<p>So it’s like this. If you’re dating a girl that you think you want to spend your life with, you can either pop the question now or wait a little longer and then pop the question after your relationship has time to mature. Now, if you ask early and that girl is as in love as you are, she can say yes even though it’s early in the game, because it just feels right. She might also be taking you for a ride and when she sees that you’re really looking for a long-term commitment, she’ll leave you. In between those two extremes, though, the girl might just want some more time to think about it. In that case, you’ll stay in a relationship but not yet engaged, and she’ll defer the act of giving you a decision until the regular time comes around and she’ll give you the definite answer, yes or no. Or she might be even more indecisive, which means that you’re stuck in limbo while she sorts her life out (some people say that if it comes to this, you might just want to move on and see other people).</p>
<p>(As a corollary, this means that if you apply to multiple colleges, you’re a deceitful cheating jerk. Even worse if several of them say ‘yes’, and then you have to explain to all but one of them that you were ‘just kidding’ when you said that you wanted to have a future together. My gosh, what kind of foul beasts have we become?)</p>