I was skeptical that this scheme would end on a high note. But I was intrigued by the idea of taking part in some vicarious dating. I've been married for 16 years and my life can seem dull compared to Isabelle's. I often feel envious of her more daring sexual exploits.

So one evening Isabelle came over and we composed her profile. She didn't want to be identified as an actress. "You know what men think," she said. "Actress? Slut. No thank you." Since she does have a very seductive voice, we decided to emphasize her vocal attributes. "Smart, attractive soprano looking for handsome baritone for harmonic relationship. If you think we'd resonate, let's give this duet a try. Foreign accents welcome here."

Isabelle, who has very high standards, was disappointed when, after two days, only about 20 men responded to her (our) listing out of 160 hits. I, however, took great pleasure reading all the little missives from men who found me interesting and amusing. After a few e-mail exchanges that went nowhere, she was ready to give up. But I urged her to e-mail Bill, who had written, "Let my sweet nothings send chills down your spine."

"No," she sniffed.

"Why not? I would have thought you'd be all over him."

"His profile says he'll consider women from age 21 to 40."

Isabelle is in her late 30s. I knew what she was driving at.

"The man is 43!" she raged. " And he wants to date a 21-year-old? Forget it!"

"He's 6 foot 3," I argued. "And he looks cute in his picture. And he makes over $150,000 a year!"

It was frustrating to know I could attract this good prospect and she wouldn't give him a chance.

A couple of weeks later, after no one better had turned up, Isabelle answered his ad. That's when she discovered he lived in Philadelphia.

"I'm not dating someone who lives in another city. He had no business answering my ad."

"He said he's in Manhattan all the time ... "

"What if he doesn't like me? After all, you're the one who wrote the profile. Maybe he'll think I'm boring."

"You want me to go in your place?" I challenged.

"That's OK."