What would you like in your relationship, mademoiselle?

"What are you looking for?" It seemed (on the surface) like a fairly innocuous question. As I opened my mouth to answer however, I became instantly stuck...what on earth was I looking for when it came to romantic relationships? Obviously, the cliched desires came to mind: "someone who shares my interest, someone who's easy to talk to; there can never be a break in the conversation, yadda yadda yadda."

However, is this really what I want? When I think of the person who can capture and hold my interest, I certainly don't want a carbon copy of myself (after all, I am with me all the time and trust me, I'm pretty damn boring). Also, when it comes to ease in conversation (while that may be important), is that really the be-all and end-all? I have easy conversations with a lot of my male friends, but I don't want to date any of them - so what gives?

Part of me wonders if the fuel to my fire is the whole notion of unattainability - do I pursue those men who, even if on the surface they seem uninteresting, ignore me on some level? Why on EARTH is that so incredibly appealing? Am I therefore looking for someone to ignore me but, at the same time, declare me to be their 'girlfriend'? If so, that's absolutely ridiculous and I probably need some form of mental help.

And then, a very simple, concise sentence came to mind: "I want a man I can trust." While I have met many men over the course of these 2 years in dating hell, I have not met one that was worthy of my trust or my faith. Granted, they have been nice and all-around decent people but in truth, they've been remarkably mediocre and certainly not worthy of my trust. So maybe the trust will serve as a foundation for bigger and better things when it comes to choosing a mate. However, in true jaded fashion, I'm not holding my breath. After all, when speaking to one of my male friends about this epiphany he said, and I quote: "A man you can trust? Ha. Good luck."

So there you go.