Shopping for tampons. Meeting the parents. Enduring chick flicks. I give guys a lot of credit. Dating a member of the female sex just isn't easy nowadays. While cruising down aisle eight looking for the blue box of supers is unavoidable, and awkward introductions are a necessary evil, watching crappy chick flicks is a fate worse than death.Look, fellows, let me explain. Every girl, on some level, likes chick flicks. I'm not sure whether we're drawn to the two-dimensional characters, the clich dialogue or the soundtrack consisting of guilty pleasure after guilty pleasure, but we love them. We crave them like we crave flowers and jewelry and holding hands. Unfortunately, most of these sorry excuses for movies are obnoxiously predictable. Take one part underrated beauty with a broken heart, one part wholesome hunk in search of a life lesson and stir well with a generic, poorly written script.

The entertainment world has been making a profit off of the chick flick industry for years. It's embarrassing to think that anyone could cash in from "Runaway Bride," never mind "Never Been Kissed." What sane person runs away from Richard Gere? And, who hasn't Drew Barrymore kissed?

But alas, women's insatiable appetite for trashy romantic comedies holds no bias toward those movies which would make the average guy wretch. There's just something about the mindless plot and cardboard characters that makes us weak in the knees. Although getting roped into an evening of chick flicks with your honey is inevitable, there are some that no man deserves to have to sit through.

First of all, for the love of God, steer clear of anything with Sandra Bullock in it. For a girl who broke into the scene with "Speed" and "Demolition Man," it's no jump up to see her in such crap as "Hope Floats," "Practical Magic" and "Miss Congeniality." Let's also not forget "28 Days," "Ya-Ya Sisterhood" and her latest trash, "Two Weeks Notice." We get it, Sandra. You're tough and unwieldy and easily won over in the end by a tough guy gone soft. Enough already -- Even Keanu moved on with his career.

Also, whatever you do, avoid "Beaches" at all costs. I don't know any guy who hears the name Bette Midler and doesn't involuntarily cringe. If your girl demands any quality time between her, you and Bette, maybe you ought to reconsider the type of girl you're dating. The only way to survive a sitting through "Beaches" is to make sure you've got a box of tissues handy. While she's sobbing, you can stuff them in your ears and try to drown out Bette singing "Under the Boardwalk" in three equally annoying keys.

When watching movies with your girlfriend, it is also best to not get involved with any sort of Meg Ryan chaos. Her movies only spell trouble. "When Harry Met You've Got a Sleepless City of Angels" does nothing but instill in women the ridiculous notion that dating is a quirky pursuit of one's soul-mate, ending in the passionate embrace of romantic ever after (cue the music). Unless you're ready to propose, it's just easier not to get her hopes up. Face it, you're no Tom Hanks, and even Billy Crystal couldn't score with Meg until the movie was nearly over.

Chick flicks are inescapable when dating girls. Sure, she might deny it. She might even suggest watching "Fight Club," if only to drool over Brad Pitt's precocious grin. But deep down inside, in the depths of her estrogen-soaked heart, she's dying to watch "Fried Green Tomatoes." If she is ever given remote-control power, watch her carefully pause at Lifetime while channel surfing. It's an inherent female trait. While I don't suggest embracing this phenomenon, you might as well give in and humor her every so often.

After all, it's just a little worse than those embarrassing price checks on Tampax in aisle eight.