There are
several thing about which Mrs. C is especially persnickety.
(That’s
right…PERSNICKETY! I am old and proud of
it.)
She gets angry when she takes the car in for service and someone changes her seat
adjustment. She claims it takes forever
for her to get it “Just right” again.
I almost
paid an additional $200 a month on a car lease to get one with an automatic
seat adjustment setting. Common sense did
kick in, especially as it was to be my car, I opted for a Honda over a
Cadillac.
Anyway, she
is very particular about any of her things, especially when it effects
adjustments.
The other
night I wanted to try on her bowling glove.
She doesn’t bowl much, but she uses the glove to prevent that carpool-tunnel
thing you get from using your computer keyboard a lot.
My bowling
glove is too large, I was talked into an extra-large probably as the shop did
not have a large. It has stretched out a
bit and now does not fit correctly.
Without asking,
I started to try on Mrs. C’s “Small” glove to get an idea what size to order
on-line.
She went ballistic.
“Don’t
change the setting! It is just right for
me to be able to slip on and off without having to adjust the straps.”
“Ooh,
adjust those Velcro straps…what a nightmare!”
“Just don’t
touch it.”
Last week, I
tweaked my back bowling. Mrs. C has a
back brace which also has adjustable Velcro straps. Since she has to readjust it every time she
uses it, unlike the glove, I thought maybe she would let me borrow it for
bowling. It was with great trepidation that
I approached her about trying it on and maybe borrowing it until I could order
one for myself.
“Er…ah…I
was…”
“What did
you do now?”
“Do you
think maybe I could try on your back brace and use it tonight for bowling?”
“Absolutely
not!”
“Why, how
could I possible ruin or change an elastic back brace?”
“Because
you don’t need my brace.”
“Maybe
not, but it might keep me from tweaking my back again; damn you and your
persnicketyness!”
I was
getting a bit miffed over her reluctance to share, even at the expense of my
bad back.
“Because
last week when you told me you tweaked your back, I ordered a brace your size
just for you.”
Well now I
felt pretty small.
It did fit
perfectly and my back was fine after bowling.
It takes a
good wife to think ahead for her husband’s need, but only Mrs. C knows how to
hold on to such a gesture in a way to maximize the deed and make me look small
and petty.
Or do all
wives have this ability?