Their eyes met across the room. He maneuvers slowly through the crowded bar to her side, and offers to buy her a drink. Things appear good. Suddenly she asks: By the way, what’s your blood type? Not your standard question, but a routine question in Japanese dating relationships, according to an AP article from Tokyo titled In Japan, that stranger may not be the right ‘type’. It states that in Japan “the letters A, B and O spell out success or doom for many a budding relationship,” since a widespread belief claims that “blood type determines character…(and) Matchmaking agencies…often weed out potential partners on the basis of blood types.” The historical roots of this modern superstition began in the 1930s when “Military leaders commissioned a study on how blood type influences personality in an effort to breed better soldiers.” Type As “probably get uptight” when schedules aren’t met; attention to detail combined with a desire to please others are its hallmarks. Bs are pushy. You will hear their raucous voice booming across the room at parties. Os are said to be “highly motivated and intent on controlling group situations.” Abs “are a bundle of contradictions, but are also believed to produce original ideas.” Consider my situation. I was a hematology technology technician at Millard Fillmore Hospital in Buffalo, New York when Monte and I were dating in the late 1960s. Early in our dating relationship, out of curiosity, I asked Monte what his blood type was. I even typed his blood to check it out---he’s AB. And no, I didn’t have the above information at the time. But yes, it’s true, he is a bundle of contradictions. I’m type B. And I’ve been told my voice and odd laugh can definitely be heard across a crowded room. Should we have continued our relationship based on this discovery? Not enough information is given. It needs more research. However, there are numerous ways we are incompatible, even though our marriage is over 40 years old. In another article titled Give Them Red Meat and Plenty of it (Newsweek April 7, 1997) I read about diets based on blood type. “In the old days,” the article contends, “Os were a race of hunters, while As and ABs were farmers.” The conclusion? Some (blood types) are suited to a low-calorie, meat-based diet, while sticking to veggies is best for others. I assume the farmers focused on veggies. Monte may have chosen the best diet for him, a vegetarian diet. I, on the other hand, compromise and eat some meat, but stay mostly vegetarian. Opposites attract, they say. Incompatibilities can be overcome. Thus, blood types and other typecasting may eliminate the most interesting of relationships. Who knows? I certainly don’t. | 
