Our newsroom got a call last week from Bob A of Pasadena. He wanted to tell us -- and us to tell you -- that he's getting married in July and that he met his fiancée, Sara W, through our Romance Ads. Being the resident Doctor of Love, I felt it was my duty to call him and learn the story, so I did.

Bob's a 55 year old widower who'd been doing the Romance Ad thing for a year or so without much success when he decided to put an ad in the Pasadena Weekly. He thought that the Weekly would be a good way to meet women in the area, so he gave it a shot.

"I knew people had to be successful at this, otherwise there wouldn't be so many ads. Why couldn't I be one of them?" he said.

Bob's ad ran on April 18, 1991. That's where Sara comes in.

46 years old and widowed herself, Sara had been doing the Romance Ad thing for a while, too, without much success. She had pretty much given up on her search when she came across Bob's ad as she was reading the Weekly at a coffee shop.

"Bob's ad was very honest," she said. "You get a lot of 55 year old men saying in their ads that they windsurf, and you know they're lying. Bob's gave his age and said that he was slightly balding. It was very honest."

Sara called Bob's ad number, Bob called Sara, and a week and a half later they met. On their first date, which fell on Bob's eldest daughter's birthday (Bob has 7 children and Sara has 2), they knew there was an attraction. On their second date, which fell on Sara's birthday, Bob was hooked. Things progressed slowly over the next several months until Christmas Day, when Bob proposed to Sara in front of her mother and daughter and 3 of Bob's children. She accepted, and the wedding is set for July 4, 1992.

Why July 4? It was Sara's idea and Bob liked it. "I'm losing my independence," he chuckles. "It seemed to fit."

You see, folks? Our Romance Ads do work. And Bob, the guy who proves this, has some advice for all you seekers out there, advice that sounds pretty darned good to me.

"There has to be success with these ads or people wouldn't be doing it," he says. "I tell people that their best bet is advertising. You'll get a few duds, but the more duds you go through the closer you are to the right one. Don't give up!"

* * * *

Well, my story certainly doesn't measure up to Bob's in terms of romantic importance, but I promised I'd tell you and it's not too bad a story.

I met Pat in junior high -- 9th grade -- and developed an immediate crush on her, a crush she didn't share. We got to be friends, hung out for that school year and summer, then drifted apart as we entered high school. Halfway through our senior year we drifted closer and started dating. Graduation came, we spent part of that summer together and then she moved to Switzerland, her homeland. And we promptly lost contact with each other.

Ten years later, last October, we re-met at our ten-year reunion. After a nine hour date the evening after the reunion and letters back and forth when she went home to Switzerland, we came to suspect that there are still some sparks between us, some emotion, so we decided to spend some time together to see what happens. She flew in on the 23rd.

She's been here four days as I write this and things are still a little awkward. After ten years we don't really know each other anymore, so this week we're spending together is kind of like a marathon First Date. It's too early to say what will happen or where it's going -- this could turn out to be Tale Rife With Woe, or a story to tell our grandkids about, I just don't know. Time will tell, as it always does, and when it tells me I'll tell you.

FOREPLAY

"What's your sign? "

Has that line ever worked? Maybe once, back in the days of "Free Love" in the 60's and 70's, but in today's world all it'll get you is a laugh. I once knew a guy who swore by the line "I'm normal, well-adjusted, emotionally healthy, and in touch with my feelings." One of the women he met using that line told me he was lying, so it must work, otherwise ... how would she know?

What works? What doesn't? You tell me. I'd like to get some feedback from you readers, so what I want you to do is write to me here at the Weekly. Tell me the best and worst lines you've ever heard, tell me the best way to meet that mysterious stranger across the room. I'll compile a list and share it with you in a few weeks and then we'll all know how to start up that first conversation.

What is your sign anyway?