Are You a Single Father or a Divorced Dad?
A startling confession from his wife while out with friends angered Doug Zeigler enough to explore the stereotype of men who are divorced and have kids.
By Doug Zeigler
After a few cocktails, a friend of my wife’s who had begun dating again after divorce made what she thought was a fairly innocuous comment: “I think there are a lot more nice women then there are nice men in the dating pool.” During the evening, she had been talking about the men she had met and how she saw them as far as any long-term relationship was concerned. She has children, so naturally, that is a large part of her assessment of the dating pool. One man she really liked was not someone she thought would be a great influence on her kids. Not that he would be a negative one, but not overwhelmingly positive. That is what spurred her comment.
After stifling an eye roll, I said that I thought that “nice” was subjective because what one woman might think is a nice gesture or approach, another woman may find offensive. Same with men. When my wife and her friend started talking about finding someone who is a good fit for your kids, I heard this from the woman I married: “There’s a difference between a single father and a divorced dad.”
