Un Agony

Dear Aunt Agony

I think my father's worried about me. I'm 23 years old this year and I've been single all my life. At first I thought that it was my fault that I'm single. Perhaps I'm disgusting or that I'm not charming enough or that I'm being too picky. But I've reached an age when I know it's not my fault that I'm still single.
I have a wide circle of friends, both male and female. I'm not some social outcast. While I have many female friends, it just so happens that I have never found a girl who provides that -oomph- to differentiate a friend from something more.
However, my dad now thinks that everytime I go out with a girl, it must constitute a date. I think he's just chiding me to hasten my search, but it's a silly way to do so. What do you think, Aunt Agony?

Single, but not Desperate

Dear Desperate

(Is your first name Single or is it Desperate?)

It seems to me that you already have the answers to your own questions. What was your question anyway?
If it's the issue that you're worried that you're still single, then you're right in saying that you're not a freak. If you have a wide circle of friends (a circle of 3 friends is by no means wide), and you have not met anyone who has had that -oomph-, then fret not. Someone will come along to do that soon. Or you could live a single life, which I hear is pretty fun too. Yours truly didn't find true love till he was nearing forty and found a Vietnam bride.
As to your point that your dad keeps making fun of you, let yours truly relate his personal experience. Every time the stork delivers the baby to new parents, he brings with him a parenting handbook. It covers everything from teething babies and curing colic to telling your child to become a lawyer/doctor/accountant.
Just like your first tooth, your first word and your first step, your first girlfriend is a major milestone in your parents' eyes. It proves that the child they brought up is not enough a freak that he is unable to find a girlfriend. Also, it completes the circle of life that they started a long time ago. First a girlfriend, then marriage, then a kid... who will then grow up and find his/her own girlfriend/boyfriend.
Your dad will be as excited as you are about your first girlfriend (whenever that maybe). However, till that happens, just grin and bear it. Take heart that you have a dad who cares enough about you to nosey around your love life.

Aunt Agony