DEAR NATALIE: I'm 22, and I was seeing this guy who is 30. He and I were just casually hooking up -- or so I thought -- but then he started texting and calling a lot, wanting to take me out to dinners and movies and basically date. I was hesitant because I just got out of a heavy relationship, but he's cute so I agreed to go out with him on "official" dates. Then he just stopped calling after we went out a few more times.
I was at a party recently, and my friend had run into him. She told me she asked him about me. He scoffed at the idea of dating me and said, "Yeah, I slept with her a few times, but she wanted more, so I bailed." This is so not true! I want to confront him about this. He's so immature and spreading lies about me to our circle of friends. What should I do? -- ANGRY “GIRLFRIEND”
DEAR ANGRY “GIRLFRIEND”: You can't "unsee" this bad behavior. You found out that this guy is a jerk pretty quickly, so cut your losses and walk away. Don't try to confront him. Most likely whatever you say he will just turn around and further insult you. Chances are he's going to text you to hook up again when he feels like it, but don't respond. Block him on social media and move forward. He's still pretty immature considering his age, and you don't want to try to "fix" him or the situation. No more broken toys. Make that your mantra for the next year.
Networking Tip of the Week: We really do judge a book its cover, so dress for the part you want, not the part you have, when in a social setting. People take notice of others who dress for success, and it may be just the thing that encourages someone of influence to start up a conversation with you.
Please send your relationship and lifestyle questions to nbencivenga@post-gazette.com or tweet them to @NBSeen. You can also send postal letters to Natalie Bencivenga, 358 North Shore Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15212
(This column was originally published by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.)