I stumbled into this thread pretty late and opened it because of the title. It was intriguing in many ways, and I had to think for a quite a while before posting a comment.
@senior chef,
The interactions between men and women vary all over the map and yours are at the extreme opposite from mine. First of all, count me as a man who has been "hit on" dozens of times, especially during my single years. I count being "hit on" as totally different from engaging in a conversation with a woman who simply wanted to get to know me. Some of the "hits" were amusing, subtle, clever, blunt, racy, or even forceful. All of the conversation from women who simply wanted to get to know me were fine and more enjoyable by far.
You spend a lot of time worrying about women taking financial advantage of you, and while there are "users" among women, there is no shortage of "users" among men. Both sexes have members who can be predatory, but my personal observation is that the vast majority of men and women simply want to enjoy life, enjoy companionship, and enjoy satisfying ****** relationships. I have known a couple of women who were "users", but I have known far, far more who were very fair and generous in a variety of ways.
I have to wonder what kind of "signals" are you sending out as you move through life. Your wording suggests that you think that you speak for all men, but you certainly do not speak for me on this subject.
@SeaBreeze @Pink Biz @Old aunt
@Nathan @Bella @Shalimar @dseag2