Dear Manspam,
The man I'd been dating was keen for me to fly to California with him to meet his family at Christmas. I wasn't comfortable committing since we'd only been dating six weeks and Christmas was four months away. So he offered to purchase my ticket making sure it was fully refundable just in case I didn't end up going...
Fast forward two months. We're no longer dating and I get a call from him asking me to refund him for the non-refundable, non-transferable ticket HE purchased. What should I do?
Signed, She's Got a Ticket to Ride But Not to Anywhere She Wants to Go
Dear Ticket to Ride,
Manspam Red Flag #1: He negotiated you into agreeing to a premature visit, even though you clearly expressed your discomfort and reservations.
Manspam Red Flag #2: He didn't intend to honor the terms he negotiated. My guess he figured saving a few bucks on a restricted ticket was more important than following through with his promise.
Tacky, tacky, tacky.
Good call breaking up with him after only a few months. Asking you to meet his family so quickly was an icky billboard for things to come. Classic Manspam.
Tell Ticket Boy to you're under no obligation to buy that ticket, and beside you don't need it - you're going to Paris at Christmas to shop the Faubourg Saint-Honoré district, visit the Rodin Museum and drink coffee in a chic cafe. You don't have the time or inclination to fund his next venture. Move on, Ticket Girl, and go forth with confidence that your Manspam Radar is working well.