# How many marriageable people do you know? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 6, 2014, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672 "2014-09-06T17:51:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2014, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/1 "2014-09-06T17:51:42Z")
How many people that you personally know right now, do you think you could form a successful and enduring domestic union with? Not counting a present or former partner or significant other or declared intended, or irrespective of whether you now have one. ---
**Author:** ![Stuffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@Stuffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stuffy)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2014, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/2 "2014-09-06T18:07:22Z")
I think your question is too open for good information. Do you mean marriageable as in presently unattached, because I know a minimum of a dozen single women for every single guy I know. Or do you mean marriageable as in “on paper we’d make a good couple” because then that list shrinks down to something a little above zero. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2014, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/3 "2014-09-06T18:53:55Z")
I’m unclear. How many ‘eligible’, as in unattached, in my immediate circle? Or how many of those I’d seriously consider a ‘maybe’ for me? ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2014, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/4 "2014-09-06T19:34:18Z")
All the single women I would consider are not interested in marriage or gay. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2014, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/5 "2014-09-06T19:44:52Z")
Immediately none, but 2 in the long-term. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2014, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/6 "2014-09-06T21:32:10Z")
> [@Stuffy](#): > > I think your question is too open for good information. Do you mean marriageable as in presently unattached, because I know a minimum of a dozen single women for every single guy I know. Or do you mean marriageable as in “on paper we’d make a good couple” because then that list shrinks down to something a little above zero. No, I mean someone that you think YOU could actually make it work with, assuming no encumbrances that woulld be obstacles unrelated to compatibility such as (but not limited to) already married to someone else… ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2014, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/7 "2014-09-06T21:46:03Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > All the single women I would consider are not interested in marriage or gay. You, a man, would consider marrying a gay woman? ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2014, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/8 "2014-09-06T22:38:25Z")
Zero. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2014, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/9 "2014-09-07T00:39:14Z")
I’m guessing 2-4. It’s hard to say really. There are several people I get along with and have similar interests as and all that good stuff. Whether we’d actually be compatible in a relationship and make a good go of it is the tricky part. ---
**Author:** ![Scribble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scribble/32/3317_2.png) [@Scribble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scribble)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2014, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/10 "2014-09-07T01:54:32Z")
Zero. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2014, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/11 "2014-09-07T13:32:20Z")
I’ll say one. She’s my best friend. But we’ve never even been room mates which IMHO is a real test. If I wasn’t married, and she didn’t have an SO, eh, I think we could stand each other full time 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2014, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/12 "2014-09-07T16:03:54Z")
Other than my current wife I don’t know any women well enough to even approach making such an assessment. I know a couple women sorta well who haven’t yet disqualified themselves, but I’d want to get a lot closer acquainted before deciding. And I fall in lust with some random woman at least every couple hours when I’m out in public, almost all of whom I suspect wouldn’t make it past our first date. So I guess the best answer for me would be zero. I know a few guys well enough that if I and they were gay we could probably make a go of it. But I and (AFAIK) they aren’t gay. ---
**Author:** ![Pai325](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Pai325](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pai325)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/13 "2014-09-08T01:46:09Z")
At my age the question really reads like, “Get along for a couple years, maybe.” So a couple. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/14 "2014-09-08T03:03:04Z")
I am in a happy relationship. If I wasn’t, I’d have to go looking. All the single women I know around my age (I’m 42) are, to be perfectly honest, emotional train wrecks. For that matter, so are all the single men I know, so I wouldn’t even be wise to try out the gay. ---
**Author:** ![Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bad_News_Baboon)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/15 "2014-09-08T03:54:00Z")
What does that mean, successful? Marriages can be arranged and be successful in that they don’t divorce. Or do you include my love and happiness as being successful? I have quite a few friends I could marry if I had to, and they would be successful. I am not, however, in love with any of them. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/16 "2014-09-08T05:28:48Z")
I’m in my 40’s and I dont know of any males within my age group I’d want to introduce to any female I gave a darn about. I know several single females though in that age group. Face it. By age 40 almost all college educated males with stable careers, decent looks, and who arent alcoholics, abusers, or psychos are married. I’ve often said that alot of women wait way too long and by the time they get around to wanting to get married and start looking for good husband material, all the good ones are taken. Now a friend DID go on the market not long ago when his wife left him and I tell you the single women, I dont know how they heard, but they came out of the woodwork. ---
**Author:** ![Boomstick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@Boomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/17 "2014-09-08T05:31:24Z")
So far: none at all. I think I could marry none. ---
**Author:** ![Stuffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@Stuffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stuffy)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/18 "2014-09-08T15:33:20Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > No, I mean someone that you think YOU could actually make it work with, assuming no encumbrances that woulld be obstacles unrelated to compatibility such as (but not limited to) already married to someone else… Well to be perfectly honest, maybe 2. These are neighbors who I’ve ruled out for that reason but both seem reasonably stable. But I’ve been dating for a little over a year now, and it’s becoming my opinion that a good 50% of women I’ve met should not be dating. I’m 45 in case you’re interested and tend to limit my dating to 5 years either way and prefer the older end of that scale. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/19 "2014-09-08T15:47:47Z")
Do I have to be attracted to them? Or is this a “gun to my head” kind of thing? Even assuming the former, quite a few. I have far more single female friends than male ones; my male friends are largely from my college days, and the ones people would marry are now married. For whatever reason, my fraternity brothers mostly turned out to be marriage material (to everyone’s shock.) My female friends are from work or my wife’s adopted friends, and are mostly still single. ETA: I have seriously considered ways to make new single male friends to try and reduce this imbalance. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2014, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672/20 "2014-09-08T15:55:10Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > No, I mean someone that you think YOU could actually make it work with, assuming no encumbrances that woulld be obstacles unrelated to compatibility such as (but not limited to) already married to someone else… Since I stopped looking I would say zero. I’m still friendly with a few that I had FWB things going with. That never progressed because I knew it wouldn’t last. I’m not going out to look for anyone else right now because I live with my girlfriend and I’m not interested. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-marriageable-people-do-you-know/697672.md?page=2)