You know you are a cougar if...

I have almost always dated younger guys. Even in high school when dating someone in a lower grade was the equivalent of dating someone 10 years younger when you are in your thirties. I even lost my virginity to a younger guy.

 

Through college and twenties was just a blur of average men of average age but then, in my early 30s I started dating those in their early 20s. Maybe i was trying to recapture the twenties I had lost in being moody, overly ridiculously responsible, self-conscious and prudish. Maybe it was because the guys my age were mostly married, gay or dealing with their past of being one of the above. Maybe I was in mature myself and looking for a little fun.

 

Regardless, it has continued into my late 30s and showing no signs of slowing down. I seem to have the most luck and have the most in common with guys 9-12 years younger. They also seem to like me, which is another thing to analyze all together.

 

So instead of trying to understand “why”, I thought I would help you identify if you too might be a cougar...or have cougar tendencies. They say you are a cougar if the guy is 1/2 your age plus 7 years, but I think this is a much more accurate scale:

 

You might be a cougar if....

• your boyfriend doesn’t get why you can’t stay out till 4am when you have to work at 8
• you and your boyfriend have the same sex drive
• you didn’t meet him at a bar because he couldn’t get into one
• when he says, “I’ll call you” you expect a voice to voice chat, he sends you a text
• you have the same amount of Skymiles as he has points at Chuck E. Cheese
• you got your drivers license when he was still using training wheels
• you meet his mom and you bond over your favorite 80s bands
• he likes to point out that the year you graduated high school, he started kindergarten
• he likes to do projects around your house because he doesn’t have one of his own
• you have 3 or more pets, he has 3 or more roommates

 

There are many advantages and disadvantages to being a cougar too but I will take the guy who is less jaded and much less likely to have 2 divorces and 3 kids, even if I have to put up with him not being able to hang out because he has a D&D game planned with his friends.

 

The loyal cougar cub, as I like to call them, admires you for your confidence, experience and strength and you can benefit from his optimism, energy and carefree life. Its really a win-win. But beware, fellow cougars, the charms of the cougar cub can run out if they stay the same as they are now when they get to be your age. They should still grow along with you and if so, you can enjoy all of those advantages in balance for years to come!