Tales of the Flipped: Ditched & Anxious

Tales of the Flipped: Ditched & Anxious details the angst experienced by those 40 years of age and older who are single again and re-entering the wacky world of dating in the wake of a separation, divorce or becoming widowed. Personal experiences are blended with empirical data derived from more than 750 participants in an exclusive two-year study to render validation for the insecure, repair for the injured and protection from the crazies and scammers.

Stories, not statistics, are the stars of Tales of the Flipped, which is truly two books in one.

The first volume, "Eight Days of The Diener," portrays the multiple tensions tugging at the emotional and financial health of a separated and divorcing 50-plus year old male shoved from a slippery deck back into the dating pool after 30 years of marriage. Volume II, "He Said, She Did / She Said, He Did" delves into the universe of situations, issues, assumptions, presumptions, errors of omission, perverse behavior, outright crimes and other obstacles daters often encounter barricading the route to renewed happiness.

Chapters titled "Breakfast with Epiphanies," "Blondapalooza," "Prelude to a Diss," "C’mere You," "Cleared for Landing" and "Salmon Says" take readers on dating adventures through diners, courtrooms, Walmart stores, newsrooms, discos, boardrooms and bedrooms. "Looking For Mr. or Mrs. Goodbyte," "Fields of Screams" and "Zero Degrees of Separation" detail online dating and close encounters of the worst kind.

Recollections of dating decades ago augment contemporary experiences with date targeting, rekindling relationships, first time sex and co-habiting. The vignettes introduce real life characters, among them an online dating service subscriber turned convicted murderer. Benchmark data gleaned from the 25 questions – like how soon one clicks his or her internal “bad date” stopwatch and decides whether to dine or dash – contributes credibility.

There are 121 million people in the U.S. aged 40 to 74 of whom about 28 million are single again. Some may be solo and reveling in a new freedom. Others may be alone and actively seeking their next mate. There also are the many fighting loneliness and confused about today’s social world which is vastly different than it was decades ago.

Dating today requires reservations. Daters need to be continually on-guard, questioning the intentions of prospective dates and vetting the information they share to divide fact from fantasy.

Daters also must realize the havoc that may be created by the acts of sinister targeters who have no reservations about whom they imperil when swooping into their lives.

No wonder there is a segment of the over 40 dating again after a separation, divorce or becoming widowed who are plain scared having either tried dating and then stopped or never bothered with another first date.

Author Rand Deminc, blending intrigue and humor with data from the "March Forth Dating Again After 40 Relationship Study," leads by example rather than preachy sermon, to provide hope for the forlorn, repair for the injured and protection from the crazies and scammers.