With dating dynamics shifting and consent at the forefront now more than ever, we explore the delicate art of breaking the ice.
Dating has always been a source of anxiety for both men and women. There are just so many questions before meeting someone for the first time: Will they like me? Will I like them? What if he’s a vegetarian? What if she likes Kid Rock? What if they don’t “understand” Seinfeld? Anything could conceivably go wrong over dinner, drinks and whatever other mindless activities that two people agree to engage in to ultimately decide whether or not they want to eventually see each other naked. That’s right—the Chili’s courtship, as it were, is just a Ranch Water-soaked prequel to sex.
Sex will inevitably be on somebody’s mind long before the appetizer arrives. And when that happens, oh boy, there’ll be even more questions to stoke that anxiety into a panic attack. Even the most put-together swinging dick in the land will be gripping his chest in the bathroom trying to make sense of it all. Can I hold her hand? Can I kiss her?
Although two people may be on the same page with respect to taking the relationship to the next level, nobody seems to know anymore who’s supposed to make the first move. The modern romantic climate is as confusing as it has ever been. If we listen to the Internet, two people can’t even meet anymore without first hashing out a bunch of rules, boundaries and listing all of their unholy intentions. Otherwise, consent could be fouled, and nobody wants that.
“Dating has always been difficult. Nobody wants to do anything that’s going to get them in any kind of trouble.”
Kurt
“Dating has always been difficult,” Kurt, a 39-year-old from Phillipsburg, New Jersey, tells HUSTLERMagazine.com. “Nobody wants to do anything that’s going to get them in any kind of trouble.”
No, they don’t.
