Now comes the difficult part...

[Tobin S.]

1. Take it easy, Locut0s

One day at a time, one step at a time. Personal evolution and development is a life-long endeavor. You are off to a good start and I think you are right in that you have some demons to confront, but it doesn't have to be done all at once.

One area where I think I am qualified on giving advice is in the getting to know women department. I used to be a lot like you in that regard. I had only been with two women in an intimate way before I was 37 and I'd never had a serious girlfriend or been married. When I was around 35 I started to put myself out there on a dating web site. It was one of those free deals www.okcupid.com I dated 7 women from there in the two years before I finally found one that wanted to keep me. It was a wild ride, but I'm happily married now.

If you are shy around women, a dating site is a good option. You can write to women on there and sort of get to know them before you ever meet in person. It makes meeting them in person much easier because you have an experience in common and it takes the pressure off of approaching a woman you know absolutely nothing about.

If you decide to give a dating site a try, send me a PM and I'll give you the straight dope on how to operate on there.