The scenario is always the same–your aunt eagerly tells you she has a beautiful, eligible woman who would love to meet you and who comes from a wonderful family—she’s educated, charming and is adept at all household chores. So, you decide to meet; you think, “hey, I’ve got nothing to lose, right?” Well, she doesn’t exactly turn out to be how your aunt describes—she’s at least 10 years older, and doesn’t seem to be very interested in what you have to say. The first meeting goes disastrously, (at least it will make a good story for your buddies,) and you swear off anymore arranged dates.

I’m finding someone myself, you decide. I know what I like, and I’m perfectly capable of doing it on my own. That’s when you suddenly realize just how hard it can be to find someone that you connect with.

Nearly a month ago, a college student was getting ready to board his flight at Philadelphia International Airport, when he was asked to step aside, held in a questioning room for hours, handcuffed, and missed his flight for the day.

What exactly was it that made TSA suspicious of Nick George, the college senior from Pomona College in California? It certainly wasn’t his appearance. He’s got a clean-cut, California-surfer look that should have made it easy for him to breeze past the metal detectors and security.

Jaleel seemed like a great guy. He was charming, funny and very ambitious. Everything was going great until the day I heard him talking to his mother on the phone.

He was being so rude and short with her, that I couldn’t believe he was actually talking to his mother. I was a little startled, but I wasn’t sure exactly how to perceive this glimpse into another side of him.