Stuff.

Note: I tried to publish this post three times, my computer froze, then the blog showed up three times. Hopefully that li'l snag has been corrected.


I GOT A GREAT WIFE
Something I do periodically is share with the world how much I love my wife.

We’ve gone through some genuinely rough times during our 2 ½ years of marriage. There were times we didn’t think we’d make it, quite frankly.

Recently, we’ve begun to learn how to communicate. We’ve both historically been the types of people who clam up rather than engage in confrontation, but recently we’ve learned that it’s possible to talk, to argue, even shout if necessary, and somehow not have your world fall apart. Even grow stronger as a couple, believe it or not.

I feel closer to my wife right now than I’ve ever felt to another human being. Not just sappy, head-over-heels infatuated love that will carry us up until the next argument, but a visceral, almost painful closeness. We watched a movie this weekend called “The Notebook” which is a fairly formulaic love story, but it impacted me because it portrays the relationship of a couple from their youthful courtship through their death in each other’s arms as an elderly couple.

As I watched the movie, I would periodically look at my wife and realize that someday, that beautiful, radiant woman will be old, as will I. And it struck me that if history is any guide, and if she keeps getting more beautiful in my eyes each and every day, by the time we grow old together she will be so beautiful that I will scarcely be able to stand it.

She’s funny, smart, and talented and works her butt off every day. Before I ever spoke to her, I would hear her laugh at the workplace we shared, and I secretly longed to make her laugh that way. Now I hear that laugh every day, and instead of the longing feeling I felt when I worshipped her from afar, I feel a sense of satisfaction and contentment that I hope everyone reading this will experience at least once in their lives, if only briefly.

FAMILY
Yesterday was the monthly gathering of my aforementioned wife’s immediate family. In all honesty the event is not always a barrel of laughs. Don’t misunderstand, they’re wonderful people. I’m a rare person who can state unequivocally that he truly appreciates his in-laws. They have jobs. They’re responsible. They raise their children well. Given the state of the world, it’s a monthly reminder that people are not universally horrible.

The thing is, I’m just not a terribly sociable person. An hour anywhere and I’m searching for the door. So four hours somewhere, anywhere, makes me terribly anxious.

That said, yesterday’s event was actually quite enjoyable. The food was wonderful, a soup buffet at which I gorged myself and just finished ingesting some leftovers. Also, I discovered pool yesterday. I sucked, but nonetheless my wife and I engaged in some playful competition with each other and have resolved to find somewhere nearby we can play periodically. Plus, she looked really, really sexy chalking her cue, if you know what I’m saying.

My life has been a series of trying new things recently, and they’re invariably proving to be either beneficial or fun or both. I’m starting to discover that the secret to overcoming depression is twofold: staying busy and actually finding things to make life fun rather than ruminative.