Do Seasons Affect Your Dating Success?

I'm depressed today because there are three weeks left in the semester, my favorite tv show just had its season finale, and the last play of the theatrical season is next week.  Soon everything will be over, and it will be time to endure three months of boredom and isolation: summer in the Straight World.

My favorite seasons are, in order: Fall, Winter, Spring, and...ugh...Summer.

Maybe I can snap out of my depression by calculating how many cute guys I've landed dates with in each season.  Is there a dearth of dating in Summer, and a plenitude in Fall?

During my 11 years in the Straight World, Ohio, Upstate, and Plains (so far), I've had first dates (not hookups) with 72 guys.








Fall (September, October, November) 

After the dead time of the summer, everything starts over again.  New classes, new books, new faces at the gym, new tv shows, new theater season, new museum exhibits.

There's a little nip in the air, so you can go outside without getting soaked in half a block, and wear a hot sweater inside.

My favorite holidays, Halloween and Thanksgiving.  And my birthday, of course.

Dates: 27 (42%), including boyfriends Charlie and Paul in Ohio and Chad in Upstate New York.

Winter (December, January, February).  It's cold, so you can stay in the house without people trying to guilt you into "enjoying the outdoors."  The cold air is invigorating.  The sun goes down at a normal hour, so it's dark in the evening.

The social world is in full swing, with parties, dinners, benefits, concerts, plays, art exhibits, film festivals, book signings.

Christmastime is a pain, but if you stay out of the Mall and don't watch network tv in December, you can avoid most of it.  Stick to New Year's Eve and Valentine's Day.

Dates: 24 (37%), including Pete (the water delivery guy) in Upstate New York and Dustin (the son of my host at the heterosexual party) in Plains, who I'm still dating, whenever he gets a school break.

Spring (March, April, May).  You can jog outside again, the flowers start to bloom, and there's a smorgasbord of holidays and events: Mardi Gras parties, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, film festivals, Oscar parties, and spring break.

In May the year runs down: the last day of class, the last episode of your favorite tv show, the last play of the season, saying goodbye to friends.  But before that, it's a fun ride.

Dates: 15 (23%).  I'm usually with someone, so dating is not a top priority.

Summer (June, July, August).  Dead time.  All of your friends are out of town, there's no classes, nothing to do, nowhere to go, and even if you did have somewhere to go, it's too hot.

Baseball games.  Camping.  Eating outside.  People forcing you to "enjoy the outdoors."

Long, boring car trips to the Midwest for uncomfortable visits with fundamentalist relatives.

Dates: 7 (11%), including Troy, my boyfriend in Upstate New York (but we met in the spring).

Some hookups while on vacation, but not a lot of dates.  Is it because there aren't many guys around to date, or because I'm too depressed to cruise properly?

See also: Best, Worst, and Most Erotic Christmases; 34 Reasons to Like Summer.