If you’re in the world of online dating you know only too well how rare it is to meet someone that you connect with. Someone that when your evening is over, you wish it wasn’t. You wish you had hours more still to chat. You’re hungry to learn more about them, they are intriguing, they tell a really good and funny story, and they completely engage you. Then to top it off, physically you find yourself attracted to them.

I am at a point in my life that I don’t want to settle, and I’m not going on tons of dates either. I am being so selective with my time. Quite frankly, I’d rather be in bed working on my laptop on a Saturday evening that go out for a drink with someone that I know I won’t connect with. Don’t get me wrong. I love to go out, but I am content to stay at home rather than feel burnt out from going on numerous dates that go nowhere.

I did something recently that I have never done before, and more than likely never will again. I happened across a really good looking man online. Of course, I scrolled down to the end and straight away, I thought, “Damn, why do all the gorgeous men live out-of-state?” It’s a problem when you live in a tourist town like Tampa, there are plenty of people here on vacation or on business. I was obviously feeling a bit cheeky that day because I messaged him and asked him why it was that all the men that I find attractive seem to just be passing through. I thought nothing of it. I didn’t expect a response.

Lo, and behold I got one, a very sweet and sincere response asking if I’d like to go to dinner that night. He was very clear that he was only expecting dinner. Probably just as well he was so emphatic on that one, else I would never have gone. I have never met someone for dinner on a meet and greet. I can’t imagine anything worse than being stuck at dinner wondering how quickly I could eat to get out of their poor company. I very seldom allow a man to take me to dinner, and here I was reading this man’s message and thinking, why not? My gut told me that he was being honest, and what else was I doing that Friday night anyway? I probably should have been reading the 40 messages that were sitting unread from another online site…but this man had something about him.

Don’t you love it when you meet someone and they look even better than their online photos? Actually, that has never happened to me, but this man indeed looked better than his photos. He was charming and articulate, and funny. It’s a rare man indeed that is open, and vulnerable, which is exactly what I’m drawn to. I don’t think I realized at the time how much I was enjoying his company. I can talk to anyone, but with this particular date, I didn’t want the evening to end. After dropping him off at his hotel, I drove away feeling grateful to have met him, and for a really lovely evening, only to realize later that I felt regretful that there wouldn’t be a follow-up date to continue the conversation and get to learn more about him.

Nothing is ever a guarantee, but I feel pretty certain that if he had lived closer there for sure would have been a second date. It was serendipity. A chance meeting, that normally would never have happened but the stars aligned and I took a chance.

It’s a month of firsts. The first time I jet skied (and realized how much I love it), the first time I’m going skiing and not worrying about an injury, and the first time I just out of the blue met a man for dinner, after turning down countless offers.

A year ago, I was still married, although we were separated, and this year I have gone on to build another home in FL as a single woman, I have figured out the reins of my main business (my ex-husband was the business manager), and I am building up a new business which will free me up to live wherever I wish.

So what’s the moral of the story here? No, it’s not to encourage you to go on dinner dates with strange men, unless you want to. It’s to realize that sometimes we just need to follow our gut. Our intuition is so strong, and when we follow it, good things happen. So next time you just know that something is right, go for it, because life is too short, and the opportunities too rare to allow to slide by.

I have lived my life with so many obligations and limits, so at this point, as my kids are older and leaving the nest at a rapid rate, I am determined to live my life limitlessly. The Law of Attraction states that if you ask for something, you shall receive it. This past year, I have lived abundantly, I’ve taken numerous spur of the moment trips, I’ve made firm friends with people that align with my belief that kindness is everything and that positivity makes the world go around.

It’s the baby steps to push ourselves to seize opportunities that come our way, in our pursuit of living a fulfilled and inspired life. I am blessed beyond measure, but I’m still going to strive to continue to grow, and yes, if some rather dashing date comes into my life fleetingly, I’m going to open myself up to that possibility. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.