Too Many Options

New York, the most expensive city in the country, has one redeeming deal – cheap mani/pedis. And I have found the greatest place to get them – it’s clean, friendly, convenient, efficient. Also one of the precious nail ladies is dating the mailman. Seriously. They met because the salon is on his mail route. Yes, so Legally Blonde.

Anyway, they also have an amazing selection of colors – every Essie shade you could want. Except, it is almost too great of a selection. This summer, one of the “on” occasions with my on-off obsession with getting weekly manicures, was the testing ground to find the perfect polish. While every now and then I would rock a Punch Pink or Flirty Fuchsia - or sometimes switch to a lighter hue when something more subdued was needed - coral has been my staple – the MPD for nail polish.

But as much as I love getting my nails done, I’ve begun to dread the, “Go pick a color,” directive that meets me as I walk in the door. My coral conundrum this summer would have my mind racing as I’d go back and forth between Boat House, One of a Kind, Enuff is Enuff, Escapades and Tangerine. All good choices (and no they’re not the same!) – but is there a best?

What if I get something that’s not as good as last week? What if it’s not what I really want? What if I’m wasting my time trying out a new shade? Should I just stick with one so I stop worrying?

Yeah, I get these are very first-world problems.

Anyway, the summer has ended but my nagging indecisiveness has not abated. And the constant second-guessing about whether I’ve made the right choice or if I should keep looking has infiltrated into dating.

Cute guy, good job, nice apartment. Just like the guy I met last week and the guy the week before him. Too many damn candidates all neck and neck for the finish line; rarely has there been a clear winner.

Like with the overwhelming number of polish options, the practically invisible distinction between guys I meet within MPD has made it difficult to decipher what I want and who I should go after - I blame the city for making it hard to tell them apart. How can I figure out which ones are just looking for a good time, which ones are flakey, or which one could potentially be The One? It’s about as hard as judging a bottle of nail polish to determine which won’t chip in a day or two, and which will stay perfect all week. Except, you know, I would prefer a relationship to last a little longer than seven days.

You wonder whether to make an effort with Guy A or blow him off hoping something will happen with Guy B. Or do you blow them both off because, hell, Guy C, D, E or F could be around the corner and be even better? How do you choose between a bevy of eligible bachelors, none of whom you actually really know that much about besides what you get at face value?

When it comes to the nail polish deciding vote, the shade with the cleverest name is usually the winner – prob not the best judge for dating…

As of late I haven’t found myself in the situation where I’m forced to choose between settling down with someone or continuing my search for something better, but I know that when that time comes, my new-found crippling indecisiveness will be an issue.

Maybe, though, the key is to not allow yourself an overwhelmingly infinite number of options. Maybe you say Enuff is Enuff and just choose the one you think is right. And stop second-guessing your decisions, Rachel…I mean, you, the reader…