What is love? Baby don't hurt me, don't hurt me...no more.

I wrote this about 2 or 3 yrs ago however feel the sentiment still rings true.

In fairy tales, we read of poor unfortunate women beginning whisked
away by Prince Charming to a life of love, pleasure and ease. In
movies we see men overcoming all odds to find the woman they are meant
to be with and loving them at first sight or first spoken word. This
is not romance nor love to me.

People joke because I don't accept gifts from guys – they tell me "hey
it's just a shirt why not take it?" or even better "but how cool
would it be to have a new tv?" I live a life full of theories. I
believe a gift has to be proportional to the amount of time spent with
the person (1 month does not constitute a new TV) and how much the
person cares for you. If those to factors aren't right, something is
wrong. Yes, I love receiving gifts but not because of the gift but
because of the emotion and thought put into it.

Moving on – Romance and love are not instant. It can not be
manufactured nor manipulated. It takes time. Patience. Knowledge.
To me, romance comes from love that is brewed over time. Yes, there
are romantic moments from the beginning of all relationships. But in
the end what I am looking for is someone who knows me…inside out – my
little quirks. What do I do when I am thinking? Or when I am
nervous? What are my goals…do you plan on helping me achieve them as
I plan on helping you? Can you tell when I am uncomfortable and try
to get me out of those situations? Are you willing to put yourself on
the back burner when needs be because heaven knows I will.

Romance isn't about big grand gestures – it's the little, tedious, day
in and day out activities that show love. Anyone can buy clothes,
flowers, electronics, jewelry – but it takes someone who loves with a
true love that is willing accept my flaws – someone who knows that I
love food from road side vendors and is willing to take the risk to
enjoy it with me – someone who when I am sick is there still doing all
of his responsibilities but also taking on some of mine – someone who
loves my smile and is willing to do anything to see it. And that, my
friends, is your challenge – make me smile and I am yours.