Up! Down! Left! Right! This! That!

Do you and your spouse sometimes get caught in repetitive disagreements over issues like these?

• The right way to fold towels

• Toilet paper over or under
• The best place to park
• Wash dishes now or let them soak
• Toilet seat up or down
• How to place glasses in the cupboard
• Squeezing the toothpaste
• Proper way to load the dishwasher
• Should you lick your fingers when eating finger food

Many people are passionately opinionated about these and similar matters. Towels folded into quarters instead of thirds are annoyingly untidy. Drying oneself from the bottom up rather than from the top down after a shower is seen as a complete breakdown of logic. Distress over an improperly squeezed toothpaste tube is so widespread that a Google search on "squeezing toothpaste" yields more than 1.9 million results and Amazon lists over 100 imaginative devices for squeezing the tube.

Time Out

I'll be taking a few days off from blogging while spending time with our house guests.

Caring

by guest contributor Il Marito Mysterioso

Caring for our spouses is one of the inherent covenants of the marriage contract. It's part of the whole "in sickness and in health" thing that most of us take for granted when we affirm our vows.

About a year ago, my wife came down with pneumonia. At the time, not only was our house being painted but also our air conditioning broke down in 100+ degree weather. Knowing that there was no way she would get better under those circumstances, we moved to a local hotel (with air conditioning!). I brought her food and a cooler full of protein drinks and juice for when I had to go to work. After a few days the home issues were solved, and we were then able to get back into more comfortable surroundings so that she could get well.

They're Playing Our Song

No matter when you were married, you can probably find your wedding songs on YouTube. What a nice surprise to send the link in an email to your sweetheart.

Here's the song my hubby and I chose for our first dance as husband and wife.


Note: After clicking the play button, you may need to click the "Watch on YouTube" link in the video screen.

Bed Shopping

If you are shopping for a new bed, pillows, or anything else sleep-related, the website Sleep Like the Dead should be your first stop. They provide in-depth reviews, discussions and ratings of every kind of sleep-related product, including mattresses, sleeping pills, electric blankets, white-noise machines and insomnia treatments. There are tips and tricks for shopping, including how to return products.

Something that may especially pique the interest of my romantically married readers is the comparison of mattress types and sex suitability, based on data from actual mattress owners. They considered attributes such as bounciness and noise level. The data, just like everything else on this website, has been thoroughly analyzed, explained, and put into pie charts. The results just might surprise you.