26-year old abs, the 40-somethings just can’t complete. Perhaps that is the biggest reason after all, I am a sucker for a six-pack…