I hate Peter Pan

No not the Disney movie of my youth but the syndrome that seems to be plaguing the young men of the Bay Area (and I assume other places but I'll stick to what I know), Peter Pan Syndrome.  Peter Pan's are everywhere! I don't feel awful saying that I don't want to date a man-child anymore.  This syndrome is particularly detrimental to those women who may end up dating a Peter Pan.  The effect is a person who is generally content, with a lot of varying interests and personality but unfortunately not a lot of follow-through, commitment or future potential.

The symptoms:

• Either "funemployed" or have a job that has little to no opportunity for growth.  A Peter Pan will actually use the term funemployed and mean it, this is what can be so attractive at first, this person with seemingly no prospects is so happy.  If your Peter Pan is employed you can bet that it is at a job that you might expect a driven high school student to have.  A Peter Pan who is with one of my besties, who I really like but feel, like my friend, that it may be time to leave never never land, delivers tofu.  This is on the heels of briefly working in a doggie day care, which followed a stint at a local pot dispensary. All of which would be fine, in my opinion, if you were in school pursuing your true dream, or you had a creative passion and needed to work just enough to live so that you could spend your time doing that other thing.  Not the case, and also no longer functional when you reach a point in a relationship when it's time to consider the future and what a family might look like - I mean, at least they could eat a lot of tofu....?
• Lots of hobbies but no passion.  Something that is great in an actual child because they are exploring and figuring out what they care about becomes a bit scary in an "adult" man.  They generally really like a lot of things and do a lot of them but none to a degree that can sustain a person creatively or financially.
• When the going gets tough, the Peter Pan cracks.  Now this may just be a factor of being male but in my observation a Peter Pan is absolutely floored by the slightest physical ailment or illness, complete with moaning and groaning.  Not to go on a tangent of which gender is stronger, but I do not know one woman (with the exception of maybe myself) who make such a production of being sick.  A production which cannot help but leave Peter Pan's partner wondering what would happen if in a future where the two have children will  you pull this same crap leaving me to take care of both you and them?
• Roommates!  A Peter Pan will almost inevitably have his lost boys.  I am not knocking the very economical choice to have a roommate in these tough economic times however when a Peter Pan has 3 to 4 and calls a closet or a living room his "room", call it a warning flag.

So what if you end up dating a Peter Pan?  It could be a great thing for a bit.  You'll be with someone who is able to find the fun in each activity you do, who will without question have time for you with no work commitments ruining your date night plans, and you'll probabaly experience new things as he shares each new hobby or interest with you as it arises.  It is important to remember, that while there is a chance - think Hook - that your Peter Pan will want to leave never never land with you and start a family, it's not a given, and if he does he may need quite a bit of pushing to be in a place that can support a life long relationship.