From Catwalk Magazine (a men's e-zine, now sadly defunct):

I just read an article that discussed when a man should start touching a woman. Note I didn't say "making out with" "having sex with" or "groping in public." I said touching. As in a hand on the small of the back to help guide through a door - which was their example. According to this article, a man is not supposed to touch a woman until she has touched him first. And for the first three dates, he's supposed to be "chaste" with kisses. Pecks on the cheeks; closed mouths on the lips. Once you have been dating a month, you are allowed to hold her hand in public and drape an arm around her shoulders or waist while you walk together.

          Excuse me? Call me crazy but this sounds a lot like a recipe for two people to do a lot of missing out. Consider it: he's not touching her because she hasn't touched him. But she's worried now. If he hasn't touched her, will she look like a slut if she makes the first move? All he's offering are chaste, brotherly kisses. She's wondering Is he not interested? Is he gay? Is he more reserved? If he's the first two, I'll make a fool out of myself if I try to kiss him. If he's the third, I'll come off looking loose. Meanwhile, he's over there wondering why she hasn't responded and why her general attitude is getting colder as the dates progress...

From www.SeattlePicks.com:

Growing up, we always looked forward to visits from our aunt. She was the one who taught us the truly important things like life is too short to go without cookies, the necessity of good coffee and the joy of afternoons spent with our girlfriends.

          She was the first person we thought of when we walked into the Hi Spot Cafe' at 3:58 p.m. It turns out, they close at 4:00 but by the quality of the latte and the freshness of the cookie, we thought they still had two hours to go. There was only one choice: go back for lunch the next day.

          What a smart choice! The restaurant upstairs is cozy but not crowded, the kind of place that practically begs you to linger with your girlfriends. As wonderful as the setting is, the food is even better. Lunch was, simply, delicious. The salad was fresher than any salad has a right to be this time of year. And did we mention the cookies? It's definitely a new favorite. We know our aunt would approve.

c. www.SeattlePicks.com, 2008, used with permission