Mr Good Enough: The case for choosing a Real Man over holding out for Mr Perfect电子书

Contents

Prologue The Husband Store

PART ONE How Did We Get Here?

1 The Dating Trenches

2 The Romantic Comedy That Predicted My Future

3 How Feminism Fucked Up My Love Life

4 Speed Dating Disaster

PART TWO From Fantasy to Reality

5 Older, and Wanting to Be Wiser

6 $3,500 for Love

7 The What Versus the Why

8 Mondays with Evan Session One: The Percentages

9 It’s Not Him, It’s You

PART THREE Making Smarter Choices

10 Don’t Be Picky, Be Happy

BUT IS A GUY LIKE A SWEATER?

THE HUSBAND RETURN POLICY

EVERY “8” BECOMES A “6” OVER TIME

TOXIC MAXIMIZERS

MARRIAGE: THE GAME SHOW

11 Mondays with Evan Session Two—The Wrong Assumptions

THE GAG REFLEX

IT’S A PROFILE, NOT A LIFE STORY

“HAPPY” DOESN’T MEAN “GAY”

FINDING OUT IF HE’S AN “EH” OR AN “UGH”

12 The Men Who Got Away

ANDY—THE GUY I ASSUMED WASN’T COOL ENOUGH

MATT—THE GUY I ASSUMED WAS PERFECT

JEFF—THE GUY I ASSUMED WASN’T BRAINY ENOUGH

13 Pulling Another Sheldon

ANOTHER GUY GETS AWAY

14 Mondays with Evan Session Three—The Lowdown on Alpha Males

A NICE GUY WITH BALLS

ALPHA MALES DON’T MARRY ME

15 What First Dates Really Tell Us

CHANGING THE STORY

I WOULDN’T RETURN HIS CALLS

THE FROG PRINCE

HE LOOKED SHORT—IN A HEADSHOT

THREE HUNDRED FIRST-DATE MISTAKES

CONFUSING GOOD DATERS WITH GOOD HUSBANDS

16 Are Women Pickier Than Men?

ONE-STOP SHOPPING

I CAN BE LESS PICKY—IN THEORY

WOMEN WANT MORE

PART FOUR What Really Matters

17 Mondays with Evan Session Four—Wants Versus Needs

EVAN READS ME THE RIOT ACT

WHICH BRINGS US BACK TO MIKE

NARROWING DOWN THE NEEDS

A HUSBAND WHO WANTS TO GET MARRIED

18 The Business of Love

OLDER, OVERWEIGHT, AND BALD (WHICH THEY ALL EVENTUALLY BECOME ANYWAY)

THE PRINCE CHARMING PRICE TAG

SUNK COSTS AND OPPORTUNITY COSTS

THE BACHELOR AUCTION

A YEAR OF MARRIAGE

SELLING TOO EARLY

DEPRECIATING ASSETS

$10,000 AN INCH

YOU’RE ONLY AS VALUABLE AS YOUR OPTIONS

MARRIAGE IS A GOOD BUSINESS TO BE IN

19 Love at Twenty-seventh Sight

THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH HIM

THE COMMITMENT IS LIBERATING

WHAT’S A HUSBAND FOR?

LOVE IS TIMING, A VERB, AND A NOUN

20 Mondays with Evan Session 5—The Chemistry-to-Compatibility Ratio

GOING FOR THE SEXY

LET’S TALK ABOUT YOUR CHILDHOOD

THE CHEMISTRY ADDICTION

ARE YOU HAVING YOUR PERIOD?

FAMOUS LAST WORDS

21 Dump the List, Not the Guy

FORGET ABOUT “MY TYPE”

BEING SURPRISED BY THE POT

BREAKING UP WITH MY LIST

PART FIVE Putting It All Together

22 The Good Enough Marriage

DIFFERENT, BUT NOT BETTER

INHERITING THE EXPECTATIONS

A SHIFT FROM “US” TO “ME”

WANTING A BOYFRIEND AND A HUSBAND

23 A Visit with the Rabb

FEELING TOO COMFORTABLE

DATING ROBERT REICH

MARRIED TO THE MARRIAGE

BREAKING UP WITH HIS WIFE

TAKING OUT THE TRASH

HOW THIS ALL RELATES TO SHELDON2

24 Claire’s Story—Getting Over Myself

WHAT HE WASN’T

FORTY AND CONFUSED

THE STATUS MAN

A DEEPER KIND OF ROMANCE

25 Alexandra’s Story—Mr. Right in Front of Me

HE’S LIKE A BROTHER

CHASING THE WRONG IDEAL

THE RIGHT BALANCE OF EVERYTHING

26 Hilary’s Story—Finding What I Needed

MAYBE HE’D BE GOOD FOR A FLING

DOUBTING MYSELF

HE TALKED ABOUT RACE CARS

RECALIBRATING THE BUTTERFLIES

27 My Story—A Dating Public Service Announcement

WENDY’S NEW SUITORS

DRUNK DATING

A DIFFERENT KIND OF EMPOWERMENT

HEY, YOU—IN THE PINK SHIRT

Epilogue Where They Are Now

Acknowledgments

ALSO BY LORI GOTTLIEB

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