Someday if my wife and I end up having a daughter, I can envision a moment many years in the future where a young person (for the purposes of this story we'll make him a boy) will come to the house with the intention of taking our daughter out on a date. I'll be imposing not so much because I'm that intimidating but because I'll be taller than the fellow. And invariably our daughter will not be ready to go (I know, I know; could I make our theoretical daughter more stereotypical?) so the young man and I will get to spend some time together in the living room.
I will size him up and, with any luck, he'll seem like a nice guy. (I believe our daughter will have decent taste). At some point I will let him in on something. "You will reach a point where you will feel like being a nice guy is getting you nowhere. You'll see all these jerks just rolling in chicks and you'll be tempted to abandon being a decent guy. There's really no avoiding that situation. But no matter what, do not give up. Someday you'll see it pay off." I will smile at my wife (who, for purposes of this story, will be in the adjoining dining room).
He won't believe me at the time, because young people never think that older people know what the hell they're talking about, but in the recesses of his mind it will seep in, slowly, and will take root. At some point he'll be in that very scenario and will remember what I told him.
But in the meantime, our daughter will be skilled in self-defense, just in case.
I will size him up and, with any luck, he'll seem like a nice guy. (I believe our daughter will have decent taste). At some point I will let him in on something. "You will reach a point where you will feel like being a nice guy is getting you nowhere. You'll see all these jerks just rolling in chicks and you'll be tempted to abandon being a decent guy. There's really no avoiding that situation. But no matter what, do not give up. Someday you'll see it pay off." I will smile at my wife (who, for purposes of this story, will be in the adjoining dining room).
He won't believe me at the time, because young people never think that older people know what the hell they're talking about, but in the recesses of his mind it will seep in, slowly, and will take root. At some point he'll be in that very scenario and will remember what I told him.
But in the meantime, our daughter will be skilled in self-defense, just in case.
On the one hand, being nice gets you nowhere, but on the other hand, being a jerk gets you involved with stupid women who like jerks, which is not a good place to be.
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