First Date Rules!

First Date Rules
1. DO talk about religion and politics.
I don't mind taking about religion or politics, I think it's interesting and a good way to learn about someone. If it turns into an argument or you really disagree with each other, no biggie, you can move on. I think most rational adults should be able to have a casual conversation on these topics without getting too heated. You may also find out if you are dating a NUT!

Don't sidestep potentially touchy subjects — a chat about the day's biggest headlines can lead to a passionate discussion or a fired-up debate, both of which can make sparks fly. (Can we say heated sex!) And what better way to show off your smarts? If you feel like you're getting into dangerous territory, propose that you agree to disagree ... and continue the discussion on date #2. (If there is one)

2. DON'T talk about your ex.
Talking about your ex-boyfriends or girlfriends ...it will kill any chances of a second date.
Airing your dirty laundry will only make you seem insecure at best ... petty and a little crazy at worst.

3. DO keep it present-tense.
Just talk about what you're doing now, what you're looking forward to, and what your goals are for the future.

Don't dwell on the past! Talk about what excites you about the future, whether it's next weekend's movie release or your long-term career plans. Everyone has a past, but focusing on the future makes you seem like a positive, happy person — an instant draw when you're chatting up someone you're interested in.

4. DON'T just talk — listen.
Express interest and curiosity in what the other person has to say. Treat him/her as though he/she is someone with whom you'd like to be a good friend. The bonus? This gives you a great deal of information. If you expend a great deal of time, effort, and attention getting to know this person, and it does little or nothing for you, then it probably won't do a whole lot for you down the line.

39 Ways to Make Your Love Last and Last (For the women)

1. Fight (a little). Getting your grrs out keeps small annoyances from snowballing.

2. Walk hand in hand. Even just to your car after an evening at Waffle House.

3. Compliment each other. This one's a daily to-do, if you can. There's no nice thing that's too small to mention: his excellent taste in music, the way he always opens the door for you — it's all worth a verbal love tap. And he will swoon.

4. Make love (obviously). But also ...

5. Have generous sex. You need at least one sexual connection a week that's all about pleasing the other person. (Dear busy people: Feel free to multitask and make this the sex from before. Same goes for this next one ...)

6. Sleep together before work. Put down the straightening iron and heat things up this way: "Weekday morning sex is the secret sauce in a relationship,"

7. Get into bed and ... sleep. "Sometimes the best thing a couple can do to ignite their passion for each other is sleep,"

8. Let something go. Argue over the stuff that matters, but once a week let him (and yourself) off the hook for things that don't: Yes, he chews his popcorn loud. No, it won't kill you.

9. Laugh really hard. Laughter is a relationship's Krazy Glue: It bonds you. Uninspired? Fast-forward to the chest-waxing scene in The 40-Year-Old Virgin

... Once a Month

10. Be do-gooders. Volunteering together (even just helping a friend move) bonds you because you're ID-ing

11. Do something scary. Been together a while? A pounding heart mimics the rush of brand-new love

12. Talk about money. Whether it's "Should we open a joint account?" or just, "Hey, let's split the bill tonight."

13. Brag publicly about him: his fearless pursuit of the mouse in your kitchen, the armful of hydrangeas he surprised you with, the raise he landed even in this economy. Surely once a month you can think of something that'll make him blush in front of your friends. He'll probably get you back too.

14. Declare something "this stays in Vegas." A silly nickname, or a crazy bedroom mishap. Share something intimate, then pull the couple bubble around you tightly.

15. Be the man. Not literally, but if your guy always initiates dates, romance, whatever, take the lead for once.

16. Disappear together. Hike somewhere AT&T can't find you (and thus your mother, your boss and his needy friend Bob can't find you either). No woods? Any time spent totally alone together — a long drive, even — will do the trick.

17. Disappear alone. We're not advocating game-playing, exactly. But in this world of 24/7 availability, it can be good for your relationship to each have some solo time. Afterward, you'll feel recharged, like the free-spirited single girl he fell for once upon a time.

18. Go to a party! And mingle separately. It screams confidence and makes the after-party rehash even sweeter.

19. Have sex some way you've never had it before. A worthy challenge, whether you've been together 10 days or 10 years. Try a new position or play out a fantasy. Doesn't matter whether it's really new to you, as long as it's new to you as a couple.

... Once a Year

20. Build a doghouse. Or restore a Firebird.

21. Now get the dog. Or at least a plant. Anything that'll grow with your love.

22. Say the tough thing. The dark family secret. The crazy career dream. If you can't confess to your significant other, then who? (Hey, you think Barack never said to Michelle way back when, "This may sound nuts, but I think I want to be president someday"?)

23. Cancel Valentine's Day and invent your own lovey-dovey holiday. Lobsterfest 2009, anyone?

24. Fall apart. You can't schedule this. But it's important that you each know, via experience, that you can completely, utterly lose your grip — weep over a bad haircut, threaten to leave your job after a nutso day, have a wrenching fight with your mom — and not lose each other.

25. Don't. Get. Up. At least once a year, break open some bubbly, disable the Wi-Fi, and don't get out of bed for the weekend.

26. Take him to a game. Enough said!

27. Re-kiss your first kiss. All timid and hopeful ... and wonderful.

28. Write each other. A love note

29. Think back on all the reasons you fell for him, whether you've dated for a year or a decade. Some will be big (his extra-dry sense of humor); some will be small (his love of argyle). Make sure you tell him, and remind yourself. Hello, butterflies! There you are again.

... And Once In a Lifetime

30. Get lost together in a foreign country.

31. Damn the cost and go do the dream.

32. Get intimate someplace you might be discovered.

33. Suffer through food poisoning together.

34. Go to each other's "fun" high school reunions.

35. Pay off the mortgage!

36. Come back from the brink of a breakup even stronger.

37. Together, convince a skeptic pal to believe in love.

38. Have a poor phase. Maybe a rich phase, too.

39. Count the stars. Know your love is one in a billion