Not Shaken… But Definitely Stirred?

It’s a little bit pathetic how giddy I get walking into my local Border’s or Barnes and Noble. I’m a huge sucker for classic novels and girly romantic reads but the other day when I walked into my local bookstore a couple of the books on display in the “self help” section of the store caught my eye. Mind you, I normally pass this section quickly on my way to the back of the store, as I’ve always believed that browsing through the self help section might as well be the same thing as holding up a huge flashing sign that says “Hey! Look at me! I’m a freak and I’ve come to Barnes and Nobles to read up on all of my weird problems!” But then curiosity got the best of me and there I found myself in the same dreaded section, stumbling across books with titles like “Why Men Love Bitches” and other ridiculous titles convincing you that if you are aggressive and sassy and manipulative, then you can surely sucker your guy into marrying you. Now, I’m no sociology expert, but books like this have always fascinated me, mostly just because the reality is that they’re all a bunch of crap. Whatever happened to the days of being yourself? Or following your intuition? Nowadays American women are spending $15.95 a pop to read up on all the reasons they’re still single and everything they need to do to pick up their next boyfriend, or husband, or at least that’s what the excess of self help relationship books at the bookstore tells me. Call me a simpleton, but I’ve always believed in the idea of that it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be, and no desperate tip or sly trick from any of these books is going to help you pick up a long term partner. Books aren’t the only thing to blame either, women’s magazines (as much as I admit that I love them) are constantly tempting desperate women across America to buy them with headlines like “How to find summer romance!” or “50 ways to get your guy coming back for more” on their front covers. Yes, I’ll admit that I read these magazines too, but honestly, how many times have you followed these “fool proof” tips and landed the man of your dreams? Never, you say? Well me either. Because you know what, you can’t do research or read up on these type of things. It’s just not the way that life works. And the fact that publishers everywhere are capitalizing on the idea that all single American women are tormented, desperate and so mindless that they need a book so they can read about how to flirt with a guy, is even more depressing than the fact that I don’t have a boyfriend. Frankly, it just makes all of us look really bad. So to all you ladies out there who are looking to find Mr. Perfect, get him to marry you and live happily ever after, let me give you one piece of advice that’s actually going to work: just be yourself. It’s simple really, and you don’t need a 300 page book, or even the latest issue of your favorite women’s magazine telling you how to do it. So throw those trashy books and magazines out the window, stop freaking out about your biological clock ticking away, and quit making single women everywhere look bad because in the end, being true to yourself is the only way you’re ever going to get Mr. Right to fall into your lap.