h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I am famously bad at recognising when people are being flirtatious rather than friendly. This gets me into all sorts of awkward situations. What should I look for?

You and me both.
And no idea - depends on the person flirting.
There's no set of rules for this sort of thing. One person will do one thing, another will do another. If they're that interested they'll make it clear by being more obvious.

Assume they aren't - if they're just being friendly then you'll have a new friend. If they are interested then by being friendly you'll provide a safe environment/situation for them to feel comfortable being more obvious. Either way you'll both be ok.

>>Assume they aren't -

Alternatively, assume they are, and flirt back. Flirting can be perfectly innocent.

Have you tried using body language? A427277

I tend to assume they aren't. That's how I get into trouble!

Sometimes flirting can just be a total pain. Like when the person you're flirting with knows you're interested but doesn't reciprocate the feelings and flirts back anyway. But of course it was *my* fault for taking their really obvious and sometimes verging on the inappropriate flirting as an indication of interest... because obviously a woman who had no intention of getting involved with you would constantly draw your attention to their , make suggestive remarks, be happy having really intimate conversations and occasionally do things she knows you'd find a little arousing.

Not that I'm bitter or anything.

That's not flirting Mr D, it's something else, which as a GE I cannot possibly write down any more.


I blame 2legs that I have to be a good girl now!

I'm sure if it's not yikesable you can say what it is Lanza...

Making notes...

I'll try to avoid doing those things...

But imagine if the women didn't know you were interested...

how can she tell?

Are you sure she does know?

I feel I'm just being crap rather than a tease.

Mr D, it probably would be yikesable!

Ah, gotcha! Yes, I think GEs posting yikesable stuff knowing it'd be yikesable might not be a good plan overall.

Back on topic: Storm, sometimes you know... sometimes you don't... sometimes they'll tell you... sometimes they'll try to be subtle and it passes right by. Sometimes there's a whole laboratory's worth of chemistry involved that makes it difficult for the two of you to spend time alone together because other factors mean you can't do anything about it. The point is there are no rules set in stone about how it works, and anyone who says there is is a damned liar and probably after your money (Pick Up Artist training is a real and terrifying bastion of misogynisitic thought)

Well my suggestion...start small.

If you're not sure if you're on the receiving end of a flirt, give a *small* flirt. If you weren't being flirted with, the heat will be turned down in response. But if you were...

Take it step by step. Softly softly catchee monkey.

Not being able to tell is the fun.

So yeah my input isn't much use here.

Yearsandyears ago, I only discovered that someone I really, really fancied really, really fancied me after I'd found someone else.

Being useful's over-rated, in my experience.

As for the flirting thing, just use humour. That way you can deflect a clumsy pass (or have a clumsy pass deflected) with no hard feelings.

Quite useful actually! Always worth remembering that it is supposed to be fun rather than a test

I find that the following works well.

If you're female men probably are flirting with you.

If you're male women probably aren't flirting with you.

Z -

Just ask directly?