I targeted the more reputable looking sites. I had my criteria and mental geiger counter. So I began. I looked for days and days. I must have seen the faces and images of thousands of women, who, like me, were hoping for the opportunity to find the other half of their 'fruit of love'.

Lyudmyla at 'Good Forest', N.S.W., Australia (2002)

The first site I took a chance on was smaller, but seemingly reputable, site. I bought two addresses from it, a little costly, but it was my first toe-dipping experience. I felt let down by the sheer complacency of the site personnel's approach and their handling of my purchase. The result was also disappointing as I believed their women to be either not what they seemed or non-existent as I received no reply whatsoever. I didn't buy from this company again.

What I felt was needed - and what HEAVENLY HEARTS© insists on from all its female clients - is that the ladies we represent respond to each and every letter written to them from a gentleman who purchases their details from us, or uses our services in a representative way. HEAVENLY HEARTS© refuses to represent clients who are not agreeable to providing a written response.

The second company I purchased from was much larger, high profile, though, as I later learned from Lyudmyla, out-of-touch with its women. As it turned out, Lyudmyla didn't even know that she was on this company's site. A friend of Lyudmyla's was also on the site and had been for years. She knew nothing about their representation either. As far as the company was concerned, they were simply women with addresses to sell - unbeknownst to the women themselves.

Malcolm at 'Darling Harbour', Sydney, Australia (2002)

After my first experience I thought that it might take a lot of letter writing to a lot of women in order to find the one who was right for me. This time I tried one of those bulk offers of a lot of women for a reduced price. This, once again, proved to be a mistake for I only ended up using a handful of these addresses.

With this second company I again looked at photo's, scrutinized profiles. As before, there were women who caught my attention and women who didn't. As I looked at the many profiles I made written notes about the women who matched my criteria so as I could refer back to them if necessary. One woman I kept coming back to over and over was Lyudmyla.

I made a list and narrowed it down. Using the bulk plan I was given the addresses of about thirty women. I chose to write to six of them at first. Not expecting success, I made a list of the next women I would write to when I received next-to-no responses from the first group of letters I sent. As it happened, Lyudmyla was featured prominently amongst the first six ladies I wrote to.

I approached the writing process with trepidation, simply because I didn't know what it was I needed to write. Precious few sites had guidelines and those that did didn't seem overly confident in what they suggested. Again I got bit and pieces here and there to give me an idea. Fortunately, I am a professional writer and former teacher, so I knew how to write. It was what to write that proved difficult for me.

Using my abilities and experience, I set to work on writing a letter that would have the effect of impressing the lady that I had chosen to write to. My methodology was to put myself in the place of the lady. I asked myself what would I want to receive in a letter of introduction, how would I like it to be worded etc. It took me about 3 weeks to write - because I wanted it to be perfect. I knew that I had only one shot at success with a lady and it had to hit the bulls-eye first time. I wouldn't get a second chance.

Lyudmyla with emu at 'Featherdale Farm', Sydney, Australia (2002)

Lyudmyla later told me that mine was the third letter of introduction she received from a man. She said that I was right in thinking that my first letter would make or break her interest in me. Lyudmyla, like nearly all women from that part of the world, is very discriminating and had dismissed the letters from the other two men because they were poorly written and made the men appear insincere and uninteresting. My letter sparked an interest in Lyudmyla that prompted her to want to correspond more.

What I also made sure of including in addition to my letter was a high quality portrait photo' of myself. Without one, I knew my chances were next-to-zero of ever getting a response.

Out of the six letters I sent, four women wrote back. Lyudmyla was the second. The first woman to write back gave me a misplaced thrill. Someone actually had written to me! Initially, the fact that a woman had written back made me lose touch with my mental geiger counter. I wrote about two letters to this woman before I started to realize that perhaps this woman was not the right one for me. I also quickly found out that the address I had purchased was not her own address - but a company that wanted to control every process of the burgeoning relationship. I corresponded by email and spent more time speaking with a woman from the company than to the woman I had first written to. I also quickly found out that the woman had not exactly told the truth. Contrary to what she had first said, she had indeed been married before. Not wishing to pursue this association any more, I wrote a polite letter to her explaining my feelings and wishing her well in the future.