(Yes, I'm a dog.)
Well, I knew this day was going to come. However, I didn't think it would take 2 1/2 months. This was at first a supposedly funny response to another blogger's site, but I soon found that my blog's overnight popularity was more intriguing to me than trying to match wits with another blogger's dating rules.
Honestly, I initially had a lot of fun with this blog. Being anonymous to everyone had me laughing through the night. Sometimes I couldn't believe the conversations about the blog amongst my friends and my ward. Keeping a straight face became almost an art. Boston was having fits and Provo (27,000 unique visitors) was subtly becoming my Mecca. But as the posts continued, the conversations turned more disheartening than promising. Hearing that some girls were reduced to tears and others "deeply hurt" finally made me wonder, "don't they see I'm just having some fun here?" Now that I realize that I was wrong, I am here to tell the truth before I disappear from the blogosphere.
To all the RM sisters and those still planning on serving a mission, Gotcha! I think you are all great! No matter what stereotype that is pinned on you, I still remember you are doing the Lord's work in bringing souls unto Christ. I respect that. Really.
Actually, every "type" of girl that has been portrayed in my postings all have an extreme great worth. No one should be considered less datable based on an objective criteria. We are all "flawed" in some respect, and it's what makes us all unique. I'm probably the most flawed of all. Although I don't "live in my parents basement" "find myself unemployed" "extremely bitter toward girls" or even "wrapped in a web of video/computer games," I still have many undesirable characteristics & traits. But just like anyone who has felt humbled, I want to be better too.
As many of you can attest, I haven't provided any real answers on how girls or guys (for that matter) can find companionship. All I've really done is re-started the discussion of why dating is so frustrating. Truthfully, I have just brought up old adages that have been recycled over and over again. Maybe I've added a new spin or put some cheeky pop cultural reference on some, but it's nothing new. Granted, I have received quite the handful of questions that are often over my spectrum of expertise (okay, one MFHD class doesn't give me any expertise.) I am quite flattered, but have no
elixir or remedy. From my personal dating forays, nothing has been more successful for me than being
honest,
caring, and
loving.
From the bevy of commentators, I have thoroughly enjoyed the comments. I definitely looked forward to the comments more than I looked forward to writing the next post. However, some of you were way over the top and the language got a touch sour at times. I'm not one to complain, but just one that observed. As my posts continued to get worse, the comments became greater and more incendiary in nature. The pattern was staggering and my heart became more uneasy.
No matter how relevant the subject matter posted was, being hurtful doesn't help any of us progress. I believe I was more enthralled in the "Oh that's
sooooo true" comments, that I turned a blind eye to those that were offended/struggling with the comments. There seemed to be a general consensus that if someone was offended by the blog that they shouldn't read what was before them, but we have always been taught to stand up for what we think is right. So I believe it was fair that those objecting to a post had the right to do so. I am definitely awed in the psyche of a person, though. The fact someone can dislike a site and still come back again and again is a bit funny & disturbing. I tracked the
IP addresses of multiple "Anonymous" responders who disliked the blog and found a 87% return rate of the 174 people I followed.
From this blog, I have gained a love for writing, and consequently, a desire to work more diligently on my sentence structure, spelling, and grammar. Maybe I'll take a class on satire. I also have decided to use my writing for something more uplifting and less of a degradation to our
LDS sub-culture. Maybe you'll find me in the future writing something because it's insightful and not because it's disrespectful.
My apologies to Mike Cunningham, Dave Alba, Mike Visser, Jansen Gunther, Paul Dozier, and to any other guy who was thought to be behind this blog. As much as you would like to hate these guys: they are all innocent. You can hate them for something else. But I ask sincerely that you don't.
Maybe I'm stopping because I have a conscience somewhere in my apparent, "cold, bitter, soul" (
someone emailed that to me.) But, I won't continue through your congratulations or your daily need to read my "funny" postings. I figure one day I'll meet my Maker, and hopefully through some repentance, I will have already
exonerated this garbage from my "body of work"
But until then, the only reason why Mormon Girls Stay Single is me. Dating and finding the right person is hard, but rewarding work. The last thing you need is a unsuccessful single guy telling you how you're screwing it up. Forgive me, I am but a boy. One day, hopefully, I'll be a man.
Until we meet again,
Peter Preisthood aka (------- ----- ---- ---)
Fin
P.S. I never got caught and I'm not from Provo or Boston :)
