MANILA, Philippines - One Sunday afternoon, I was working overtime with a couple of officemates when we started discussing our type of guy. Hey, anything to keep us from feeling sorry for ourselves for being stuck at work on the Sunday of a long weekend.

I started going through my mental file cabinet, opening folders, reviewing dossiers, scanning pictures. Him? Or him? Certainly not him. Which makes me ask myself: who is my perfect man? Have I met him? Does he even exist?

As I was mentally flipping through a gallery pictures of the guys that have made me swoon, I realized that I?ve never been one to go for ?pretty boys.? None of those fair-skinned, rosy-cheeked mestizos that most people ooh and ahh over. Not for me, thanks. I?ve also never really found those ?Brad Pitt? types attractive. Yes, they are admittedly gorgeous, but not my type. Don?t get me wrong; if one of Brad?s look-alikes asked me out, I?d certainly go for it. I may be picky, but I?m not stupid. But if I saw him across the room, I would never think to myself, ?Now there?s a hot guy.? Nor am I into intellectual, bespectacled gentlemen. And those overly buff Arnold Schwarzenegger clones? No thank you, ma?am.

When asked what my type of guy is like, I have a simple answer. He?s tall and dark, but not necessarily handsome, at least not in the conventional sense. No Richard Gomez for me. Show me someone who?s got a slightly crooked nose, a scar running down his cheek. Nothing perfect please―just perfectly attractive to me. And sometimes, he doesn?t even have to be that tall.

I also tend to like guys who are chinito. Not singkit, just chinito (sloe-eyed).

When I?m out with friends and I point out guys around the room who I think are cute, they tend to give me that look, which translates to ?You can?t be serious!?? Teka, di naman sila panget, ha (They?re not so bad-looking). They just don?t fit into the usual gwapo (handsome) box. And I?ve been asked so many times, ?Him? Why?? Well, I just shrug my shoulders and say ?Oo nga e. Di ko rin alam (yup, but I really don?t know why).?

When I look at what the media and advertising industries package as the ideal man, I just shake my head. So not my type! They?re almost always pretty boys... I don?t quite fancy walking around, knowing that the guy I?m with is prettier than me. Those Brazilian models that are all over billboards and print ads are, admittedly, beautiful. And, being in advertising, I would recommend them to clients. But still, in the true sense of the word, not my type.

Even the hottest actors are just too pretty. Too flawless. Seems as if they would have more beauty products on their bathroom shelves than I would. Yes, Piolo Pascual is gorgeous, Richard Gutierrez is as pretty as they come, Sam Milby makes girls (and guys) gush. But just not me. If I were to look through showbiz? roster of leading men, I would say Cesar Montano comes closest. Among foreign actors, Vin Diesel is the one. Or maybe even Jason Statham, granted he?s not so dark.

I guess for me, more than the looks, it?s the something else. He has to have a great sense of humor. Or at least one that I get. He has to be able to make me laugh. Not just a giggle, but an all out, loud, boisterous bwahahaha. He?s sarcastic and witty, quick with one-liners. So quick in fact, that he beats me to it. But when he needs to, he can shut up and be serious.

So in a nutshell, my type of guy is someone who is not so tall, dark, not so handsome, chinito, witty and hilarious. In other words, smart and funny. The kind of guy who looks like he?d be more than capable of rescuing you out of any situation, complete with a snappy retort. After all, I love to play the damsel in distress.

Have I met him yet? Well now, that?s conversation topic for next weekend?s overtime.