Hello Bill,
Thursday, January 20, 2000, 9:12:05 AM, you wrote:
BB> Hey Listers,
BB> This is a serious and sensitive issue.
BB> SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed), IE my wife, has a problem with my cars
BB> (two TR-3's). I get up at 0430 every morning to work on them while she and
BB> our three young children are still sleeping. I get 90 minutes personal time
BB> every morning which is divided 50/50 between Triumphs and studying the
BB> Bible. I find it easy to jump out of bed at the thought of being able to
BB> work on the car with a hot cup of tea, unmolested.
<snip>
Bill;
I think most of us see this as a serious issue, but IMHO, any
significant other who likes Morris Minors is a real keeper. I know
there are a lot of things I do that really peeve my wife and when she
finds out how much I'm going to spend rebuilding the engine of my TR6
this winter, she'll hit the roof. I just try to get some balance
between what she wants and what I want. Which means that this winter,
I'll be putting in a new bathroom downstairs where there is none now
and tearing out a load bearing wall. Should I get some free time I'll
get my engine rebuilt. The balance is never going to be 50-50 and I've
learned to accept that. I think that
if you are dedicated enough to work on your cars when it doesn't
detract from quality family time should be enough to show her that you
really care. Maybe not. I believe it's natural for a wife to see your hobby
as a "mistress" and have some resentments about the time and money you
spend on 'her'. Do I have any nuggets of wisdom? Nah, you, me and just
about every other guy has the same concerns but very few answers.
(Maybe you could sell one of the TR3's and buy her a Traveller.)
--
Best regards,
Jeff Johnson
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