Laura, Do You Have a Boyfriend Yet?

"no."
"why not? It's been a month!"
"I don't need a man."
"You're so American." or "Well, you shouldn't have any trouble finding one."

Yup, this is asked quite frequently. Really and truly! The idea of a woman being independent is entirely foreign to them! Yes, they agree, my first mission in moving should be finding a place, but I found that already!!!! Next, as soon as possible I need a man. I need a man. What would I do with a man in Istanbul? I just don't think a Turkish man could handle my "American-ness." Plus, men here like to do things for their ladies. Like help them onto the bus, hold the umbrella when it rains, and become a human shield as you walk down the sidewalk. I can hold my OWN umbrella thank you very much. If you want to hold an umbrella, hold your own. My personal space spans about a whole umbrella anyway. So you might as well hold your own and forget about me. And know that if your umbrella touches MY umbrella I'm bound to become irritated, so be careful.... Be VERY careful indeed! My irritation factor spans the lenght of ten umbrella factories so yah, about dating.... I'm just not ready for it. I mean, God would have to do something really crazy to open my eyes to that scene. I mean how many guys let the girl hold the umbrella? I mean think about it, and this is JUST the beginning of the dominance factor... Like personal space. Guys think that once you start dating they have a right to your personal space. Ummmmmmm, no! You have the right to look at me without my becoming irritated that you're looking at me. That's about it. And you get to enjoy my company at a meal. I'm not saying that I'm soooooooooooo amazing, just that I'm me and Turks just don't understand why I want to hold my own umbrella. For reals people... Oh yeah, the pic is of my street. I walk it every day...