# Guys: how old a woman is too old ? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 11, 2011, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385 "2011-08-11T22:31:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/202 "2016-11-05T03:15:41Z")
> [@drewder](#): > > Because for the last 3 billion years my genes in an unbroken chain have been working to reproduce themselves and achieve immortality. Not a single one of my ancestors from a single celled eukaryote to today has failed to pass along my genes, although there has been a lot of mutations and mixtures along the way. It has been a long haul and I’d hate for me to be the weak link and let my genes die. That is the geekiest answer I have ever heard to that question and I applaud you for it because it rings completely true to me as well. Well done (in all seriousness)! There is no way in hell I am having adopted kids, stepchildren or anything of that nature. It is all about socio-biology to me and always has been. I already have all the kids that I want and there will never be any more in any form. That greatly limits potential romantic relationships but so be it because that is an intuitive and effortless rule in my mind. The one thing I am holding out for is a really hot, infertile, 30 year old that has more money than I do and wants to dote on my daughters without ever nagging me about anything. Back in the real world, I think I will have to fold on this whole game because there is no advantage in it for me. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/203 "2016-11-05T03:30:40Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > That is the geekiest answer I have ever heard to that question and I applaud you for it because it rings completely true to me as well. Well done (in all seriousness)! There is no way in hell I am having adopted kids, stepchildren or anything of that nature. It is all about socio-biology to me and always has been. I already have all the kids that I want and there will never be any more in any form. That greatly limits potential romantic relationships but so be it because that is an intuitive and effortless rule in my mind. > > The one thing I am holding out for is a really hot, infertile, 30 year old that has more money than I do and wants to dote on my daughters without ever nagging me about anything. Back in the real world, I think I will have to fold on this whole game because there is no advantage in it for me. You’d widen your pool of possible targets by getting a vasectomy; bring your own, \*\*guaranteed \*\*sterility and find a hot, rich 30 year old who doesn’t want to have kids. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/204 "2016-11-05T04:02:54Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > You’d widen your pool of possible targets by getting a vasectomy; bring your own, \*\*guaranteed \*\*sterility and find a hot, rich 30 year old who doesn’t want to have kids. That is a good point. I thought about it a couple of years ago until I mentioned it to my father and he freaked out about it. I have no idea why because he is the last person that should be commenting on such matters (he was once so promiscuous that he could make Bill Clinton blush although I am pretty sure it was completely consensual based on the snippets his partners mentioned to me even as a child; that isn’t a good way to grow up especially when your parents are married so I refuse to do anything of the sort to my own kids). I still go out on dates recreationally and put a lot of thought into them. I never expect anything in return except for simple courtesy and a good attitude and I have gotten lost of good ones over the last few years. However, it is hard to subtly break the news that what you see tonight is all there can be because I have much more important priorities. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/205 "2016-11-05T04:29:10Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > Here’s what I know - in my social group experiences over the past year and half or so, among a wide variety of ages via Meetup activities for everything from hiking to attending free movies to playing board games, as a woman in her mid-40s I’ve been asked out almost exclusively by guys in their 20s and 30s. I don’t look my age, but I sure don’t look like I’m in my 20s. > … > > The guy I see most regularly is 30; his friends think I’m a genius. It’s cute. _fist bump_ yeah girl! ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/206 "2016-11-05T05:19:30Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > That is a good point. I thought about it a couple of years ago until I mentioned it to my father and he freaked out about it. I have no idea why because he is the last person that should be commenting on such matters (he was once so promiscuous that he could make Bill Clinton blush although I am pretty sure it was completely consensual based on the snippets his partners mentioned to me even as a child; that isn’t a good way to grow up especially when your parents are married so I refuse to do anything of the sort to my own kids). I still go out on dates recreationally and put a lot of thought into them. I never expect anything in return except for simple courtesy and a good attitude and I have gotten lost of good ones over the last few years. **However, it is hard to subtly break the news that what you see tonight is all there can be because I have much more important priorities.** Your fertility and reproductive choices are solely down to you; parents are unlikely to ever get behind their child opting to become sterile. But you’ve had kids, twice, and I presume they are not free to raise - no kids are. When your dad starts carrying the burden of your reproduction, then his opinion is valuable. The time to have the NSA conversation is before the date is set up; if you have a dating profile that info should be front and center. It \*\*will \*\*be harder to get dates, but you won’t have the awkward _‘where is this going’_ conversation afterward if both people already decided this moment being great was what they hoped for. Quality over quantity; and no one feeling misled or blowing up your phone. **ZipperJJ** , I think I could have been clearer; I meant that I don’t date regularly but when I do I date the 30 year old. I don’t have a bunch of guys that I date. One could say I have more important priorities right now. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/207 "2016-11-05T05:22:11Z")
It was clear! When you do date you go younger and the dudes dig it. So I still say yeah girl! ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/208 "2016-11-05T05:26:54Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > It was clear! When you do date you go younger and the dudes dig it. So I still say yeah girl! Dating like-minded people when one is middle-aged and childless can be an odd thing here in [Greater Mormondia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_Lake_City). 😛 ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/209 "2016-11-05T11:03:26Z")
> [@drewder](#): > > Because for the last 3 billion years my genes in an unbroken chain have been working to reproduce themselves and achieve immortality. Not a single one of my ancestors from a single celled eukaryote to today has failed to pass along my genes, although there has been a lot of mutations and mixtures along the way. It has been a long haul and I’d hate for me to be the weak link and let my genes die. But it’s not like a single filament from that eukaryote to you, it’s a tree with billions of intertwining branches, many of which died, enabling others to live and branch out. If one little twig fails to sprout a new bud, many billions of others are constantly reproducing. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2016, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/210 "2016-11-05T15:37:03Z")
> [@Helena330](#): > > I can’t believe you guys admit to this shit. Wow. Wow just wow? By any chance, have you lost your ability to even? > [@VinylTurnip](#): > > This is troubling. I married with no intent to procreate, have no kids and no regrets, and I’m still immensely attracted to my wife of 20 years, who is only a year my junior. > > What the hell is _wrong_ with me? It’s pretty atypical not to want to procreate, but I wouldn’t say anything is wrong with you per se. I certainly did not say, and don’t think, that an age difference of 17 years is ideal. The time to marry a 23 year old is when you’re 25, not when you’re 40. ---
**Author:** ![Leonard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a6a055/32.png) [@Leonard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leonard)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2016, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/211 "2016-11-06T22:53:51Z")
> [@Helena330](#): > > I can’t believe you guys admit to this shit. Wow. They honestly answered the question asked. What exactly did you want them to do? If they were just saying that unasked, then it would be pretty rude. Are there any other sexual preferences that you want kept in the closet? ---
**Author:** ![SigMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@SigMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SigMan)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2016, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/212 "2016-11-07T01:13:15Z")
I’m fat, old and ugly. I’m not choosy. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2016, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/213 "2016-11-07T13:22:21Z")
> [@Zeriel](#): > > A lot of this seems to do with skin care more than anything else. A lot of how a person’s skin ages seems to be down to genetics and smoking. ---
**Author:** ![drewder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/57b2e6/32.png) [@drewder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewder)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2016, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/214 "2016-11-07T14:21:58Z")
> [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > A lot of how a person’s skin ages seems to be down to genetics and smoking. Also how much time they spend in the sun. Ugh I can’t stand old women with their leathery skin from a lifetime of sun worship. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2016, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/215 "2016-11-07T14:57:27Z")
I dunno, **drewder**. they make a great belt. ---
**Author:** ![SigMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@SigMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SigMan)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2016, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/216 "2016-11-07T16:21:44Z")
How about those who shower several times a day? They looked like their pet Chinese Shar-Pei. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2016, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/217 "2016-11-07T20:05:22Z")
> [@Helena330](#): > > I can’t believe you guys admit to this shit. Wow. I’m sure they’re all oil paintings, themselves. ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2016, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/218 "2016-11-07T20:10:16Z")
> [@Leonard](#): > > They honestly answered the question asked. \*\*What exactly did you want them to do? \*\*If they were just saying that unasked, then it would be pretty rude. Are there any other sexual preferences that you want kept in the closet? NOT objectifying women would be a good start. ---
**Author:** ![Leonard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a6a055/32.png) [@Leonard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leonard)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2016, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/219 "2016-11-07T23:40:06Z")
Having an age preference is not objectifying. ---
**Author:** ![SigMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@SigMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SigMan)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2016, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/220 "2016-11-07T23:58:41Z")
It would be objectionable for preferring 10 year olds. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385/221 "2016-11-08T00:19:50Z")
Does she look good (to me)? Do I find her personality agreeable? If the answer to both is yes, then “too old” doesn’t enter into it. Nor too young, if of legal age. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guys-how-old-a-woman-is-too-old/592385.md?page=12)