Blog Posts by Smitten, Glamour Magazine

Ariane Marder, Glamour magazine

Somehow it's been ingrained in our consciousness that men hate foreplay. Which kinda sucks if that's true because most of us girls need it to get us going. So what's the deal, men? I asked and they gave me the dirt. Check it...

"Sex without foreplay is like going to get ice cream and ordering a scoop of vanilla. There is nothing particularly wrong with vanilla, but how can you tell me some M&Ms and Oreo cookies wouldn't make it better? If foreplay is disliked by men, nobody gave me that memo."
- Jason, 29

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"I personally love it, but if my partner doesn't and it's done half-assed, it's a huge turnoff. With intercourse, it's easy to get wrapped up in your own thing, but with foreplay you have to be very aware of what you're doing as it relates to the other person. And I think it's a better indicator of your partners kink level... Teasing (with touch, not in the 'mean girl' way) is

Ariane Marder, Glamour magazine

You know how when you're first dating someone, he's totally on his best behavior? Or, at least you're temporarily blind to all the weird stuff he does in private. And then, once you get to know him better, his little quirks start to come out? I assure you, it happens to the best of us.

I polled some of my closest friends who were willing to share the funny, albeit, super weird things that make their guys, well, them.

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"Every morning when I wake up, I never know what remnants of last night's gorging will be around the house. The best is S. wakes up and has no memory of what went on while he was sleeping. But the evidence is all we need. Half-eaten cereal bowls, chocolate wrappers in bed. Poor boy is even hungry when he sleeps!"

"C. insists that he eat breakfast in my robe. MY ROBE! What's up with that? It's pink, by the way. I had to draw the line at my slippers."

See more: 7 Signs of

Gena Kaufman, Glamour magazine

Have you ever had a friend gush to you about a new guy--"He's 35, a software developer, and he's really into biking"-- and you're like, "Wait, that sounds exactly like the guy I just went out with" and it's super awkward because it is the same guy? Yeah, yikes. That's a thing that happens.

See more: 7 Signs of True Love

I've talked before about some differences in the New York dating scene versus the Midwestern scene, and now I've got a new one. I'm living in Columbus, Ohio now, and although it's far from my small hometown, it's not exactly comparable to the 8 million-plus people in New York. In addition to less people in general, it also seems to me that it's not quite as common for people to online date as it is in NYC (that's not an official statistic, just an observation. I could be wrong.) This makes for a smaller pool of fish. Um, fish for dating. Whatever, you know what I mean.

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Gena Kaufman, Glamour magazine

Now that I'm 30, I've totally outgrown the bad boy phase, just like I've stopped wearing miniskirts, taking gummy vitamins, and listening to the Miley Cyrus station on Pandora. Oh wait, I still do those things and I still like bad boys. Well, at least science figured out the reason for that one...

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To be honest, I'm not really embarrassed of any of those things except the penchant for bad boys. It just never turns out well. But luckily, it's not my fault. According to a new study published today, women choose bad boys because their hormones make them. Evidently, in a totally non-counterintuitive move, an ovulating woman's hormones influence her to pick sexier men over more obviously dependable men.

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Researchers had women look at dating profiles of either sexy men or reliable men during periods of high and low fertility. (For the record,

Gena Kaufman, Glamour magazine

I could probably talk all day every day for a month straight about the things that frustrate me about dating. But hey, since that's pretty much what I do here on Smitten anyway, let's give the guys a chance to air their grievances, OK?

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Dating advice and men's interest site TSB Magazine recently conducted a survey to find out the most frustrating aspect of dating for single men. The issue most commonly chosen as the biggest source of frustration: text messaging!

See more: 7 Signs of True Love

Let's break down the options and results:

• 32% of the men in the survey said that they are confused about what to say and when to send a text, and that's the most frustrating part of trying to start a new relationship. I don't know about you, but I'm super relieved to hear that guys overanalyze this too.
• 22% said that having a conversation with a woman and the awkwardness of the

Anna Breslaw, Glamour magazine

As you know, the magically awkward 10-minute verbal pas-de-deux that occurs when a guy asks you on a date is more than enough time to make unfair assumptions, patronizing judgments and generally write him off as not worth your time. But...

While it's good to have standards, there are certain calls you might be making here that could lead you to miss out on an unexpectedly great relationship. Liiiike...

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"Oh, no, he's on OK Cupid."
Like blisters and/or a Goth phase, online dating happens to the best of us. If you ask me, it's a good sign--he's actively looking for something romantic.

"Oh, dear, he lives in [insert crappy neighborhood here.]"
First of all, a brief paen to the crappy neighborhood: not only are they beautifully non-hipsterized, but they often house the best secret awesome restaurant spots in the area. Secondly, don't be a snob. It just means you have to stay over and

Gena Kaufman, Glamour magazine

If you've ever been suspicious that your guy is cheating, you know how miserable it is to obsessively wonder just what's going on. Here's an expert tip on how to spot the bad news.

See more: 7 Signs of True Love

Via an episode of Anderson this week, Amy Drescher, a woman with an intimate knowledge of cheating-she's a private investigator-shared a really interesting tip for detecting when your guy might be cheating on you.

The clue is this: If you're already feeling suspicious of your guy, and you confront him about strange behavior like changed passwords or late nights, a cheater will likely respond by telling you repeatedly that you're crazy. Drescher says she commonly hears this from her female clients when she's investigating their husbands, but the women aren't crazy.

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Oh, the old "you're crazy" defense. We've discussed whether or not it's the worst thing you can be called, and in

Gena Kaufman, Glamour magazine

On Monday Anna gave us a hilarious list of times it sucks to be single, even though she generally loves it. I thought it would only be fair to present the flip side.

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Of course, being in a couple is generally pretty awesome, especially when you're with the right guy. Aww, swoon, etc. But if we're being honest, there are sporadic occasions when you think "Dang, I miss being single." It doesn't mean you'd really give up your man, but here are five times when you might have a case of the grass is always greener in a single person's yard:

5. That time you have to figure out what in the world you should give his picky mother for Christmas, and your friends just get to blow their end of year bonus on new shoes.

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4. That time a sexy guy on the bar stool next to you is flirting up a storm and he looks like a really good time. Meanwhile,