GEOGRAPHICALLY UNDESIRABLE

When you live in the L.A. area, everything is 40 minutes away. You just get used to it after while and accept it as a fact of California living.

But some people never get used to it. Yesterday I saw a personal ad on Craig's List from a girl who had moved to L.A. from Chicago and was looking to meet a nice guy.

We exchanged pics and she sent me her number. She was very pretty, and I called her right away. One of the first things she wanted to know was where I lived. I told her I was in Thousand Oaks.

Immediately she lost interest. She explained that she has met many guys, but they all lived more than 30 minutes away, and that was not a distance she was willing to drive on a regular basis. I can see her point: it is not fun to have to drive 30-40 minutes every time you want to see your Significant Other.

I told her that I was about 40 minutes away from her. I added that I was planning on moving to Tarzana, which would put me only 30 minutes away from her. She said that was still too far.

I think she may be a little too rigid with her rule to not date outside of the TMZ (Thirty-Mile Zone). I used to date a girl who lived 30 minutes away from me, and I did all the driving, but because I really loved her, I was willing to make the drive.

This L.A. gal is literally looking to meet the Boy Next Door. But in L.A., I'm not sure she will ever find her man. She has already rejected 90% of the male population of Cali as being G.U.

I suggested to her that she make her personal ad a little more detailed, spelling out exactly what she is looking for, but she said that would scare away too many guys. Instead, she chooses to waste every one's time with phone calls where she usually rejects most guys within the first five minutes, after finding out where they live.

Seems to me she has not learned one of the first rules of dating: Sometimes if you meet someone you like, you have to be willing to put up with something you don't like, such as a 40-minute drive.