Ken
02-22-2009, 10:31 PM
Let's face it: Some people think that people like us, who frequent forums such as this, are just plain nuts. You know, Doomsday freaks and all that nonsense.
I'm about to take up full-time residence with my fiancee, and she's one of those people who doesn't even want to think about TS hitting TF. You know the type: "You want to store a supply of WHAT?"
So, here's what I've done. It's kinda' like playing on her weaknesses.
You see, my soon to be DW is a work-a-holic health nut. She works 45 hours a week, keeps an immaculate home, is a great mom, plants a garden every year, cooks almost as well as I do :lol:, and goes crazy when I suggest that I can get someone to cut her lawn instead of her. The only time she sits down is when she is driving a car. Most of the rest of the time, she's working on something. She's anything but lazy. (She also has other great attributes I need not mention here.)
Nonetheless, she's often forgetful about purchasing things she's about to run out of, like coffee, tea, mouthwash, Advil, dog and cat food, etc. I never forget things like that (CAN'T SURVIVE WITHOUT COFFEE and the sight of a hungry pet brings tears to my eyes and causes me to defost a steak or a bag of shrimp.)
So, I've hidden varius items throughout her house in places she's not likely to find them. A can of coffee here, a can of dog food there. You get my drift. So, when she says "Oh, no! I forgot to pick up "you name it" I usually sneak off to my hiding place and come back with the item in a couple of seconds.
We've started to have THE conversation about why I want to keep a stash of certain (several) items on hand. It started as "Gee, do you remember the gas lines back in the '70s?" and, "Honey, do you remember when the girls came downstairs and told you that you had run out of Q-Tips and I had about 50 in the shaving kit I always keep in the trunk of my car?" and "Do you love me ONLY because I had a can of coffee stashed away for a moment like this?"
Honestly, it's working. She used to shake her head when she'd come to my home and see 2 cases of paper towels, 4 cases of toilet paper, and about 50 cans of coffee on my shelves. And the 6 rechargable lanterns. And the generators. And the fuel cans. And all the tons other stuff that I think is normal to have in stock and most people think is crazy to keep on hand. She once commented that I probably had OCD.
Now, all she asked is how many moving trucks we need to move my stuff into our new home. I dunno' - maybe 10?:lol: She says she hopes I cut back a little, but, slowly but surely she's coming around to my way of thinking. Or at least she's surrendering to it as nothing more than a harmless psychological disorder I suffer from.
Either way, it's working.
I'm about to take up full-time residence with my fiancee, and she's one of those people who doesn't even want to think about TS hitting TF. You know the type: "You want to store a supply of WHAT?"
So, here's what I've done. It's kinda' like playing on her weaknesses.
You see, my soon to be DW is a work-a-holic health nut. She works 45 hours a week, keeps an immaculate home, is a great mom, plants a garden every year, cooks almost as well as I do :lol:, and goes crazy when I suggest that I can get someone to cut her lawn instead of her. The only time she sits down is when she is driving a car. Most of the rest of the time, she's working on something. She's anything but lazy. (She also has other great attributes I need not mention here.)
Nonetheless, she's often forgetful about purchasing things she's about to run out of, like coffee, tea, mouthwash, Advil, dog and cat food, etc. I never forget things like that (CAN'T SURVIVE WITHOUT COFFEE and the sight of a hungry pet brings tears to my eyes and causes me to defost a steak or a bag of shrimp.)
So, I've hidden varius items throughout her house in places she's not likely to find them. A can of coffee here, a can of dog food there. You get my drift. So, when she says "Oh, no! I forgot to pick up "you name it" I usually sneak off to my hiding place and come back with the item in a couple of seconds.
We've started to have THE conversation about why I want to keep a stash of certain (several) items on hand. It started as "Gee, do you remember the gas lines back in the '70s?" and, "Honey, do you remember when the girls came downstairs and told you that you had run out of Q-Tips and I had about 50 in the shaving kit I always keep in the trunk of my car?" and "Do you love me ONLY because I had a can of coffee stashed away for a moment like this?"
Honestly, it's working. She used to shake her head when she'd come to my home and see 2 cases of paper towels, 4 cases of toilet paper, and about 50 cans of coffee on my shelves. And the 6 rechargable lanterns. And the generators. And the fuel cans. And all the tons other stuff that I think is normal to have in stock and most people think is crazy to keep on hand. She once commented that I probably had OCD.
Now, all she asked is how many moving trucks we need to move my stuff into our new home. I dunno' - maybe 10?:lol: She says she hopes I cut back a little, but, slowly but surely she's coming around to my way of thinking. Or at least she's surrendering to it as nothing more than a harmless psychological disorder I suffer from.
Either way, it's working.