Unrealistic Expectations

It seems to me that women have unrealistic expectations, and I'm sure the same is the other way around, but I'm not going to go there right now.

This occurred thought occurred to me last night somewhere between the fight with my dad, talking with an ex, talking with the guy I'm currently interested(or have been for 5 years...however you want to see it), and a mental breakdown.

Here's the thing. Some of my male friends come to me for advice on girls and a question I hear often is. I don't know if doing (insert romantic action here similar to one found in movies) will be appreciated or if she'll just laugh and think it's lame. What I say in response: Almost every girl loves some romance, just not overkill. What makes something romantic is the thought put into it, while making it seems spontaneous to the girl. If you're not the kind of guy who is used to showing affection or telling someone you care, then you can do it in small ways.

For example, if you haven't seen her recently or you've been busy with school/work, then just drop something small by her house. Personally, I like dessert, so a piece of tiramisu would be awesome to me. I guarantee she'll be smiling for the next few days. Flowers are good too, but not too soon after meeting. They can freak some women out.

But what does this have to do with unrealistic expectations? Well most women will say they don't expect those romantic things from a man. For most of them, that would be a huge lie. A woman will always wish a guy would do something special like that and feel slightly let down when an opportunity arises and the man doesn't take it. She'll never show it though unless she's a whiny manipulator.

So expecting a man to be very romantic is an unrealistic expectation, and I guarantee most women would get sick of too much.

But onto The List. It never ceases to amaze me how many women have one. Yes, I'm talking about a detailed list of what makes the perfect guy. Some have it because they truly are looking for someone who will fit everything on that list, some women use it as a general guideline, some use it to keep guys they aren't really interested in, away. I made mine when I realized most of the guys I tended to be attracted too had similar characteristics. My reason for making one was primarily to keep away a lot of guys I wasn't interested in.
My List:
Confident, Independent, Kind, Laid Back, Smart, Open minded, Listens, Funny, Honest, Healthy, Practical about money, Individual, Diligent, Attractive to me("preferably short brown hair, brown eyes, square(masculine) jaw, 5'5-5'6 or 6'0 and above in height, athletic build (okay i really said hockey player build), bright smile).

Now let's be honest, do any of you know a man who is exactly like that? Okay I can think of 1 and I designed my idealistic list around him, but he's not perfect. There is no such thing. Ultimately most woman will throw her list out when she finds a man she really likes regardless of how he fits the list. Let's be honest, the list is really to ensure that the woman doesn't get played. I promise I threw mine out a while ago.

more later