Well, they’re not, and one might as well accept that up front.
I never really comprehended that female stereotype. I’m sure there are grounds for its being a stereotype, but I kind of figured long ago that if I’m going to expect someone to tolerate me, whatever I am (in this case, an anxiety-prone writer who may never experience financial success, but will die that way, if need be) I’d best accept the fact that he’s a talented, but attention-deficient piddler. I take great exception to anyone telling me what I should do, and I hope I don’t do it myself.
Some handymen have more skills than others and perform more than just a variety of small jobs and odd jobs…
A good handyman is skillful, dexterous, practical, clever, skilled, able, competent, and proficient in whatever it is he is doing…
When looking for a handyman for odd jobs, more than anything, you want to make sure that you have someone you can trust, who does dependable work, and you are comfortable with…
emmline, I haven’t myself run across a couple that operated this way and I’m glad you escaped Doug. In truth, I am such a slacker that it would really take a lot of nerve on my part to suggest to my husband that he do more than he already does, which is actually a great deal! I think the mutual tolerance thing, putting oneself in the other’s place, is hard to learn but the most important thing. I started asking myself “How would I like to be married to myself?” It made me start keeping my mouth shut a little more.
I spend so much time working at my stable, secure job(s) that there isn’t much time for anything except doing necessary home and vehicle maintenance, looking after the occasional need of an elderly relative or neighbor, and working out. Sigh. And, there always seems to be someone who needs a kindly ear . . . the time just flies by.
"Dog Lady surmises you don’t have a dog or you wouldn’t ask the question. May I make a suggestion: Don’t worry about the man. Get a dog.
Have you ever thought of visiting the nearest animal shelter instead of surfing onto Match.com? Why peruse digital mug shots of men who claim to have the whaler in their souls (yeesh, what a blubbery line), when you can look into the eyes of doggies.
Be careful about Internet dating. Keep your distance and your sense of humor. Don’t build fantasies in cyberspace. Get to know someone in person before you attach too much significance to anything they write about themselves."
Threads tend to have a life of their own. When Dale posted this thread, he had no idea.
My ex, whom I alluded to earlier, just called me tonight. She has a large house, and she rents out rooms to people that she doesn’t know enough about, in my opinion. Her current roomer says that he is a college professor, but why is he living in a rented room, I ask? And why is he screaming at night? I am glad to be living in my own apartment, thank God.
That’s the problem, as I see it. I kept taking all that advice about “don’t worry about the man.”
Last week, I installed a fish in my office at work. I was thinking it might lure in prospective mates from the hallway . . . “Oh, I see you have a nice fish!” That would give us something to talk about.
Well, is it possible that he is new to the college and hasn’t found a more permanent place to live yet? He might have a temporary position, like for just a year, and so maybe a room would suit him. Could he have just split up with his wife? Actually, given all the home maintenance one is supposed to do, I think having a room somewhere sounds just lovely. No more guilt!
The screaming at night is a little more worrisome. Did his landlady give him a list of things to do " like build a screened-in back porch, install a new kitchen floor (anyone could do it), put a bathroom with Jacuzi tub in the unfinished basement"? Perhaps he is behind on his grading or thinking about grading—that could do it. I am assuming he is screaming while he is asleep and dreaming and not while he is awake. I shouldn’t think he would have such nightmares every night though. If he is screaming when he is awake, I think she should call the police.
Actually I’d say they are often intermediate between soft and bristly; it depends a lot on where they have been burrowing recently. I’ve never handled a wombat in captivity. Odd though it might sound, wombats will sometimes make friends with humans in the wild. Like domestic cats, they make friends on their own terms though. I haven’t found them naturally aggressive but they can look after themselves. They don’t suffer nuisances gladly. They are stubborn rather than vicious.
This is best illustrated by the last occasion I handled a wild wombat. I was driving in the forested mountains about 100km north of Melbourne on a back road. There, in the middle of the road, was a large adult wombat slowly waddling up the middle of the road sticking firmly to the broken white line between lanes. Naturally I was concerned for its safety so I pulled over, introduced myself, and then lifted the wombat to the side of the road. It didn’t fight or struggle. But when a put it down, still pointing in the right direction, it tilted its head on one side, gave me a look of patient, world weary contempt, and then waddled straight back to the middle of the road and kept on going as before. Delightful really, but I do hope it made it to its destination without trouble.
