I've got an /awesome/ Halloween costume planned. I don't want to just give it away, though, so...

I'll give you some clues:

Pick a number between 2 and 9.

Multiply your number by 9.

Add the two digits together.

Subtract 5.

Match that number to a letter in the Alphabet. (i.e., a=1, b=2, etc...)

Pick a country in Europe that starts with that letter.

Now pick an animal whose first letter is the LAST letter of that country.

Now pick a color that starts with the LAST letter of that animal.

Post in the comments with your guess!

Good for you, OKCupid admins. That was awesome.

So...you're single. You'd like to date someone, or maybe more! Or maybe less! Hey, your okcupid quiz /did/ say you're a bit less pure! You haven't met anyone interesting at the bar lately, so you think "hey...what's this online thing I've heard so much about? I'll find me a cutie in no time!"

But then you start looking at what's out there, and all your well-laid plans are like eggs in a rock tumbler. Gooey, splattered, and totally unsuitable for making any sort of omelette, much less that delicious one you had planned with the fresh basil and prosciutto. And there's bits of shell everywhere. Nobody likes shell in their omelette.

Mind you, I'm assuming nobody likes shell in their omelette. There's all sorts of weird stuff out here on the World Wide Information Superhighway Avenue Web. Someone is probably making www.chickswhodeliberatelyputtheshellintotheomelette.com right now. Nevermind the pun about chicks breaking eggshells. That is what they do, after all.

Also, I don't like shell in my omelette.

But I digress! Anyway, the hard part (or so it's seemed to me) about meeting someone online is that you are presented with a smorgasboard of options. As people, we want a mate. As animals, we want the /best/ mate...but when you've got a list of options neatly categorized by all sorts of criteria, you start getting extremely specific.

It's simple (for a man, at least) to say "this one is the prettiest, so I'll message her!" or "this one is curvy in all the right ways, so I'll message her!" I've got to assume it's similiar for women when looking at men.

But aren't we creating unrealistic expectations? In some ways, online dating is worse than meeting someone at a bar. At least in a bar, you've got the (maybe-more-than-a-bit-inebriated)-face-to-(maybe-more-than-a-bit-inebriated)-face thing going on. You're not instantly comparing A to B when things are actually happening, but online interaction gives you time to think "well...this guy is cuter. I'll hold out until I meet this new [insert man-cake celebrity here]".

Guys, this applies to you, too! Don't pass up on someone you might find interesting just because all her profile pics don't make her look like [hot supermodel of choice]. You might find someone you really, actually like!