Endgame

As Eddy once remarked to me, people in Chicago date to marry. Not so, it seems, in New York City. I have been giving the casual dating thing a try since I've moved here, but something about it seems not quite right.

My main question is, how is it possible to date someone and not have any thoughts about where it might lead? Everyone says to just go out, have fun, get to know them, etc. But to invest any time beyond the first or second date means there must be some payoff (hopefully beyond booty).

There must be some sort of goal. And the ultimate goal should be marriage (or a similar arrangement), shouldn't it? I suppose there is always the playboy lifestyle, but that doesn't involve as much feeling and time invested.

I think people delude themselves when they say they are in a relationship and aren't thinking about where it's going or "just seeing where things lead". There's no such thing. If you're just seeing where things lead, you already know where you want it to go.

So this begs the question: if your gut is already saying that the road probably won't lead anywhere, should you break it off? Or can you really just enjoy the present?