Category: Marriage

  • The Manly Art of Pondering

    The Manly Art of Pondering

    I sometimes wonder if there is a common misconception among married women that a husband sitting quietly, deep in thought, must be either upset or up to no good.  Seeing the studious look upon my countenance one recent morning, my wife asked, “Is everything ok?”  Wanting to quickly dispel any notion that I might be…

  • I Gave My Wife a Vacuum Cleaner for Christmas…and Lived to Tell About It.

    It is a marital truth known by all women and romantically challenged men that a husband who gives a toaster/electric can opener/pool table/vacuum cleaner to his wife as a Christmas gift should first be sure he is ok being relegated to sleep on the living room couch that night. So you can imagine my shock…

  • If It’s Eggrolls, It Must Be Christmas

    If It’s Eggrolls, It Must Be Christmas

    Christmas is a time to make memories, and hopefully, the kind of memories that still make you laugh, giggle and smile sixty years later. Unless it was the Christmas of 1986, when “Santa” had the bright idea to leave all his Christmas gifts in one 10 foot long black plastic bag so that our family…

  • The Great Musician’s Birthday

    The Great Musician’s Birthday

    Grief shouts the loudest during holidays.  Following the loss of a loved one, those left behind must navigate a minefield of emotions during those first holidays without their beloved.  And who wants to talk about such a gloomy subject at a time like Christmas?   For most of my adult life, grief was never an…

  • Manhood and Chainsaws

    Manhood and Chainsaws

    Followers of TheBuddyBlog.com: Years ago, a friend of mine was quoted as saying, “Some people try to turn back their odometers.  Not me.  I want people to know why I look this way.  I’ve traveled a long way, and some of the roads were not paved.”  There is a lot of truth in that statement. …

  • Hell Hath No Fury Like A Kidney Stone;           Man Hath No Friend Like A Loving Wife

    Hell Hath No Fury Like A Kidney Stone; Man Hath No Friend Like A Loving Wife

    Getting married after being a widower for six years was one of the craziest, bravest, who-da-thunk-it things I have ever done.   As if a stress test was a required pre-marital experience, my body decided to give my future wife a glimpse of how her beloved handled pain. And I got a glimpse at how…

  • Shouldn’t Love Come with a Warning Label?

    Love should come with a warning label just like everything else does these days. Except it should be in bold print and italicized in red ink. Reading the warning labels on many consumer products in these litigious times can be a source of humor. Maybe out of an abundance of caution, or just because they…

  • Well Done Faithful Servant

    I lost a friend last week.  Lost him to pancreatic cancer. He was more than a friend – more like the big brother I never had.  And that doesn’t describe him justly.  He was a mentor, a role model, the kind of man whose opinion you sought, whose counsel was valued, and whose approval was…

  • Last Words

    Last Words

    My wife has a peculiar habit.  Sometimes it’s endearing, sometimes it’s overly prosaic, but most of the time, it’s just sweet and adorable. She tells me she loves me.  Quite often, actually.  Like, all the time. The habit of which I speak is all about the timing of my beloved’s use of this romantic phrase. …

  • My Favorite Books on Marriage, aka The Books with the Yellow Highlights

    My Favorite Books on Marriage, aka The Books with the Yellow Highlights

    Most of my readers know by now that I am a lover of books.  My children have come to expect at least one literary Christmas gift every year and to not be surprised if, on occasion, an unexpected tome arrives on their doorstep from Amazon.  Such are the consequences of having a father who is…