Young Man. Older Woman

I was reading a blog the other day. It talks about an older woman dating a younger man. There is a duality on my perspective. As a younger man, age 21 to be precise, I dated an older woman. She was 38 years old and looked incredible. I met her at a club where my band was performing. The relationship lasted 6 months and ended on a bad note. The problem with most of these pairings is that they are mostly physical. The young man wants the so called "experienced woman" and the older woman wants his youth and virility. This was the case with us, and with really no common ground, it crumbled rather quickly. Now on the other side, age 30, I was dating a woman my age for a couple of years. She dropped me for a younger guy. She was 32 , he 19, and I must admit I was a little stunned. I still was in great shape, was employed, and didn't stray and treated her well. She wanted something I guess I couldn't give her. We talk about a man having a midlife crises, but a woman can have them as well. She sees her youth vanishing at a rapid rate. She wants the younger man to validate her "hotness". She might have other things to offer, and he pretends he cares. (I was him once). She sees him as eye candy, someone to show off to her friends. He sees her as a meal ticket, as women this age are usually financially secure. This is vanity in the extreme. I am not being bitter, but stating the obvious that most people have seen. These relationships, in the parameters that Stephanie described, usually do not last in the long term. They are merely flings. A distraction until a rich , good looking guy her age catches her eye. Alas though, he will dump her for a girl half his age. It is what it is.