Whats a Lady To Do

First off, you know something is wrong but you can't seem to put your finger on it. You ignore the signs and make excuses for him. For example, suddenly nothing you do is right. He makes offhanded remarks about the way you dress, or your hair is never combed, or your hair is the wrong color, or your hair is too short or too long . . . and the list goes on. You might say something to yourself like, "He doesn't mean to hurt my feelings. He cares about me and just wants me to stay on track." But he never puts his arms around you anymore. And the only kisses you get are the hello and maybe the oft' regarded goodbye Judas kisses on the cheek. But you say to yourself, "He's just preoccupied with his job. He's got so much on his mind."

The only conversation he initiates lately is on the weather or where the kids are. You know he's not interested in how your day went and if you ask about his day, you always get the same generic canned comment as your answer: "It was okay." If you press for more, the answers range from nothing new going on to even a nasty Why do you want to know? You don't know any of those people, anyway.

If you complain about never talking anymore, you get the standard comebacks:

"What do you want to talk about?"

Or, "What are you looking for?"

Or, "What do you want from me?"

You react! Your feelings are hurt; you say nothing, you cry, you may even start a fight. "Any kind of attention is better than none at all," you tell yourself. "Probably just his age, that male menopause phase everyone talks about. He'll snap out of it."

Yet, he doesn't.

One day, you realize he is always so busy. He says things like, "By the way, I won't be home tomorrow. Nick and I plan to golf." Or you get the "I forgot to mention it to you but a gang from work is going out tonight, so I'll be home late." There are twenty million excuses not to be home and I'm certain you're hearing your share, even if you aren't willing to admit it. His plans never include you. Or do they? Think about it! You feel like Mrs. Dial A. Bitch. He complains about every little thing. When is he going to snap out of this mood?