Odds Are Gooood.
There’s an old saying about dating amongst the women in Alaska regarding the men of Alaska.
The odds are good, but the goods are odd.
It’s hard to find accurate history about its origins, but the rugged, rigorous, and outdoorsey lifestyle of the Last Frontier has always attracted… odd individuals, especially men.
Odd is described as being “different from what is usual or expected; strange.”
And Alaska is definitely different!
Because the 49th state is known for supplying jobs that bring oil workers, hunters, fishermen, forestry workers, and gold miners, there has always been an abundance of guys. Living life on the last frontier was not often a dream shared by women, and so the population has always been skewed in favor of men. And because of that, the few women that did come to town were rare, and competition fierce.
For a single gal in her early twenties, you’d think, then, that there would be countless options to chose from, as far as dating goes. Yet I continue to spend my nights alone (OK not “alone” because technically my cat sleeps with me, but you know what I mean), watching seemingly everyone around me in some sort of relationship.
Though there still remains this high population of men (which is slowly becoming equal to that of women because hey! we too like to be independent and live in the wild), it seems as if most of the men in my age group are either: married, engaged, already a father, or snatched up by the few single women remaining, like me.
It’s like every time a new guy comes to town (one who hasn’t been round in round in the local dating circle), not a week passes before he’s already shacking up with a girl before I’m even aware of his arrival.
Girl, I haven’t even been a part of the local dating circle.
Not that I think I’m missing out (based on the few horror stories I’ve heard), but it’s a bummer for a girl like me who’s kinda thought her whole life that maybe... she’s man repellent.
I KNOW.
How can I let such vicious thoughts consume me?
What started as a self-pity joke in middle school has since become the ominous dictation of my current dating life and though I try to shake it, this little insecure part of me still believes that I do, in fact, repel men.
Repel might be a strong word at this point, but I do seem to either intimidate or scare men, or happen to be one of the unluckiest women in the world. All I know is that I’m starting to wonder if maybe... I’m the odd one here.
Though the numbers tell me that men still outnumber women in the great state of Alaska, I can’t help but feel that the tides have now turned and it’s women who are now competing for men, and that I am now one of the “odd” ones vying for a mate.
Whatever the case may be, whether I’m odd or not, destined to be single in the rugged lands of the Last Frontier or not, I accept where I’m at and who I’m (not) with.
I know part of this craving to have a significant other has to do with my environment around me and the people who surround me, who just so happen to be in a time in their lives where having someone special is part of their path right now. Plus, it’s summer, and there’s summer romance and I’ve never experienced that before, so of course my hopeless romantic self starts to daydream.
My priority right now is following my dreams and pursuing the passions that excite me. And while men also excite me (I’m a twenty-three year old woman, of course men excite me) maybe it’s just not the right time.
I can’t let what I see around me influence how my life goes. My path has always been unique, why should my route be any different now?
If I am indeed odd, let it be so.
Cause I’ll be sure to make being odd look gooood.
