I dated a woman twice my age for several months and have, um, dabbled in several other older ladies. The cougars like me.

The good:

• Less drama over bullshit. Older women tend to care less about shit-testing because they're a lot less worried about your mindset.

• Awesome sex. Older women have already worked through their hangups. Hope you're ready to do the same, because they are not shy about it.

• They have their shit together. Often, they own a house and have a good job. They'll spoil the shit out of you.

The bad:

• The relationship is going to feel unequal as fuck, because it is. You might find yourself getting the "Listen here, little boy" treatment even when you bring up a reasonable concern. You're also a lot more vulnerable to manipulation because they've been playing this game for a lot longer than you have.

• They're at a different place in their lives than you are. This is really important if you're considering a future with them. Most relationships involve growing together as you both experience things for the first time. She's already been there, done that, and bought the novelty snow globe. Where does that leave you?

• You're going to alternately feel used and like a user. I've repeatedly dealt with "I don't want to be in a relationship with you, but I want you to want to be in a relationship with me. When you start sliding toward the relationship side, you get rebuffed and pushed away. When you start sliding toward the fuckbuddies side, you get pulled back.

I'm engaged to a woman who's ~3 years older than me now.