When Four Play the Dating Game

• NOVEMBER 3, 2009

By Elizabeth Bernstein

I was wrong about marriage. I thought that as long as I tied the knot—and made sure it stayed tied—I'd never have to date again.

Then I found myself out at a restaurant, smiling a little too broadly, watching my table manners and nervously trying to make conversation.

It was a date all right—a "couples date."

My husband and I were having dinner with an acquaintance and his wife who had just moved to town. We were hoping the evening would be the start of a friendship.

Little did we know that finding another couple we could stand to spend time with could seem twice as hard as finding each other in the first place.

"It's frustrating," says Ben Van Houten, a 40-year-old technology writer. "We are looking for chemistry—a couple to become life-long friends with us. But we have not been able to find it."

Since moving to Grand Rapids, Mich., three years ago, Mr. Van Houten and his wife have gone out with several of his old high-school buddies and their spouses, and tried to meet couples through work and their son's school.

They had one "date" where the woman was self-absorbed, another, Mr. Van Houten recalls, where the man was "a complete dud with no sense of humor," and a third that was ruined by politics. When Mr. Van Houten got up his nerve and asked a neighbor and his wife out to dinner, the man replied, "I don't like people."

For the past few weeks, the Van Houtens have been waiting nervously for a couple to reschedule a date they had postponed—and debating whether to call first. "With couples dating, you really have to put yourself out there," Mr. Van Houten says. "It's hard."

Yup. The possibilities for awkwardness are seemingly endless. And if something goes wrong, you don't just embarrass yourself. You embarrass your mate, as well.

Just ask Brett Blumenthal.>>>

When Old Flames Beckon Online

• OCTOBER 6, 2009

By ELIZABETH BERNSTEIN

Is it really a good idea to "friend" our old flames and crushes online?

Ask Joy Moore, who recently went searching for her first love on the Internet. In 1974, he was captain of the high-school football team—tall, handsome, with mutton-chop sideburns that Ms. Moore says were "all the rage at the time." He took her to church events and taught her how to kiss. Then he moved away.

Flash ahead 30-odd years. When Ms. Moore saw her old love's name on Facebook, she says she felt "that little flutter" in her chest.

Until she saw his picture. "He had a beard down to his belly and looked just like one of the members of ZZ Top," says Ms. Moore, 49 years old, an executive coach in Albuquerque, N.M. "His accomplishment for the year was being the local darts champ."

Think about it. We went years without reconnecting, and everything was fine. But now, thanks to social-networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn, our old lovers are essentially popping up in our own homes. It's like having a secret stash of ice cream in the freezer. Even if it's a little stale, it can be hard to resist.

After all, we're talking about the first person we had a crush on, or kissed, or cried over, or had sex with, or took home to Mom, or maybe even married. No wonder we're curious.

Perhaps we want to ponder the road not taken. Or maybe we're searching for forgiveness—or vindication. If we are single, or unhappy in a current relationship, we might be looking for someone who was attracted to us at one time because, so the theory goes, they could be attracted to us again.

Or we may be looking for closure. "My ex-husband found me on Facebook, and I said sure, what the heck, and friended him," says Lisa Bakken, a 45-year-old business manager in Grand Lake, Colo., who was married for five years. "When the wall posted 'Lisa and Oddvar are now friends,' I thought it was hysterical. It's about time!"

Many of us are simply nostalgic. Contacting an old flame allows you to "look back fondly on that innocent time in your life when you didn't have any significant responsibilities," says Georgi Chase, 45, of Novato, Calif., who works at a consulting firm and looked up an old boyfriend through a networking site. "You can go back and rediscover your 19-year-old self and wonder what she would think of the 45-year-old you."

That's all fine and dandy. But I warn you: You are playing with fire.>>>

Hearst Signs On in Beauty Contest

• AUGUST 31, 2009

By SHIRA OVIDE and EMILY STEEL

Hearst Corp. hopes a new Web site and growing interest in the Internet among beauty-products makers will translate into a fresh source of advertising for the publishing giant.

In September, Hearst plans to launch a site called Real Beauty, which will focus on makeup, hair care and other beauty topics. The venture is an effort by Hearst to create a one-stop destination for consumers who want to research and buy beauty products. It will be competing with a vast field of more specialized beauty blogs as well as sites operated by various cosmetics brands and retail chains.

Daily Makeover

Daily Makeover, whose virtual makeover program, above, lets women try out beauty products and hairstyles, is among the new Hearst venture's rivals.

Hearst says the site will mix advice from customers with product reviews and information from its magazines, which include Cosmopolitan, Seventeen and Harper's Bazaar. Users of the site will be able to customize information so, for example, a woman with curly hair won't see articles about straight hair; she also may get discount offers from salons specializing in taming frizzy locks.

Beauty brands have been slower than other marketers to advertise online, largely because of concerns that the Web could never match the in-store experience of trying out beauty aids.

Companies spend about $6 billion a year to hawk personal-care products, a category including beauty, shaving and hair care, but only 3% is spent online, excluding search ads, according to TNS Media Intelligence, an ad tracking firm owned by ad giant WPP.

However, research released in May by>>>

FOXSexpert: 7 Things Men Fear About Sex

Thursday, September 24, 2009
By Yvonne K. Fulbright

Sometimes he’s his own worst enemy. He’s gotten as far as the bedroom, all ready for action, only to hurt his own efforts.

Fraught with any number of sex fears, his lusty libido has been replaced with insecurity and unbearable stress. He’s consumed with doubt and dread instead of desire.

What are these debilitating fears hampering his sex life, and how can he get his head back into the game?

While they typically come off as cool, calm and collected, a number of men can experience sexual fears at any point in his sex career – and with any partner. With his sexuality very much tied into his ego, the results are dire, even when he’s in a loving, supportive relationship. Negative outcomes include:

— Decreased sexual interest and desire;

— Performance anxiety;

— Compromised erectile functioning;

— An inability to enjoy sex.

So what are the sexual concerns consuming him? Here are a few of them...

1. He’s panicking about his size.

Many men fret about the size of their penis. They fear that they won’t measure up to a partner’s satisfaction or that their “Amazonian” proportions will be intimidating.

To get over his size issues, it’s important to remember that, when it comes to a man's member, "some men are showers while others are growers." Males with “smaller” penises tend to become larger when erect than their “larger” counterparts. That is, they grow more in proportion to their original size.

Regardless, sexual satisfaction boils down to what he can do with all of his equipment.

2. He’s worried that he’ll be a lousy lover.>>>

FOXSexpert: Guess What? Her Size Matters Too

Thursday, August 27, 2009
By Yvonne Fulbright

Get out your measuring sticks. Turns out, size may matter – only not in the way most people think.

Surprisingly, a woman’s ease of orgasm may boil down to her own measurements and not his.

New research from Kim Wallen, a professor of psychology and behavioral neuroendocrinology at Emory University, indicates that the distance between a woman’s clitoris and vagina may determine how easily she climaxes from sex alone.

Length and girth have long been considered when it comes to satisfying sexual pursuits. The Kamasutra of Vatsyayana explains “ideal” sexual unions along the lines of size.

Naturally, equal unions are considered best. And over the years, modern couples have questioned the adequacy of his size if sex is “off” or parts don’t fit well together.

But is it really her size that’s throwing things off?

Modern and early 20th Century research indicates that women with a distance of 2.5 centimeters between clitoris and vagina have the best chances of achieving orgasm from sex alone.

and much more here>>>

Pharmacology 101

In Pharmacology, all drugs have two names, a trade name and generic name. For example, the trade name of Tylenol also has a generic name of Acetaminophen. Aleve is also called Naproxen. Amoxil is also called Amoxicillin and Advil is also called Ibuprofen.

The FDA has been looking for a generic name for Viagra. After careful consideration by a team of

government experts, it recently announced that it has settled on the generic name of Mycoxafloppin. Also considered were Mycoxafailin, Mydixadrupin, Mydixarizin, Dixafix, and of course, Ibepokin.

Pfizer Corp announced today that Viagra will soon be available in liquid form, and will be marketed by Pepsi Cola as a power beverage suitable for use as a mixer. It will now be possible for a man to literally pour himself a stiff one. Obviously we can no longer call this a soft drink, and it gives new meaning to the names of 'cocktails', 'highballs' and just a good old-fashioned 'stiff drink'.. Pepsi will market the new concoction by the name of:

'MOUNT & DO'.

Thought for the day: There is more money being spent on breast implants and Viagra today than on Alzheimer's research.. This means that by 2040, there should be a large elderly population with perky boobs and huge erections and absolutely NO recollection of what to do with them.

If

you don't send this to five old friends right away there will be five fewer people laughing

Fishin' Trip

FISHIN' TRIP

Dave and his buddies were hanging out and planning an upcoming fishing trip. Unfortunately, he had to tell them that he couldn't go this time because his wife wouldn't let him. After a lot of teasing and name calling, Dave headed home, frustrated.

The following week, when Dave's buddies arrived at the lake to set up camp, they were shocked to see Dave was already there. He was already sitting at the campground with a cold beer, swag rolled out, fishing rod in hand, and a camp fire glowing.

"How did you talk your missus into letting you go Dave?"

"I didn't have to," Dave replied. "I went home from work last night and slumped down in my chair with a beer to drown my sorrows. Then the wife snuck up behind me and covered my eyes and said, 'Surprise'...

When I peeled her hands back she was standing there in a beautiful see-through negligee and she said, 'Carry me into the bedroom and tie me to the bed and you can do whatever you want'......SO HERE I AM!"