Advice for advice junkies......
Apr 17 '03
The Bottom Line Only one fact about me.
I admit it. I am an advice column junkie. I can remember when Ann Landers started to write for the Chicago Sun Times in the 1950s. I still faithfully read Prudence, who, by the way, is Ann Landers’ daughter. (You can find her weekly column on Slate.com.)
But.....sometimes the advice you read in the newspapers can lead to unexpected results. Here is my story:
My ex-husband had a very disagreeable habit. When he undressed for the night, he would drop his underwear and socks on the floor by our bed, and there they would stay, until I picked them up and deposited them in the laundry hamper. (I blame his mother for this.)
One day Ann Landers addressed this problem. The solution was simple, she said. Just leave the clothing on the floor until he deigned to pick it up.
I thought that this was a great idea, so I immediately put it into effect. The next morning, I didn’t pick up the clothes from the floor when I made the bed. They were still there in the evening, when another set of underwear was dropped on top of yesterday’s discards.
Every day, the pile of dirty clothing grew. Laundry day came and went, but still the pile remained on the floor, growing larger by the day.
We never spoke about this, but I am sure he knew what was happening. After a couple of weeks went by, I bought some new underwear and socks for him, so there would be something clean for him to wear, but still the pile grew.
Soon the day came when he had to kick the pile of dirty clothing aside so he could get into bed, but he still refused to acknowledge that the pile existed. And still it grew.
Finally the pile was so large that it covered the entire floor on his side of the bed, and it was so high that it could be seen through the windows. It also didn’t smell so good.
I hate to admit it, but I gave up. One day I picked up that pile of dirty, smelly clothes, took it to the basement, and had a monster of a washday. My husband didn’t have to buy any new underwear or socks for a number of years.
The moral of this story is: “one size fits all” doesn’t necessarily apply to advice.
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Member: Pat
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