I have a new guilty pleasure that perhaps some of you have seen ... The Millionaire Matchmaker.

For those of you not familiar with the television program, it's a behind-the-scenes reality show about a woman who runs a matchmaking company for millionaires. A man must submit financial documents verifying he's a millionaire, and the company's founder will do her best to find him the love of his life.

Oh, and the golden rule: There is no sex allowed unless the millionaire and his lady friend are in a committed, monogamous relationship that could lead to marriage.

I don't know what is more interesting ... learning about these men (who often think they are God's gift to Earth) or watching the money-hungry women wipe the drool from their lips.

The company's founder says that she doesn't want female gold-diggers in her pool of potential dates, but come on! These women aren't there because they just want a "nice guy." Who is she kidding!?!

Anyway, I'll be the first admit that it isn't the most intellectually stimulating program — but it's still fun to watch.

In a recent blog, I addressed about how guys in Manhattan seem to look but not talk and, compared with guys in some other parts of the country, are hard to start a conversation with.

A reader commented that perhaps I make the move and approach the man. There's no doubt this is a good piece of advice and one I had already taken into consideration.

But here's my problem: If a guy doesn't have enough balls to make a move or isn't interested enough to try and start a conversation, then why should I?

This may sound snobbish, but I am not here to make a guy feel good and boost his ego. I have dealt with enough crap and am tired of bending over backward to make good with guys. It is their turn.

I want to feel as though I am desired and attractive and I want to be pursued — not be the pursuer.

As you can tell by my thick Little Black Book (not!), my strategy is working quite well. Ha!

And people wonder why I am terrified to marry again...

The other night I met a guy friend of mine for drinks, and we started talking about work, relationships, and money. He told me something quite disturbing.

My friend is a very handsome, educated guy who has never been married. He a successful 30-something with a burning desire to excel in business and make a ton of money, and he is well on his way. And that's what worries me.

Apparently, he had been talking with the head of his company — a financially successful man who has been through like four or five marriages — who advised him that he should "get the details out of the way" and then really focus on his career. In other words, my friend should "get a wife and give her a couple of kids" and then he can really focus on his career.

Hello! What century are we living in?! Get married and "give her a couple of kids"? (As if without children she would have nothing better to do or offer?) What happened to, Find someone you love and raise a family with together?

I have never met my friend's boss, but as a woman I find that mentality very disrespectful (perhaps that's why he has been divorced several times).

What scares me is that I'm afraid this idea is not as rare as I'd like to think, given today's materialistic and greedy society. Men want it ALL and will do whatever it takes to get it.

It's not the first time I have seen them since my divorce last March, but it's the first time that they have made the trip to the East Coast to visit. It will also be the first time they will see my apartment.

Last time they traveled over, I was living in a house, so they had their own bedroom and own bathroom. Going from that to a small one-bedroom apartment with one small bathroom should be interesting.

It will be nice to spend a few days with my parents and just wander around the city. Each time I see them we talk less and less about the divorce and the debacles of the past year, which is nice. Soon the divorce will be a distant memory.

As nice as it is — or was — to cuddle and sleep next to a significant other, I am getting pretty darn used to sleeping alone.

It has been well over a year that I have had my bed all to myself and the thought of sharing it sometimes makes me cringe.

When you sleep alone you don't have to deal with snoring. You are not awakened by someone pulling on the blankets. You don't find yourself being smothered by a well-intended arm wrapped around you. You don't have to be subjected to someone's too-long toenails brushing up against you in the night.

Yes, there is something to be said about sleeping alone.

There's something I have noticed about guys in Manhattan ... they look but don't talk.

I will be the first to admit that I am not hitting the clubs and aggressively putting myself out into the dating world but is it so hard to smile or strike up a conversation with a stranger of the opposite sex?

What's interesting is that within the last month or two those guys who have started a conversation with me have not been from, or even in, Manhattan.

For example, I was recently in a Chicago airport and a guy from Texas who was standing in front of me in the security line turned around and smiled and asked how I was doing. And during that same trip I was sitting in the food court area of the airport wasting time because of a delayed flight when a Chicago-native (who now lives in Oklahoma) sitting at an adjacent table started talking to me and ended up joining me at my table. I have yet to experience such male friendliness in New York.

Why? My thought is that people-men and women, alike-are just too self-consumed. They are running to a meeting, they are on the phone or Blackberry, they have their iPod headphones stuck in their ears or maybe they just want to be perceived as "important" so they stick their nose up in the air and walk on pretending to be oblivious to those around them. Whatever the reason, people just keep to themselves.

Being from the West Coast and required to travel every few months on business, I do notice a difference in guys outside of Manhattan.

I have been in my apartment for about six months now and I noticed I have yet to buy any pictures or artwork for the walls. The walls are still stark white and bare and I like it. But there's more to it than just a lack of decorating sense.

When my ex and I moved into our second home more than two years ago we were SO excited to decorate. It was a much bigger and newer house than our starter home and we wanted to take our time and decorate it perfectly. I don't even know how many hours we spent browsing furniture stores and art galleries looking for the perfect pieces.

What's sad is that after the divorce, nearly all of those newly purchased pieces were either sold or given away. The money and time wasted is sickening.

So when I moved into my apartment I just wanted simplicity. Right after moving in I did buy new bedding, bathroom décor, curtains and a few space-saving items to make living in a small apartment a bit easier, but that's it.

My desire to paint walls, buy artwork or more furniture has fizzled. I guess my walls symbolize how I feel — I just want a clean slate.

As I've mentioned in my previous posts, I returned to counseling about a month ago and so far it has been good.

When I was seeing the first therapist about a year ago, I was focused on dealing with the divorce. Now, I am focused on me and how I can heal, move on, and release these feelings of anger. Given this, I have decided to really open up to the therapist.

Unlike my first round of sessions a year ago, I have started looking back into my past and addressing issues, experiences, etc. from my childhood. I know that childhood experiences shape who we become as adults so I am interested to learn how my experiences have shaped me. For example, I believe I tend to involve myself with the wrong type of guys. What I want to know is why?

It is a bit odd sharing past experiences with a stranger but I just keep reminding myself that she is a trained professional and not some random woman I'm spilling my guts to. But I must say, so far it has felt pretty good.

I've started to notice a change in myself — for the better — since my divorce: I put my wants and needs first.

I have always been a pretty independent person but I noticed since my divorce that independence has not only strengthened but has transformed. I now have a stronger sense of the need to put myself first and don't feel bad about it.

I am starting to notice this renewed strength as I ever so slowly integrate a few men into my social circle. If I don't want to call a guy back, I don't. If I don't want to sleep with him for whatever reason, I tell him and walk away. If I am interested in hearing from a guy again I will make the first move and give him my number.

It isn't that I didn't have these feelings before my marriage but after dealing with all of the crap of my divorce I have become a bit hardened. I have no desire to deal with any more crap.

Sometimes I feel as though I gave what love I had to give during my marriage and now there is not much left of me to share.

Yes, there's a chance that my attitude will mean I will be single for a long time — a long, long time — but so be it. Maybe it is for the better.

The other day I was working out on the StairMaster at the gym, watching some "reality" show about wives who have husbands in Iraq. Given that it was on either MTV or VH1, the couples featured on the show were between the ages of 18 and early 20s.

The reason I bring this up is because there was one husband on the show who made me so glad I am single.

I know that not all guys are like this, but it is such a turn off when guys are so insecure that they question a wife's every move. For example, this one guy was so upset that his wife was at a bar with her girlfriend. He was asking her things like what was she wearing? How was she wearing her hair? What she was drinking? And the list goes on.

I had forgotten how controlling some guys can be. Luckily, I never had to deal with that with my ex.

It reminded me of one more thing to watch out for when stepping out into the dating world — that controlling guy.

Yes, being single certainly has its upsides.