S'pose so
Someone told us that the first six months of marriage represented the "honeymoon" phase, while the second six months would involve fighting like cats and dogs. Or cat and dog, anyway.
But I guess we're just not fighters generally, so the over-cute and extra-harmonious honeymoon phase has continued, even into the throes of home remodeling.
Flush with the success (OK, non-disaster) of our kitchen project, we've broadened our horizons and our relationship with the fabulous handyman, and, even as we wait for the counter top to be completed, we're moving into two bathrooms and a totally new paint job.
Weeks from now, this will probably seem like extreme folly, or at least overconfidence. But right now it's ridiculously exciting.
And so, in this moment of extreme positivity, I've been thinking about what's been working so well. (It will be so amusing to read this when it all goes to hell. ed.)
So here's my marital-wisdom-as-accumulated-in-eight-months:
1. When disagreeing on something (i.e., "that tile is hideous"; "I really like it"), there's no point in repeating yourself more than once. There are 400,000 varieties of tile out there, so it is not necessary to choose a style that one of us loathes. But there's no point in trying to change the other person's mind about it.
2. If you don't care, don't fight. R. has something against stainless steel sinks. I don't understand it, frankly, since they seem pretty harmless, but I also have no strong feelings about sinks whatsoever. So we're getting cast iron.
3. Sometimes, the best response to a ridiculous statement ("I'm thinking about purple for the bedroom walls. Do you think that would work?") is the time-tested, "S'pose so." It's so much more civil than, "No, absolutely not, you idiot."
