When I was a wee, nubile 23-year-old writer living in the big bad, very expensive city of Manhattan where rent is the equivalent of a vacation to a tropical paradise and I subsisted on Ramen noodles for two out of my three daily meals, I definitely made a conscious decision to date guys that had stability, a.k.a. a good job.
Of course, most of the 23-year-old guys I knew were like me --struggling and unsure of their career path. In fact, most could often be found on a weekend playing touch football or, let's face it, getting high, rather than looking at the help wanted ads. But I guess that's what our 20s are meant to be -- a time of self-exploration, dipping our pinky toes into different career fields, drinking martinis on weeknights and engaging in casual relationships with Mr. Right Now.
By 22, after having attended college in Manhattan and having done the "dating thing" since the ripe old age of 18, I was very much channeling Charlotte from Sex in the City, sitting in a coffee shop with my girlfriends, lamenting the whereabouts of my Mr. Right. And having always had a bit of a daddy complex, dating a guy 10 years older than me didn't feel strange. In fact, it was quite liberating to kick to the curb those directionless 20-something men, whose idea of a date was going Dutch at the local bar, where their roving eyes would be forever scanning the room to see if someone better was about to walk by.
So I dated half a dozen guys who were all 10 to 15 years older than me (I drew the line at 17 years -- for some reason, anything over 20 began to feel a little too familial for me),
before I found "the one" and I finally felt like I was on the right track to finding love.
I know what you're thinking -- how could I give up the ripped hard-bodies, nowhere near bald-heads and the shared generational inside jokes for an older guy who would essentially possess none of
those traits?
Well here's why, dating and eventually marrying a sugar daddy truly does rock, and supersedes any of the drawbacks one might think go along with the sugar daddy package.
Youth
He will always be older than you. There's nothing wrong with having a little leverage when it comes to your relationships -- youth will always be on your side. At least you'll never have to worry about him leaving you for a younger woman... unless he's interested in dating a fetus.
Financial security
I know it doesn't sound very sexy, but when the gas company turns off your heat in the dead of winter and your credit card is declined just as you've unloaded a week's worth of groceries, those washboard abs will be the last thing you're thinking about.
Wisdom
Having a solid 10 to 15 years more experience of living on this planet than you do, he might be able to school you on a few historical facts (ones that happened way before you were even born) that will always supply you with great conversational tidbits at cocktail parties.
Experience
Although he may be a little set in his ways, those "ways" are steeped in years of experience, and he has truly done the test-driving for you. He can teach you the best way to uncork a bottle of wine, he'll always remember to rotate the tires on your car and will have your anniversary date burned into his brain (having perhaps forgotten to do so with his previous relationship and having suffered the inevitable consequences).
Devotion
Feeling so incredibly lucky to have snagged a pretty young thing like you, and because he's waited so long to find his one true love, he will (for the most part) devote himself to you.
Now, I'm not recommending you find yourself a 90-year-old billionaire a la Anna Nicole Smith. But next time you find yourself pining over the young and the restless, take it from me: Having a sugar daddy sure is sweet.
More relationship advice on SheKnows
Your friends say you can do better: are they right?
10 Things every woman should demand from a man
How to get what you want in a relationship
