50 Things? Are You Kidding Me?

I wasn't sure I would tackle another writing assignment from Mama Kat this week, but the very first prompt made me laugh out loud.

1) The Love List. Write a list of 50 things you look for in a man. 

FIFTY?  Did I read that right? Has Mama Kat truly lost it this time?

Despite the fact that over the years people have implied that I might be, um, picky, never in my life did I have a list of 50 things I looked for in a man. Now I realize that with my paltry list, I have never even approached the realm of picky.

I'm sure my list was far different 25 years ago...who remembers that far back? It may have been longer, but I'm sure it was still short of 50. At this point in my life there are only a dozen or so items that I would look for, assuming I thought it was worth my time to look. With only a dozen items when I could have listed 50, this is really more of a Quarter-List, don't you think?

Alright. I've stalled as long as I can. Without further ado, here's the list:

1. A man who shares my faith. (Someone who is genuinely committed to Christ, not someone who says, "I consider myself a Christian but I don't buy that whole resurrection thing.")

2. A man who shares my moral values. (You would think sharing my faith would cover that, but alas, not so much.)

3. A man who doesn't think being the leader of the family is just a trump card from God to get his own way. (There seems to be a lot of that and I have to tell ya, I'm not remotely amused by it.)

4. A man who treats people in service roles with respect. (It's true that you can judge a man's character by how he treats waitresses.)

5. A man who knows himself and is secure enough with who he is that he isn't looking for someone to constantly feed his ego. (Something about sapping all of the energy out of you makes a man exceedingly unattractive.)

6. A man with a sense of humor. (I think there's a direct correlation between humor and intellect.)

7. A man who is old enough to have a first-hand memory of the moon landing. (Remember Delusions of Cougardom?)

8. A man who can have a conversation that doesn't revolve around himself. (Experience tells me that this one might be asking too much.)

9. If divorced, a man who is introspective enough to acknowledge his contribution to the failure of the marriage. (In case you're not aware of this, "It was all her fault," is never a good sign.)

10. A man who is not a total wuss when it comes to color. (I've mentioned this in passing at least once before, but beige is not a color.)

11. A man who can respect my opinions, whether he always agrees with me or not. (It's no fun being with someone who wants to debate all the time. For instance, I am never going to be a fan of Rush Limbaugh so don't waste your time - and mine - by trying to convince me to like him.)

12. A man who does not possess automatic weapons. (I live in a state where the legislature encourages anarchy because you never know when Bambi might rise up and try to shoot people.)

That's it...oh, wait. There is one more. He would have to love like accept cats. (Although who wouldn't love Lucy and Ethel?)

That's Ethel on the left, curled up with her sister, Lucy. 

For the record, I might be willing to compromise a little on #10. The bedspread under the lavender throw in the picture above is khaki. See? That's practically beige.

Tell, me, am I unreasonable? Am I totally unrealistic? Any major omissions?

Anybody want to share your list?