At the same time, girls are also testing, but generally speaking, in a different way. We can quickly look past physical flaws if the guy is charming, confident and makes us feel like we are the only person he is interested in. However, once the initial meeting has passed, the real tests begin.

I remember when the BIL (Boy I Like) picked me up for our first date and I noticed how clean his car was. From then on he continued to earn points. He opened my door, asked me questions about myself, told me he was “over the party/bar scene” and also let me know how much he loved his mother.

However, for the BIL, his tests are seasonal. It was just this past weekend during a ski trip that I believe I passed the BIL’s semester final.

Now just to clarify, dating the BIL is similar to vacationing at a Club Med; there are lots of activities, socializing and “get up and go” type of days. After visiting his family back east, I know where he gets it. These people never stop. If their lake isn’t frozen enough for ice skating, they will look for another. If it’s too cold outside, then invariably someone will just happen to have the keys to a gym and before you know it, you are playing an adult game of dodgeball.

It was probably on our third date when BIL let me know that for him wintertime meant bi-weekly ski trips.

“Do you ski?” he asked intently.

It had been 20 years since I wedged my way down a slope with my family, but the BIL assured me that I would be fine and it was “like riding a bike.”

So I got myself some equipment on Craigslist and told the BIL I was ready for his winter agenda. On my second day back on the slopes since I was an 11-year-old, the BIL felt I was ready to tackle the top of Mammoth Mountain, otherwise known as Cornice. The wind was blowing and the slope was icy. I felt like I was going to lose everything in my stomach. To say I had butterflies is an understatement — it was more like a family of grizzly bears.

“You’ll be fine. I am right behind you. Just take your time, I know you can do this,” he said.

That’s the best thing about BIL; he knows I can do things even when I don’t know.

He was right; I did it. And although I was proud of myself, the BIL was off the hook excited.

Later while driving home I asked him if I passed “the test.” He couldn’t deny it.

“Oh yeah,” he said. “You aced it!”