I'm first? I'm really first?! How did this happen? Oh, my god. I don't even have a comment, but since I could be first I have to say something. And seriously, speaking as a woman who has a guy, don't get another one. I have a strict "no replacement" policy. If ever I find myself single again, I am staying that way. And I lucked out and got one of the good ones.

First ... no? didn't think so .. ack.

Ha!! I am de-blurking for the first time to laugh with you about this Craig with the list. I live in SF (the original land of Craig) and have found a house, sold a fridge, bought a couch, remembered the local flea market all through our friend Craig but the personals? The *!#!!*$#ing personals?

I thought I was the only one who had nearly given up on the opposite sex purely due to the Men Seeking Women section of that website! I am strangely comforted by our sympatico on this subject. But have you SEEN the "best-of-craigslist" button? Man, hours of fun - I'm just sayin'...

p.s. I LOVE your little spot on the internet (won't say bl*g).

Agreed, agreed, agreed. The internets are too scary for finding the Luv. Those who make the attempt are braver than I'll ever be because... ugh.

aw, i gotta speak up for madison. My best friends on earth live there, I lived there till a bout a year back, and you know, they do have some crazy sweet eligible normal men living there. of course, none of them advertise on craigslist. heck, the best ones i know don't even bother with dating anymore. sad isn't it that all the really good people have just retreated from the scene.

Laurie, the Craigslist personals are notoriously freaky/bad. Better to avoid them entirely....hey, whatever happened to the Cute Guy at TJ's? I say it's time to go back and stock up! ;)

Posting personals on Craigslist=too cheap to pay for an online dating service.

But at least they're good for a laugh.

Seriously, Laurie, step away from the personal section of CraigsList! Like Leslie, I have had many happy experiences on CL: met a few nice people who have become really good friends, bought and sold furniture, picked up a few temp jobs, found my current apartment.

But the personals section is a warped pit of neurotics who think that Craig is a magic Santa who will bring them their own perfect version of Barbie. Please! I once told a friend who was becoming depressed about her (lack of) dating life on CL to take a break for a month and no surprise: her self esteem righted itself after going cold turkey.

But do check out "best of" like Leslie suggested, and also "casual encounters". Very entertaining! tee hee

Well it's good to hear I am not the only one who thoght the personals were scary enough to invest in battery-operated friends LOL.

Samantha, girl, you and you alone have inspired me to write a romance book!! Your optimism is inspiring. I do have a crush on my accountant. He's cute. Very cute. Not available, though, I don't think. *sigh*

Gaile -- precisely why I picked Madison!! It seems like a place where you'd meet nice folks who aren't crazy like in LA. :)

Sarah ... heh. I agree.

The entertainment value is definitely high. After a while it seemed to me, though, that these were men who were sort of anonymously trying to recreate their fondest porn moments. Like that's gonna happen. heh heh

Thanks for pointing out that it's craigslist.ORG...and NOT com......

I made that mistake once... Whoohee...

Why I prefer yarn to men: Yarn doesn't move in with your best friend. Yarn doesn't mind when you rip it apart (for the most part) because things aren't working and you need to start over. Yarn believes in new beginnings. Yarn is colourful (or not), not afraid of sticks and never never never expects you to be ready to knit when you aren't. Internet yarn doesn't mis-represent itself as alpaca-silk blend when its really acrylic (and damn proud of it too).

Internet dating and cleaning house: very over-rated.
Yarn plus Oprah: priceless

Lisa, a gal after my own heart!!!

Hi Christine! :)

Laurie, I can't believe I'm the first one to point this out to you, but you must must MUST go read Amy Blair's Week in Craig column archives.

http://www.blacktable.com/archive/craigarchive.htm

In fact, I'm going to make a cup of tea and read some myself.

You kill me CAP. I actually had a friend that "dated" someone from Craigslist...wouldn't really call it dating though. It was scary to all of us little witnesses!

And as for the housecleaning and buying more crap to organize the pre-existing clutter...I am right there with you! Glad I'm not the only one that leaves the suitcase in the middle of the living room floor for days. :)

Laurie! Laurie! Laurie!

I have never gone trolling for men on Craigslist, but I have done the Match and Yahoo thing. My advice: DON'T!!! While amusing for a bit, the day comes when it becomes annoying and one finds better things to do. I agree with lisa's comments on internet dating and house cleaning to be over rated. Yarn rules!

wisconsin? very pretty state, but last year they tried to pass a law that would let anyone shoot stray cats. that is , a cat they see outside. maybe a pet, maybe not. as long as it's out there without a collar you can shot it. this didnt pass by the way, but still!

this is going to sound naive, but I never had much interaction with cats.. do they really like bacons?

also, don't ignore the luggage over a few months! if you have swim wear in the luggage, it might be a good idea to get them out, depending where you've been swimming.

I once went back to my swim trunks in my luggage only to find it became some kinda furry shorts.

anyway, don't buy a treadmill :P

Hey - y'all don't be hating on Craigs... I met my current Best Boyfriend EVER on Craigs - seriously, we've been together for almost 8 months now. I've also found a job, gotten free stuff, I've even been a Missed Connection with some pervert who liked the looks of me and wondered if my boyfriend and I would like to get together with him (hey, no way jose - but I have to say I was chuffed to bits and thought - whoohoo - my life is now complete!).

I say why not check out Craigs for dating possibilities? But be aware that you do not want to post an ad unless you are aware that you will be inundated with many many posts from men who want you, they want to meet you, now, and maybe even at your place. And they'll even send you pics of their, erm, junk/equipment. Even if you ask them not to. (Not that I've EVER posted an ad myself, but have spent a fair bit of time on the site itself).

You have serial posters on Craigs too - guys that just keep putting up the same post, or variation of a post over and over again every ten minutes. Don't respond to them.

The ad I responded to (I'm picky). Had a post from a guy who gave his basic stats (height, weight, age, etc..). He went on to say that he just wanted to have coffee with someone, maybe make a new friend, and talk... He said that he was really looking for love, but not expecting to find it there... Well, we talked on the phone, set up a time and day to have coffee, in a nice public place, and I've been with him almost every single day since then...

So it can happen :-)

Oh, I personally believe that the plural for Doofus is Doofi (fungus, fungi). And I surely believe that we must all embrace our inner doofus.

I still have a suitcase (completely full) from a christmas trip sitting in my dining room...

One day, venture into the Missed Connections... the mere idea is hilarious.

Oh and don't buy a treadmill... it will become the most expensive clothes hanger you'll ever own... I promise... it's like a built-in guarantee of the treadmill industry.

Don't check out the "casual encounters" section of craigslist without a gallon of bleach nearby. It will seriously skeeve you out and you will not only never wish to date but you will want to spray everyone you meet with Clorox because they might be one of the people who has casual sex with random people they meet on the Internets.

I have to put the suitcase away right after the trip because last year one of the cats decided that the best way to punish me for leaving was to pee on it. I ended up having to toss a perfectly good Samsonite in the trash because I couldn't get the smell out even with those special cleaners that break down the enzymes.

Cap, your advice comes too late. I have the treadmill already. Perhaps it may be the reason my bathing suits will eventually see the light of day again.

Roy LOVES bacon.

Craigslist is NOTORIOUS for bad personals. If you need to guffaw over a cup of coffee during the day, you should check out their "best of"
http://www.craigslist.org/about/best/all/

From what I have gathered,the so-called Hipster scene in Crazytown is probably annoying and vacuous. No matter. Whether you are or are not a Hipster - I think you are pretty darn cool! So There!

They have either the worst or the best personals on the web depending on whether you're looking for a real date or for comedy value.

It's sad that men like that are out there, but you won't run into too many of them in real life because they're all busy sitting at home and obsessively checking their email to see if a redhead has written yet!

Stephanie!!! This website you posted is TOO FUNNY!!

Debbie -- I just assumed no one actually hooked up based on those random sex ads. I mean, who would do that? Please. Tell me people don't do that. Eeeeeewwww. I need a Purell wipe just thinking of it. Eeeew.

Abigale ... I am glad to hear it worked for you! I do hear a lot of people say they (or someone they know) met true love online. But I'm old fashioned, I guess? I personally won't do online dating. I have my list of reasons, but mostly it's just not my cup of tea. But I am glad to hear it worked for you!

I have to go visit Madison now, ya'll know. ;)

Ah man ... welcome to Craigslist, CAP! There is a LOT of good to be found there (houses, cars, treadmills, etc) so don't ban it just because of the personals. I agree. Those can be pretty scary. Though I've found turning them into blogfodder for laughs kinda negates the scary. I especially like the guy looking for a serious relationship but only with a woman with big nipples or "puffies" as he called them. Yeah. There's a man offering up a deep and meaningful relationship!! "Puffies"! HA! Weird!

Those guys want those girls because that's what they see on t.v. Haven't you ever noticed that the stars of many sitcoms are fat ugly guys that are married to supermodels?

Now if you could date Craig himself, that would be impressive.

Yeah, Craigslist = scary, scary place. A few years ago, I was commuting to a city several hours from my home to work and go to school, and I used CL to find a room rental for M-F so I wouldn't have to drive every day.

Well, to make a long story short, the girl I rented from ended up to be a PSYCHO. A week after I signed the lease and moved in, she busted out a "House Rules" list printed on pastel purple paper with little house-y icons on it. And the rules - UN-freaking-BELIEVABLE! My personal favorite: "Flush twice after a bowel movement" Seriously. Right there, in writing - flush twice after a bowel movement. Dang. And I had to live with this person for 6 months.

Those craigslist folks - very scary.

I'm with Abigale on this one! First of all I have dated many...M-A-N-Y guys from the internet. Some more than once, some for awhile, some just for coffee. Either way it got me out of the house and MEETING PEOPLE. I used Yahoo personals but met my current BEST BOYFRIEND EVER through (yep, you got it) Craig's List. We didnt meet through a personal ad but rather just a comment and question I had posted. He responded, we emailed, met after a week and have been together ever since, almost a year now. My recommendation is...keep looking...make a coffee date (they dont have to last long) and if there isnt any chemistry...NEXT! At least it makes for good stories!

BTW, love your blog!

Ok, I know Craigslist personals can be awful, just check the Women seeking Men page, it is every bit as bad as Men seeking Women. And um, I met my partner on CL. We have been together for a year and a half and its wonderful, but I certaintly read A LOT of terrible ads before that. I love personals and always read them for entertainment, even now, and after reading CL M4W for over a year, I saw the perfect ad. He was nice and funny, and his picture had obviously been taken by a camera phone in a mirror. And its been wonderful. The point being that it TOOK A YEAR to find an add worth answering. Even weirder, he only got 6 responses, most ads recieve more than that. Go figure.

Purl - I *just* put my suitcase away yesterday from the London trip (so you have a month or so still before I will say anything about it!). Check out the rentals - when I was down your way in Jan and looking for a room to rent out when i stay there on occasion (so I need it to be cheap 'cause I'm not there all the time) I found plenty of free places - all I had to do was sleep with them! yikes.

Those Men Seeking Women are seeking them via Craigslist because they lack the gumption to seek them anywhere else, and you know why. There are men out there, and most of them are less perfect than Aharon (once again, let us note that we are not the perfect man's type) but more perfect than the ones who wrote the ads. There may be some buried in the ads, too, but there's an awful lot of chaff to wade through.

(If you met your spouse online and the two of you are perfect for each other, I commend you. I have actually met some very cool people online myself, although a) I met them on discussion boards and/or via blogs b) virtually all of them are female knitters. I have one friend with whom I've been corresponding for about 8 years, since pre-blogosphere. We've never met in person. For all I know she could really be an extremely clever male oil-rig worker who likes to correspond with middle-aged married female knitters, about knitting, but if so I still like her. Him. Whatever.)

Of course Oprah recommends:

http://www.itsjustlunch.com

Okay, Laurie, let's look at this brilliant piece of writing chapter by chapter...

The suitcase thing, seriously, is no big deal. I lived out of a suitcase for a month while living in my own house. Just keep an iron handy.

The Target bookcase thing cracked me up. I know the feeling completely. Once you put some stuff on that bookcase, it's been desecrated and it is no longer "new." It just becomes another piece of furniture to throw stuff on.

On being a doofus, totally me. I'm not into current music and it all sounds the same to me. Is it Matchbox 20? No, it's The Fray Monkeys Arctic Blur Vines...or whatever... Hooray for the doofi. (Which I do believe is proper pluralization of doofus. Doofuses is definitely not right.)

Craigslist is hilarious. I have gotten a few freelance writing jobs from it, but never a date. Just a question, why are guys so ready and willing to snap a pic of their pork swords and post it for all the world to see? I mean, really, what woman out there is going to base her dating agenda on pics of puds?

I'll tell you this much, you can look from LA to Madison to Jersey and people are people. Guys will post trouser snake pictures, women will laugh about it, and cats will enjoy bacon.

Love ya, Laurie...

Craigslist is good for some things; I used it to find an apartment when I relocated, I bought a used bicycle (but I'm a sucker & paid too much), bought two good used cars (but beware, because folks on Craigslist tend to list their cars for way more $$ than they're worth--always check Kelley Blue Book!), and adopted a free fish (beta).

But for love, yes, I, too am old-fashioned. Sure, sometimes people find true love online, but Internet dating (& the whole Personal Ads scene) creeps me out! Better to take a beer-brewing class or otherwise male-dominated fun activity to meet real-live men.

Helen

I am laughing hysterically. I actually enjoy the women seeking men ads. They are hilarious because women have their standards set so low these days.
Where are the pics of the home organization effort?

Hey hey hey...don't be dissin' Madison!
Its by far...the best city in the country! I moved there to be with the love of my life while he finished undergrad....and grad school...and then we stayed longer cuz we loved it...
and now that we're gone we MISS it.

Plenty of very normal single folks in Madison, I assure you. They just don't post on craigs list ;)

Re housecleaning stuff? Check out flylady.net.

:)

I saw Craig (of list fame) on one of the weekend news shows...maybe CBS's Sunday Morning. He was just a normal looking middle aged kinda balding guy who put up a list looking for a date to the opera and ended up with this like 10 foot tall redheaded knockout who he's either been married to (or maybe just dating) ever since.

So I guess porn dreams can come true.

I FEEL YOUR PAIN.

I'm gonna be single forever, feeding my cats bacon, utilizing spellcheck to it's utmost capabilities, and avoiding Craigslist personal ads like the plague.

Internet dating = Not for the faint of heart.

OK, Steve D., you crack me up. Pork swords indeed. See, I think there are lots of yucky dudes out there who WOULD go out with a woman based on pics of her anatomy alone . . .

Oh, and I forgot to say how much I'm lovin' the Roy picture today. I'm sending mental bacon to you, Roy!

Har har. Mental bacon. Not like pork swords at all!

Helen

I used to have a cat who liked to eat cantelope. Everytime I'd cut one open, she'd come around and mew for some.

This goes back to part II of "Confessions of a crappy housekeeper": - you're way past me. I bought the cube thingie, thinking "hey, this would be a great place to store yarn or books or yarn and yarn books, it's going to totally revolutionize my life!", brought it home, lugged it inside. It sits there now, a month later. STILL IN THE BOX.

God damn it.
Thanks for reminding me of zappos.com . I jsut found a Pair of shoes I have been coveting for months and now am trying to decide which I need more, a coffee table or these shoes.

Damn it.

OK, so Craigslist can have some BAD ads. But they are excellent to laugh at....

And this is from someone who met their current significant other through it. (However, he will tell you and anyone that asks that we met at the bar around the block from where he lived)...

I say, when you're ready, try and try again. And just respond to the ads you like, or try for boys in the real life.

OMG OMG OMG I am sitting here in MADISON, WISCONSIN, and girl I could tell you some stories. Men in this town are uber-weird. That's why I got me one from up north.

Now I have to explain to all my co-workers why I just shrieked at my computer. well, at least all my female co-workers. The men are so weird that, for them, shrieking is normal.

Linda L. in Madison, WI.

Hon. Don't look for guys in the personals. The best places for you to meet men online who would actually be the type of men you WANT to meet are the geeky discussion list type sites devoted to all those things you're interested in (yes, including dead Russians and furniture). There is an online community for every geeky hobby and interest, so go look there! Of course websites devoted to personal ads are going to feature only loser guys who think they're going to find women they don't deserve, because those are the only people who are interested in personal ads. There are all sorts of fascinating men you would love to date, they're just too busy pursuing their ACTUALLY INTERESTING interests to bother with personal ad bullsh*t.

Oh, maybe I should clarify? I wasn't actually looking for a date. I was looking for a treadmill.

My treadmill rocks!!!

You get a slightly higher quality of personal ad (but not necessarily men behind the ad) on sites like eHarmony.com, but then you have to pay for that. And in theory, with eHarmony, they match you up by a personality test and then you communicate back and forth a few times with your matches before photos are revealed to one another, with the idea that matches judge each other first by their correspondence. In my experience, all that means is that there is a longer wait before one is superficially rejected based on one's looks. Of course, if you're cute like you, Ms. Laurie, then no problem!

Also, Jodi, are you making notecards with those stitch stamps? They look like printing pieces, anyway, and I think you could start a notecard business!! heh heh seriously, though, very pretty.

I heard that Madison was a hotbed for lesbianism. Not that there's anything wrong with that...but...I don't think that's the market you're likely to shop at....

Ha, ha -great post!
I'm familiar with Blogher through Dooce and I was thrilled to see your introduction.

Woman should definitly take over the world internets.

Kathy, I need to find a city that is a hotbed of Sayidism. hehehehehehe

On Wisconsin! Purl, there are nice guys in Wisconsin, not that I dated any of them or found any of them on craigslist, but they exist :) Visit Madison in the summer time at least once, you won't regret it.

There are freaks everywhere, even in Madison. I think the Internet just attracts the freakiest of the freaks because of the whole anonymity thing. Anyhow, Madison is quite nice and normal and there are plenty of good guys here. I found me the nicest of Madison nice guys and couldn't be happier. We have an awesome SNB too.

Ya'll do know I wasn't kicking on Madison, right?

Dating on the internet is no different that relying on chance to bring you face to face with the man of your dreams. Just like anything else, it takes time and energy to sort through what you don't want to find what you do want. Joe and I met 4 years ago via internet dating, and I know that we wouldn't have met otherwise. I also wonder if we'd have taken the time to look beyond the external if we'd magically ended up in the same place, at the same time. For me, it was a great way to have fun, date, and then meet someone very special. Sometimes, you just have to give something a go to really know.

LOL to everyone posting about Madison... Yes, there are lesbians and gay men and just about every demographic you can think of. Even Buddhist monks. And Sayids. C'mon up for a visit in the summer, like "shananigans" said, when all the annoying college students are gone. A quarter-million people in the metro area, five LYSs to visit, and more varieties of beer than you can shake a stick at. There is a microbrewery-pub just a half mile from our apartment.

I've ran the gauntlet of internets men browsing myself, and it's so sad it's funny the sheer multitude of men out there who ARE NOT all that and a bag of chips but who won't even LOOK at you if you're not "petite" or "athletic" or "toned."

WTF? As if "petite" and "athletic" women are the only ones out there worth having. And, if you're a fat MoFo or a lazy MoFo how the hell do you expect to have anything in common with your petite/athletic/fantasy date?

Like you, I've found a substitute for love not with a treadmill, but with my bicycle Estelle. She's better to me than any man could dream of being.

Ok, and now I'll stop bitching/commiserating. Great post.

I hear Michigan is the place for Sayids!

I'm always amazed at the volumes of stupidity that comes out of peoples mouths in the name of finding a partner. UGH!

my favorite part of the instructions for that "build it yourself" furniture is where it says DO NOT FORCE.

love the cat pictures...

oh..clothes aren't suppossed to be in clothes baskets either I guess ....so why are they called clothes baskets????

Pork swords, mental bacon, junk, the flushing twice after BM rule, and all the other salacious items posted in the comments... All my co-workers think I've developed mental health issues because I'm at my desk laughing for no discernable reason (to them, coz they can't see what I'm reading or doing). I almost knocked my water glass over into my keyboard (for the umpteenth time). Scarey personals = try Maine. OMG...

Hey LaurieM... My cats like pumpkin - they go crazy every Halloween (fresh pumpkin right out of the garden) and Thanksgiving (cans of 1-pie pumpkin). They go LOVE green peppers, peas, and fresh baby spinach (which I toss on the floor for them and they fight over who gets what). My male cat likes to choke himself on uncooked spaghetti. Both of my cats also have thing for indigestible stuff. One likes to eat anything plastic - Ziploc bags, shopping bags, tape, packing tape, cellophane, crunchy tissue paper, etc. And the other likes to eat Duct tape (which comes out in exactly the way it went in, stomach acids do not affect it at all). My house is totally "child-proofed".

Damn it, Laurie, now I'm sucked into reading the stupid loser ads on Craigslist. Like this one: "IAM A WHITE MALE IAM MOVING TO MACON IN IN A MONTH OR SO..I WOULD LIKE TO FIND A COOL NICE GIRL TO GET TO KNOW.PLEASE HAVE YUR HEAD ON RITE... NO GAMES IAM OPEN TO ALL RACE AND AGE 20 TO 33..I LIKE TO HAVE FUN LUAGH ENJOY THE COMPNAY OF MY WOMAN..EVEN IF ITS JUST AS FREINDS..PLZZ NOT PICS OF YUR BOOBS OR BUTT..I JUST WANT TO MAKE SOME NEW FREINDS OUT THERE THANKS .. "
He must think "IAM" is one word, because he used it twice.

The "stitch" thing is for some print/garment pieces I'm doing. But notecards is a good idea; I thought I would do some artist trading cards with some of the pieces I print with it.

Linda L...could you possibly be speaking of...The Great Dane? My friends brought us a growler of Crop Circle Wheat when they were back Mad-town way last Christmas. I was very sad there were only 64 oz to be enjoyed

Actually it is J. T. Whitney's. The Great Dane is 8 miles away... a bit too far to stumble home after 64 oz of circl-y goodness. ;-)

Laurie, if you come on over to Madison, I'll go on a yarn-shop crawl with you! (That's kind of like a pub crawl, but with yarn. Although I'd be happy to do that, too.)

If you find a city that's a hotbed of "Sayidism", please, please send me a postcard. With the address. So I can move there, too.

I would love to set you up on a blind date!
You poor thing

Ah, yes. The personals on craigslist. Something you can always count on for horrified amusement. However, I will say that I managed to get one, no..wait...FOUR spinning wheels for insanely good prices off craigslist. I tried two and resold them, use one and may sell the other. So, you know, if you can forget the personals part, craigslist really is amazing. I may look for canning supplies on there some day too.

I vote for "Doofim".

Jodi -

Hey, at least he sounds like a decent person. Just can't spell. And types all in caps. OK, not so great, but at least not an obvious serial rapist psycho insane crazy fat lazy yucky man wanting an 18-year-old super model. No bitterness.

I just can't take reading personals. I guess I'm too sensitive for my own good -- I know there are good folks out there. But I get so depressed reading through the yuck. Lose all faith in humanity. Mostly the manity part of it.

BEST QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"Lose all faith in humanity. Mostly the manity part of it."

hehehehehehehehehe

another source of entertainment with wine: the personals videos on Comcast OnDemand. A RIOT.

Ok, you got me with the Craig's List personals. If you reall want to see a winner (not), go into the Columbus section, and look those personals. You'll have to scroll down a ways to see the one titled "Hello Mommy! Daddy's here to serve you!" I just about fell out of my chair, here at work. That one just floored me!

Laurie, darlin', I hate to be the one to break this to you, but moving? Won't help. There are plenty of crazies and assholes to go around in each and every corner of the world.

Don't let Roy read this post: Every time I order a cheeseburger in a pub they put bacon on the damned thing, even though I ask them to leave it off.

Why all the hating on the treadmill? Congratulations on your purchase, Laurie! I have loved my treadmill for many years. It is always there for me and loves to be walked on while I simultaneously watch TV and read trashy paperbacks. Prove all the nay-sayers wrong by never-ever hanging clothes on it and using it until it dies.

No treadmill. So I had to take a walk outdoors with nature, blue skies and spring a blooming.
Haaaaaa Choooooo
Any time you need a walking partner, I'm here for you sister. Walking is the best body and mind exercise I know.

It's not just "Men seeking Women" that's creepy. "Women seeking Men" is just as bad. Like the women who blatantly advertise they want an open relationship with a sugar-daddy who will pay all their bills for them. Honestly, not all the people who advertise on Craigslist seem that bad, but the creeps definitely pop out, especially when they post grody pics that make you feel like washing your eyes out with Lime-Away.

I am from the good state of Wisconsin, which has its pluses (Madison and parts of Milwaukee being some) and minuses (weird laws about cats, as well as freezing temps) being the other. And I have dated on the Internets and even married the guy from it!

So I can say, people are weirds all over. And I used personals.salon.com for about two seconds, met a guy, dated him, and never stopped. We forget we met that way, actually! But in that two seconds online, I met some interesting people outside of dh, and some major freakazoids too. But I do maintain that it was the best way to date, because I was NOT going to meet anyone in the grocery store, through work, or at a yukky bar. One rule of thumb - it seems all men, with the exception of my husband, lie about their height on the Internets. And that was important to me as I am 6'! Luckily dh showed up and was exactly as he described. Except he slouched, so he really was a little bit shorter than he was supposed to be.

Craiglist, though, good for freelance stuff, I agree. And used crap. Although I'd probably end up buying a new treadmill too. :-)

OK I have to put my 2cents in on this one!
Craigslist is great for anything but dating. I've tried pretty much all dating sites there are and yes I'm still single but really, seriously craigslist is scary for dating. it's full of cheap men who really mostly want sex. I put an ad up once and got some nice, um, photos of very personal things, and I DIDN'T ASK (not that I would, but yeah) for them nor did I WANT to see anything like that.
So not all dating is as scary as Craigslist and not all of it is that creepy. I met my former roommate and found my current really cheap and perfect apartment on the List.
Oh and the dating on CL I didn't meet anyone super date worthy but I did meet my best guy friend. And that was worth the creepy!

Laurie,

Don't go to Madison, go to Lexington,KY in June.

Absolutely about to bust out of my too-tight jeans laughing over here in the middle of no-where. I thought I was the only one who buys organizer things, get them home and decide they are DECORATIONS rather than organize my stuff. Things routinely live wherever they are dropped, dumped, kicked or pushed to here. For months. Yeah, it's that sad. Is there a 12 step program for folks like us?? (Please, not Flylady. She's nuts)

GIIRRRLLLL

You don't need Craig's List of Losers, you have cute guys handing you business cards at the grocery. And handsome french dudes taking sweetie pie pictures with you in Paris. You are so ON right now.

I don't need to tell you there are a lot of freaks with ads online, but I did meet my Los Angeles man through Yahoo...

You know, it's ads like this that ensure a swift end to the world as we know it. From Craigslist: Philadelphia:

"I am a SBF - Very Thick, very Juicy, 5"11' tall and very open minded. Right now the going is rough and i need some help with the rent. Also it wouldn't hurt to have some revenge on my pathetic x-boyfriend.

Email me with your ideas on how I can make that rent... I will reply, if you're creative. No pic necessary, just ideas. "

My idea for her to come up with rent money is: Get a job.
Should I answer her?

Oh...Canadian men aren't much better. I online dated after my x and separated for about 10 months of PURE HELL. Now granted I did meet my 2 1/2 year long rebound relationship there. But trust me, this isn't a ringing endorsement.

Its bad enough to have to worry about not being good/pretty enough in person. Why add the pressure to be virtually good/pretty enough?

you make us laugh! I was surfing the vancouver craigslist for no particular reason last night... hours of entertainment.

I love Matchbox 20. I wanted to name my Eldest Rob Thomas M. but the Mister wouldn't have it. I suppose I said that I thought the other Rob Thomas was hot. oops.

So, the treadmill that you got at SportsMart? Did you research treadmills? Was the one at SportsMart the best and cheapest? What kind is it?

I knew about Craigslist, but not about blogging. BUT THEN I read "your friend's" post of Best of Craigs List and started blogging.

We are the negative images of each other.

Whoa.

Okay, "funky shui" is now the official description of my office(s) (home and work) and my bedroom. Love it! I generally describe myself as culturally illiterate. I am not ashamed of it, I just don't give a rat's ass. And I've read those online ads and wondered what in the hell those people were thinking. Or how about the ones where the guy posts a picture that I swear to God looks like a corpse at a crime scene? You can't get a better picture than THAT? You really look like that? I am morbidly fascinated, but so not interested.

Booger. hehehe. My uncle had a hunting dog named "Booger." Also, you do the kind of unpacking that I do.

Finally, you did not know about the CL dating scene? I guess you never read "Online Misadventures" (http://onlinemisadventures.blogspot.com/), the blog that Gloria and I used to write about CL personals ads.

ask me about my most recent craigslist date, the one with the guy who was a "hustler and a rustler", who wore baggy blue sweat pants, was missing half his teeth and used a walker to get around. go on, just ask ME.

however, my current job - craigslist. my digital camera - craigslist. my two cats - craigslist.

so i guess it all evens out in the end. sorta. maybe.

What the hell is Zappos?

See, there's always a place to look down. It's me, down here - Hi ya'll!

Hmm.... I only wish I had a wall of empty shelves to fill up--alas, all mine are full!

I wonder how many new hits Zappos.com got today?
I never heard of them before I read it..it's like a wonderland!! LOL!!

I don't get people who unpack as soon as they get home, or even for up to a week after they return. What's up with that? And yeah, Roger the cat digs playing suitcase games to the max. And what about people who actually UNPACK THEIR SUITCASE STUFF INTO DRAWERS AT THEIR HOTEL??????? That is one of the most puzzling things I've ever encountered.

Go shopping again on Friday night at Trader Joe's. That sounds much mo' bettah anyway.

Peace.

Laurie,

You're too funny! Without fail, you make me laugh--frequently so hard I cry. Keep it up!

I sent my mother to Craig's list, once; her friend was trying to find a temporary apartment in a new city. She clicked on "misc romance" because she couldn't figure out what it meant. I sort of which I could have been there to watch her face. :)

I am too afraid to look at the personals there. If that is a taste of Men seeking Women section, I might just have to create a whole new section: "Women seeking Sanity because of the Men seeking Women" HA!

Although, I'd bet I have a friend or two that would totally drink wine with me and peruse them for the comedy alone! Wednesday night Craigslist Comedy!

That's exactly something we would do.

If it helps any, I didn't know really what Craigslist was until I read today's blog. I knew that there were instances of rent=sex (drudgereport), but I too thought Craig made a list...
thanks for the enlightenment =)

Never had anything to do with Craiglist (and apparently I ought to be thankful), but I did meet my husband on the internets . . . four years ago next month, and we seem to be doing quite nicely, in spite of the dire predictions from friends/family ("you met him where?!?") You just can't ever tell, I guess.

Damn...I have just spent the better part of an entire day at work reading your blog! The gopher-guy in the cube next to me kept popping his head over the wall (how annoying is THAT?!) to see what I was laughing so hard about. I'm not a knitter, but I do have a similar crazed obsession for beads and okay, so I did take a bead crochet class one time, but that was a disaster so we won't go THERE. I've also officially joined the "married for years and then suddenly dumped by mid-life-crisis jerkoff husband and now I'm a crazed spinster and how come he had to wait until I was 40 to do this!" club. I don't have cats, but I do have one sinister parrot who I SWEAR is just waiting for the right moment to take me out so he can invite all his bird buddies to come take over the house a la that movie by Hitchcock. Please don't think I'm a crazy blog-stalker weirdo for commenting, but I couldn't resist after reading your story.

KJ

Thank you for bringing enlightenment into my life concerning the many lists of Craig. I had never heard of this site before. (self-proclaimed dork)

Oh!

I thought I should let ya'll know. I really never thought about putting ads on this here booger website, but turns out the cat in the picture, the one who likes bacon, needs some services rendered by the vet, and these services have been quoted to me, a quote which involves a number followed by three zeroes. Three! Zeroes!

So, who knows, maybe we can make a buck fifty for Roy, The Million Dollar Cat. If not, we can make jokes about my failed attempt to sell out LOL.

farm witch, Zappos is a girl's version of Heaven. Reasonably priced shoes of every variety, brand, style, color, size, etc. Most of them include free shipping and they will also take shoes that you don't like back, hassle free, and they pay for the shipping to return them. I have a little Zappos "problem" that I should probably go to AA for.

Jenny, my name is Laurie and I am a recovering zappos addict. (By recovering, I mean "see million dollar cat, above.")

Blogher? -- hah! You women run the personal blogging world. What about us guys? Just because we don't own cute cats or know how to knit, we're always being put at the blogosphere's kiddie table.

Purl, there's no shame in putting ads on your booger. You should put a pattern up for sale & set up a paypal button so we can all help save Roy. Ooh, you could sell your Brangelina hat pattern! And it's for a good cause, so you know us soft hearted knitters will totally buy it!

Neil, that word always sounds like boogersphere to me.

heh heh

BOOGERSPHERE

Jenny, you're sweet, thanks man. Must be the addict in us both LOL. I do like giving away patterns for free, mostly because I like torturing folks (Easy hat Pattern! In only 437 Easy Steps!) but we'll see. I'm not sure how many pennies a person can make on a booger.

Well, if the booger ad doesn't work out like you had hoped, think about it. I'm just saying is all. :D It's better than withdrawing your 401K to pay for kitty bills!

Well, if the booger ad doesn't work out like you had hoped, think about it. I'm just saying is all. :D It's better than withdrawing your 401K to pay for kitty bills!

Oh, stupid double post!

I love your blog Crazy Aunt Purl. You are a hoot and should write a book. Now I am going to check out zappos and craiglist. I love your cat photos too.

Girl, you need to get to Madison. I just had surgery there with a top specialist, and that city not only has a gorgeous Whole Foods but also has 8 yarn shops in the phone book. Eight!!!

Oh, and get this: two of my nurses and my anesthesiologist and one of my med students were all knitters. I was in good hands, I tell ya.

Great city--pay the money to eat at Harvest. Best meal I have ever had in my entire life (and I'm picky). Absolutely amazing food.

KJ, I too have a major bead problem; after beading for years and many $$$$$ I took a crochet class and a knitting class to learn to make beaded knitted purses and haven't touched my beads in months. Now in addition to my tons of beads and beading books I have a ton of yarn and knitting/crochet books b/c I am apparently one of those people who when taking up a new hobby stock up on all the supplies their brains can think of. I moved to a little house a year ago in November and STILL have not unpacked, I have sets of storage shelving for the basement that are still in the boxes and am probably going to have to call in professional help (www.napo.net) once I get my sure-to-be-lovely income tax refund. Which I haven't filed for yet. So Laurie, your suitcase ain't anything. I think I have a suitcase from a trip last summer in my living room but I've been afraid to look under all the stuff on top of where I think it us.

Laurie, totally forgot. Must be some weird Cancer thing going on. I need to clean so my response was to go to Ikea last Friday to buy shelving. So the place isn't completely clean but I have taken the first step in the master plan. And the cats really like the addition of a new climbing toy.

Laurie, totally forgot. Must be some weird Cancer thing going on. I need to clean so my response was to go to Ikea last Friday to buy shelving. So the place isn't completely clean but I have taken the first step in the master plan. And the cats really like the addition of a new climbing toy.

Heh, knitting blogs are way better than internet dating. Really. I have gone on half a scazillion first days, half a dozen second dates, maybe three third dates - and then they all turned out psycho anyway. I'm much happier with knitting blogs, a cat, and exercise equipment. You are on the True Path now.

This thing about organization always gets me. I get all excited about assembling the racks, I get all my mags and yarns onto the floor -- then I end up spending time reading the mags going "oh...I think I'll knit that" and fondling my yarns so much!

Guess where they are still sitting :P

Hey Laurie, if you ever want to haul ass out of there...come see us down under, we have no men with delusional tendencies (well.....not many anyway). Sounds like you need another holiday, another good reason to come see us!!

Bless you for your blog, a real life saver.

Oh no Laurie, I wish you hadn't mentioned the online shoe store Zappos. I'd never heard of them before but afterwards went onto their site and now have 4 pairs of shoes in my cart, I am also not done shopping. I can see a possibly bankruptcy coming on fast. Where's that budget sheet that you made a while ago? LOL :-)

I'm not in the US...but I'll definitely be checking out Craigslist for some good laugh. :)

I went to college in Madison, Wisconsin. I've lived lots of places, and Madison is by far at the top of my list. So maybe it wouldn't be so bad, afterall. The boys are very nice, and usually fairly ignorant to the complete debauchery that goes on in the coastal regions.

Oh, don't have a Graydon Carter crush - he just dumped his wife (mother of his several kids) for some new hottie. Feh.

My treadmill totally came from Craigslist! And it was free!

I suggest youpoke around on Craig's list of Missed Connections. They are a daily source of fun for my friends and I.

Laurie Laurie Laurie...Madison is one of those PC towns that needs irreverence and fun, hense the beer. Mmmm, Lots and lots of beer. If you do indeed come visit, we shall take you out and make it a trip worthy of remembering. The Great Dane, JT Whitneys, Lakeside Fibers, The Sows Ear (my favr yarn shop) etc...... Make it summer tho. Or early fall.... Weird people guaranteed...but nice ones too :). I was delighted you chose to pick on it...it needs it *grin*.

Laurie,

Love, love, love your blog. I am actually in Sherman Oaks and leave Saturday morning, how ironic is that?

Someday I hope I can buy your book, as long as it isn't about yarn. ;)

Laurie,

Love, love, love your blog. I am actually on business in Sherman Oaks and leave Saturday morning, how ironic is that?

Someday I hope I can buy your book, as long as it isn't about yarn. ;)

Hi Laurie - delurking here. As a native Wisconsinite and living in Milwaukee - Madison is definately a little . . . "different".

I have to admit, that I laughed so hard that I was snorking into my coffee - my husband and I refer anything in the rock-ballad-y genre that we don't recognize as Creed. We've been doing this for forever, well, almost 10 years at least. So you have Matchbox 20 and we have Creed. Glad we're not alone.

Been shopping at Trader Joe's lately?

In defense of Madison, Wi, that's where my guy was living when I met him and I'm fairly positive that he would not have put such an advert on any list.

Now some of the other guys I know from Madison, I would not be surprised in the least! ew

Hi-

De-lurking...Your blog was listed on "Clicked" by Wil on MSNBC. I love it! I've read most of your archives already. I can't believe how you've gone from no comments to 192. You have a gift. I don't know what it is but I wish I lived in LA so I could hang out with you. :) Doofusses of the world unite! Can you believe I grew up in Madison?