Finding someone to go out with you has never been easier. Before dating apps were invented, you had to go out into the world and just HOPE that you’d run into someone good-looking at the button factory or beg your father to choose the most attractive of your cousins to marry you. Nowadays we have

Feb 14, 2019 Sometimes a romance doesn’t work out, and it’s terrible. But sometimes a relationship doesn’t work out…and it’s completely fine! Great, even. It might seem rare, but there are definitely former partnerships that result in mutual respect or friendship rather than deep enmity or recriminations. We found nine single people so incredible that

Whenever I need some non-cheesy inspiration about the enduring power of romance, I read anarcha-feminist Emma Goldman’s famous stump speech, “Marriage and Love.” Born in Lithuania to Jewish parents in 1869, Goldman was an influential activist and writer who toured the U.S., risking arrest and deportation to speak to raucous crowds about radical ideas like

All my life I have dreamed of distilling my rich and complex being into a set of seven photographs and ~43 words’ worth of witticisms. Just kidding! The idea of creating a dating app profile makes me want to die, and when I got out of a long-term relationship, I was not that keen to

At some point in a woman’s life, many of us graduate from “boys have cooties” to daydreaming about her perfect guy. For me, the options ranged from doe-eyed crooners like Jesse McCartney and Mario to movie baes Adrian Grenier and Morris Chestnut. But then I grew up, and actually had to step out of my

Dear E. Jean : My friend had a bad breakup last year and needed a place to stay, so I took her in, loaned her money, brought her on trips, and counseled her for many hours on the phone. I’ve tried to get her back on her feet, but she sticks to me like a

A few months ago, a cute guy approached me at a bar and chatted me up. When he turned around to say something to his buddy and poof! I was gone, skittering to the other side of the bar where my friend was waiting. “Ariana, why did you run away?” my friend asked in disbelief.

You’re here because you want a smooch. A big, ol’, preferably not wet kiss right on the lips. Of course you do. Instead of providing a step-by-step guide that overcomplicates the act or bringing in a scientist to break down the steps, we called in a few experts. This is for you, Dr. Hitch, and

Getty ImagesMondadori Portfolio . Some dates good; most dates bad. In ELLE.com’s Dates of Wrath column, anonymous daters share true stories of their very worst rendezvous. This week: First comes FaceTime, then comes…the hotel room. I had recently been doing what I call serial dating, since I was out of a four-year relationship. So I

Dear E. Jean: Should I leave everything and go on a road trip? I’m 27, with an okay job (but no promotions or salary increases in five years), and I’m still living with my parents. Last year, I read Cheryl Strayed’s Wild and started fantasizing about driving across the country on a great American adventure.

Dear E. Jean: I’ve forgotten what it’s like to be in love. I’m a 27-year-old woman who’s been single for years. I’ve tried online dating and met some nice guys, but since my last serious relationship ended, I’ve felt absolutely nothing—not even a twinge of romance. One gentleman in particular was fantastic. However, no matter

Dear E. Jean: I’m in love with a wonderful man. We laugh, talk, inspire, and support each other. We hug, we shag, we cuddle. He’s the one who understands me best; but when he asked me to marry him, I said no. Marriage to me is a death sentence, a path to a joyless, sexless

Dear E. Jean: My twin sister is rude, obnoxious, condescending, and uses any opportunity (public or private) to vent about how I’ve “let her down,” never buy her presents, etc. It’s embarrassing and hurtful. She now includes my fiancé in her barrage of cruelties. When I’m around her, I am generally anxious and upset. So,

This is not my child. Stella Last year, when I had an infant, I thought a lot about the flu. I thought about it in the way that, in my youth, I used to think about a crush. Slightly obsessively, kind of stalker-y—a Googling-in-the-middle-of-the-night kind of way. I read all the articles about how it

Dear E. Jean: Friends seem to be drifting away. I contact them and suggest we meet for drinks or dinner, and they usually reply with, “Oh! I’m not in town that day.” Or, “Gosh! I’ve got a ton of work that week!” Then, when I ask if I should just let them alone, they act

Dear E. Jean: What do you do when a friend is a user? This person’s car broke down, she demanded that I wire her a ridiculous amount of money for a tow (or drive 130 miles to pick her up!)—and when I politely refused, she threw a raging tantrum. She routinely lies and invents medical

. Some dates good; most dates bad. In ELLE.com’s Dates of Wrath column, anonymous daters share true stories of their very worst rendezvous. This week: FOUR locations, three girls, two friends, and one strip club. It was one of my first Tinder dates, so I wasn’t as hardened as I am now. Also, I was

Dear E. Jean: What’s the best way to move past rejection, whether it’s job rejection or romantic rejection? The conventional wisdom is to remain resolute and “try, try again,” but I’ve been doing that with no luck. What should I do?—Human Repellent Human, My Heliotrope: I know more about rejection than any advice columnist of

It’s the first snowfall of the season, and class is about to begin in the low-lit lounge of the Nomo hotel in SoHo. Women in their twenties mill about, nervously chatting each other up between hors d’oeuvres and sips of white wine. Diverse and attractive, some are turned out for date night with Kardashian blowouts

Dear E. Jean: I’m married to a handsome, exciting, and very fit man. We’ve had our ups and downs, but in general we’re seen as one of those super couples, and at times it feels that way, too. But here’s the thing: He constantly fat-shames me, to the point that he’s hardly been able to

Dear E. Jean: I have a quiet personality. I speak softly. I’ve tried to talk louder. I’ve tried saying, “Please hear me out.” I’ve even raised my voice and said, “Please listen!” And yet, 9 times out of 10, men interrupt and talk over me. They even go so far as to tell me to

Just because you’re in love doesn’t mean you can’t constantly embarrass each other: maybe your significant other is too messy, or they run late, or they harbor dreams of gaming professionally. For several Rent the Runway users, a furry neon-pink man-repelling coat started to cause tension in their relationships (shout out Leandra Medine, the original

Dear E. Jean: I’m in love with a man who lives with his brother and his brother’s girlfriend in a big house. I live in a house about a mile away with a roommate. We’ve been together for four years. One day I’d like to live with him, and I’m growing tired of the back-and-forth

The only parenting book I read before my almost-four-year-old son Leo was born was Pamela Druckerman’s 2012 Bringing up Bébé. As an American transplant raising kids in France, Druckerman observed that the French child is not the sun in the familial solar system. I prepared myself to nurture and prune a bien-élevé (well-mannered) toddler—the kind

Dear E. Jean: My future daughter-in-law isa wonderful young woman who has brought happiness into my son’s life. She’s warm, genuine, and fun; has a great career; and is driven and organized. Being with a woman who is strong and decisive seems to suit my son. He’s equally charming and kind, but more low-key, less

Dear E. Jean: I don’t watch porn, so I don’t know what’s considered “normal.” My partner is a cartoonist, and a sweet and gentle man. I found out he watches videos known as “facial abuse,” where women actually vomit during oral sex. I haven’t recovered from the shock. He’s promised to stop consuming the violent

Dear E. Jean: Last year I met an adorable fellow at a bar. One thing led to another, and we ended up going home together that night. We saw each other off and on for several weeks, then he dumped me, saying I was too young for him. I’m 24. He’s 31. Six months later,

Dear E. Jean: My boyfriend has a beautiful studio apartment in Manhattan. When we first started dating, his cousin moved to New York and was trying to get on his feet. While looking for an apartment, he crashed at my boyfriend’s. I totally understand the struggle. It’s New York! But now it’s seven months later,