Did Your Mister Right start as Mister Wrong?

I'm a consummate planner. I've had to-do lists since I was seven or eight, both of what I needed to get done that day and of dreams for the future. And so far, many of dreams/goals/things to do have all come true, no matter how specific or pointed. I work at a magazine, I've done a triathlon, I have a little star tattoo (ok, that's not really a "dream," but it had been something I'd wanted since I was twelve or thirteen and now, for better or worse, I have it forever).

And I also have a very firm idea in my head of the type of man I want to settle down with. I want him to be a creative or literary type, to be between the ages of 26 and 40, to not have an overly messy past/dating history, to have his finances in order (and I need to be perfectly clear and say I am not saying I'm looking for a wealthy man. Rather, I have my finances in order, and I do not want to date someone who I will have to bail out/who will become dependent on me), and he needs to live within 15 miles of me.

So far, I haven't veered too far away from these parameters-and I'm worried that my requirements are making it harder to meet a guy I click with.

Sometimes I worry that I might meet a great guy but totally write him off because he lives in Brazil, or doesn't have a job, or is recently divorced. What if I miss out on my chances of happiness because a guy doesn't seem to fit into your arbitrary list of requirements?

Have any of you had the same problem? How did you deal with it? And did the big thing you thought would be a challenge (age difference, distance, education) turn out to not matter at all?

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