10. Mental block
“If I was drunk, I might not really remember the person who goes
along with the number,” admits Bert, a banker in Newark, Delaware.
“Or I might have lost it.”
9. The list
“Some gents are building up their very own ‘I'm Bored/In Case of
Emergency’ directory,” says Rachel, an administrative secretary in
Manhattan. “You won’t hear from them in the next week or so, but
you’ll get a last-minute invitation to a party months later.”
8. Burn unit
“I’ve had a few women give me wrong numbers,” says Al, a
professor at the University of Minnesota. “After a couple of burns,
you wonder if this new woman’s lying, too — and you’d rather not
find out the hard way.”
7. Social
grace(less)
“Some men have no idea how to end a conversation tactfully,” says
Darlene, a Boston-based business reporter. “They ask for a number
because they don't have the backbone just to say ‘nice to meet
you’ and walk away.”
6. Dream girls
“Sometimes, I don’t call because I wake up the next morning
thinking she’s out of my league,” admits Danny, a marketing
executive in Houston. “I figure I’ll save her the trouble of
rejecting me by not calling. It’s pretty pathetic, actually.”
5. Improving the
pool
“I get many numbers over the course of the evening, and then rate
them,” says Anthony, an attorney in New Iberia, Louisiana. “I’ll
call the one I like the best. But if she rejects me, I feel it’s too
late to call choices 2 and 3. So I just start over.”
4. Instant
gratification
“When we get your number, it’s because we're interested in you at
that time and place,” says Roy, an entrepreneur in San Francisco.
“But actually using the number means too much effort. Dinner, a
date, which won't happen without many more calls and emails back and
forth, then a second date... a third... and gosh, we don't even know
if we really like you.”
3. The uncertainty
principle
“If I ask for your number or email, at best, I’m not certain I’m
into you,” notes Nigel, a radiologist in Durham, N.C. “If I really
wanted to go out with you, I’d go ahead and ask for a date.”
2. Vanity
“Some guys collect numbers for self-esteem,” divulges Lawrence, a
product designer in Los Angeles. “He has no intention of calling her
— hell, he might not even like her — but he wants to see if she
likes him.”
1. Betting man
“Getting or giving digits is like dropping a quarter in a slot
machine,” says Ted, a writer in Las Vegas. “It may or may not pay
off for either of you, but it's a harmless gamble and a bit of fun.
What have you got to lose, other than the quarter?”
Thank goodness not
all guys are jerks. Use a quick
search to find your gentleman today!
