Not dumb, not dumb at all!!!! I'm in the same boat as you, and with a lot of the same thoughts too. How I envy my friends who have someone and are happy together! Why not me? I love dogs too and I've always had one or two. Love that unconditional love My therapist is always quoting to me from various experts in the field about how we need human contact, blah, blah, blah. But he's right - we do. You sound ambivalent, and so am I. I want the romantic relationship, but I'm afraid of it. I'm in therapy to work out just why I'm so afraid and keep running away.

I hope posting made you feel a little better. There's nothing wrong with you, and just reading your post made me feel that I"M not so alone in my thinking either. Hang in there, and take care of yourself.