For backgrounds, I'm 26, divorced and childless (bullet DODGED).

Just moved back to the town where my family lives. I was out having lunch with my parents and grandparents when my grandfather asked me, "did you have a girlfriend when you lived in Xville".

I chuckled, "no I think I learned my lesson". He laughed, though looked at my like I had just eaten something poisoness.

This morning, was talking to my mom regarding the reasons why I'm staying out of the dating game.

There are so many women who plainly hate men, you don't know the real woman until 2 years in, at any point (even after having kids) she can unilaterally decide she is done with the relationship. Gave her my favorite analogy, "every square foot of a minefield isn't going to take a leg with it, but you'd never see me taking a stroll through it". She nodded, said it was a tough situation to be in. THEN, 2 minutes later, "my friends (in there early 40s) are having a baby. They just got pregnant this year, it's so beautiful. You just have to wait till you find your soulmate"

What I said, "that child is going to be so likely to have birth defects"

What I thought, "why the fuck would I want to give the last two good decades of my life to the single most used up pussy in the fucking universe, so she can lie to me about all the cocks that have run it through, so I can loose my autonomy after I'm FORTY?!? AFTER I'M COMPLETELY ESTABLISHED?!?! AFTER ALL OF MY HARD WORK, SO SOMEONE ELSE CAN MOOCH OFF OF ME LIKE SOME PARASITE!?!?"