The ABC's of Dating a Douchebag: The Red Flags of Love

“The ABCs…” covers the eternally popular topic, women’s frustrations with men.
When I found myself going through “the worst break up ever” I took a trip to Barnes and Noble and bought any relationship book that I could get my hands on. The ones that I sought most solace in and that gave me the most sense of ease were light, funny, and articulate. I liked the feeling that I was having a conversation with a friend who had been through the same experience, as opposed to being told how to behave by an authority figure who seemingly believed that the situation could be remedied by a behavioral modification. More specifically, that I was the one who needed to modify my behavior. In that state I certainly didn’t want to be told what I had done wrong, I simply wanted the comfort of knowing that others had been through what I had, that I would most certainly survive, and maybe, just maybe, there was hope for the future.
I have done considerable research and found that women, not just myself, prefer to read books written by somebody who can identify personally, and is able to portray that in a casual and witty format; not by a licensed therapist who uses scientific reasoning as a attempt to explain every thought that passes through our heads. Women want true stories, not opinions!

A - Athletics
(Why women should not compromise themselves for their partner’s love of extracurricular sports.)

B - Breaking Up
(The basic rules of going through a break up.)

C - The Chase
(A little game of cat and mouse never hurt a relationship.)

D - Deadbeats
(Simple indicators in relationships that describe the typical deadbeat.)

E - Excuses
(The man that has an excuse for everything is one to be avoided.)

F - Fighting
(Fighting has many implications for relationships; some good, some bad.)

G - Girlfriends
(How to decipher between the “girl friend opinion, and the “good friend” opinion.)

H - Honeymoon
(The first 6 months of bliss can be extremely deceiving when life gets real.)

I - Infidelity
(Cheating; acknowledging and accepting the red flags.)

J - Job
(A basic equation: how driven he is in a career = how driven he will be in a long term relationship.)

K - Kids
(The big decision: to have or not to have, the compromise, and whether or not a child is a marriage saver.)

L - Lazy
(‘Nuff said.)

M - Mystery
(The perks of keeping some of the cards to yourself.)

N - Narcissism
(It’s not all about him.)

O - Oven Mitt
(We will settle for an oven mitt that “just works”, but are we settling for a relationship that “just works”?)

P - Period Panties
(Letting in men on our dirty little secret.)

Q - Quiz
(How asking a thousand questions can cause more chaos and craziness than there needs to be.)

R - Realization
(When we finally come to the realization that the relationship may be over, no matter who made the call.)

S - Sex
(The sex life is a secret window into the inner workings of a relationship.)

T - Tequila
(Alcohol… Can we drink together? There are clues in the booze.)

U - Uterus
(Why our uterus wears the pants in a relationship.)

V - Victim
(I am woman, hear me roar.)

W - Waiting
(Oh, I didn’t realize this was on YOUR time!)

X – X-girlfriends
(The past is in the past, and why it should stay there.)

Y - Yearning
(Going all in too soon to escape the loneliness.)

Z - Zingara
(The bed hopping gypsy; how did this happen?)

Through each chapter I chronicle the story of my sister in law, “Jennifer”, and her husband, “Chad.” As a couple they have been married for 12 years, and unbeknownst to them, have served as my primary inspiration to write this book. The relationship is a real life example of the “A,B, C’s… at work.