Having been dumped, I admit to spending my share of smoky nights at the corner bar, sipping margaritas the size of fish bowls. Sometimes my eyes wander, and I think about meeting someone new.

But what are the odds of finding your soul mate in a bar? About as good as finding him or her at a garage sale.

Think about it: You fire up the car and drive through unfamiliar neighborhoods at all hours, park the car and hop out with a tremor of anticipation. Whether in a neighbor's yard or the local bar, you'll sift through someone else's smoky cast-offs, hoping that no one else has already bagged the best bargain.

Shopping for discount dates at your favorite pub does have some benefits, though:

1. You get to buy a new pair of shoes.
   How often do you actually wear high heels to a garage sale? With a size-10 foot, my flippers are best suited to tennis shoes, so visiting bars is a special occasion for me. Imagine my high-wire excitement as I try to make it to the ladies' lounge without twisting my ankle.
   
   
2. You can sip yourself silly.
   When alcohol handcuffs your sanity, pheromones and hormones are left in charge. Suddenly it seems like a good idea to give your unlisted phone number to the handsome trucker who lives three states away with his wife and kids.
   
   
3. You can invest in quality time.
   After a hard day at work, you didn't really need to clean your apartment, visit the gym or iron tomorrow's wardrobe, right? Not when you could be sucking in second-hand smoke and watching drunks slide off their chairs! Hanging out at a bar is a great way to dispose of your free time.
   
   
4. You can build character through defeat.
   So what if you get hammered and have to slink out of the bar with barely a shred of dignity? So what if your hope of finding a soul mate is squashed like a bug? In the bar-stool forest, it's survival of the fittest… or not so fit.
   
   

When I finally realized that my life mate probably wasn't a barfly, I let my fingers do the clicking. Creating a free profile proved to be a much better way of gauging a potential date's values and interests. After only a few hours on Match.com, I had quality men lined up around the cyber-block, waiting to connect. Most didn't even need to fall off a bar stool to make me laugh.

Online dating has been a huge step up for me, and I've traded garage sales for auctions at Sotheby's. Just ask my fiancé, who found me with his first quick search!