Why am I telling you this?
This is a good question to ask yourself, [not aloud] especially after multiple margaritas or countless cosmos on a first or fifth date!

Whoops! There goes another one! That sunset sure is cluttered with all the folks riding into it...hightailing away from the truth! And I don't blame them...Ladies and Gents, there IS such a thing as TOO MUCH INFORMATION in the dating world!

Full disclosure too early on is a trap to be wisely avoided like skid row after sundown. Why? Because some things are easier to digest when they come from the mouths of a friend, and friendship is the first step in relationships, in my humble[d] opinion.

Guys in particular talk a lot about physical chemistry, and that's just another way to say 'I want a hottie.' In which case, you belong on Craigslist. ...real chemistry is mental, emotional, physical and spiritual, and it means giving someone a chance who might not meet all of your 'hottie' checkpoints right off the bat. {I'm talking some women too here, by the way, I've been guilty of that visual criteria}

I can only speak from my feminine perspective, reflecting on past relationships and present dating scenarios...Way back when, I started off with a lot more mystery, flirting and womanly wiles, which led to long term love and more eventual intimacy.

We talked about books, music, art, film, history, and less about ourselves, and our fears and phobias, likes and dislikes...! We have become whiners..not winners. Somewhere along the way, maybe due to so much online dating [?] we just got too honest and started telling the bald, unvarnished truth.

Uh, this is a real faux pas in LA if you want to hold 'em and not fold 'em.

Men and women SAY that they want the truth, but look at the consequences and know that this is a lie.

Women are often 'chosen' as elevated extensions of men's visions of themselves, in my opinion, and even if you are 'perfect' [as in the blog/question of one PJ-er], it's still not enough, so save a little mystery, let them wonder, and come looking for the 'real' you.

I'm not talking about hiding huge issues like addictions, disease, marital status or children. I'm talking quirky personal stuff, and family secrets... Peeps,a little self-editing goes a long way.

Personal Example of Downhill Online Dating:
A guy who proudly boasted that his two wolfhounds sleep with him, get walked for 3 hours a day, from 5am to 8am, and require 45 minute daily baths, lost my vote.
I don't care that he looked like Ben Bratt! He sounded obsessed. He admitted that his 'gal friends' have told him that this might be 'an issue,' but he didn't seem to believe them. Did I wish that I'd met him before he told me that? Maybe.
I might have fallen for his other qualities...but! I suggested that he find an outdoorsy woman who loved animals as much as he did, and his answer was that he didn't find those kind of women attractive. He likes the groomed elegant types, who unfairly object to dog hair.

Where do you go from there?

LA is a vortex where your best and worst traits are magnified.
The rush for fame and fortune are seen as acceptable if not downright commendable, and we have no patience left, 'slow' people are seen as losers. We are also rushing into love, and perhaps that's why we're not finding it? I don't know!

How much do you tell a potential lover abourt who you really are, what you really desire, and how much do you hold back for a better moment?

How much is too real, too raw, too unprocessed - if you are a free thinker with potentially unpopular thoughts and a rap sheet of grievances against the grain; does the truth set you free or does it imprison you, branding you unfavorably as too left, too right, too wrong, Too old, too angry, too easily wounded and too vulnerable...?

I had a lover beg me for facts of my past - only for him to use it against me in arguments...not going down that road again!

Misplaced truth is like a rusty blade - not only was the slicing rougher but the result is an infected wound that won't heal.

In conclusion:
Is there anybody here who'll listen to my story and not judge me? I think not. And I don't blame you. But I am going to take my own intuition and put it to the test.
I am going to be selective about my sharing.

Like blowfish cut well, truth is a rare delicacy..cut wrong it's a deadly poison.

Writer that I am, I plan to use that talent to 'shape' the truth from delicious scraps, golden nuggets, raw diamonds of reality in the making.

And that's the last you'll hear on that subject...not!?