Grab a drink and let’s speak honestly. As in all relationships, no matter how wonderful, there are bound to be disagreements, moments of frustration, and the inevitable tiffs that arise from people who love each other but can’t read minds. Mr Man and I recently had a little tiff. Beautiful Tampa decided to welcome our arrival with endless showers, hurricane winds, and solitary confinement for this little chef for a good 2 weeks. Nowhere to go and nothing to do (as in I cooked everything, cleaned everything, and read every book in the dang house), I admit I turned into an insane inmate. Mr Man tried to be understanding but, in his very male way, was consoling me in a very insensitive, get-over-it tone. Little chef SNAPPED. Silent treatment and separate sleeping arrangements ensued. Normally, most men would silently cheer at the silent treatment and park in front of the t.v. for endless ESPN and gaming. But, after a couple of hours (or a few days), men emerge from their ground-hog hibernation, sniff around, and go “ok, this was nice but where’s the smiling, squishy female with the food and sexy time?!” And THAT’S how they fold, ladies. But, my question for you ladies is: Do you still cook for these hairy groundhogs while grumpy?
Grams always taught me that if you have to go to bed angry, that’s fine, but you still have to feed the man. The biggest and longest tiff Mr Man and I endured was a week-long silent treatment where he would come home to a solitary meal, hastily thrown together, and waiting for him in the fridge to preheat. Little chef remained locked in her office, emerging for bathroom breaks and giving polite one-word responses when asked. In this particular tiff, I folded and admitted the greater fault. And just as I demonstrate my love for him with special meals, I decided to apologize to Mr Man with a plate of his favorite oven-fried chicken. He came home to find a plate of fresh, warm, crunchy chicken and a side of hot sauce on the table. Needless to say, Mr Man proceeded to get me out of my office to share in our first meal after a full week of solitary dining.
Since then, Mr Man has learned how to get “out of the doghouse,” as he puts it. Considering I was looking and feeling pretty miserable, he decided to skip the fancy establishments and opt for fresh seafood and jars of good strong booze (otherwise known as Joe’s Crab Shack). Icy cold margaritas, plump and spicy mussels, and 2 full pots of Old Bay crabs legs, lobster and jumbo shrimp produced a smiling ear-to-ear little chef. Mr Man was feeling all smug and proud of himself and couldn’t help making a smart-ass comment. I love that man, which is why I replied “What’s that?! Do I smell dessert being added to this apology meal? They do have a lovely berry cobbler!” That shut him right up. I have a very smart man 🙂
So, next time you reach for flowers, chocolate, and put on your best sad puppy face, may I suggest a damn good meal instead? A delicious jar of margarita wouldn’t hurt the cause, either 🙂
LittleFoodieChef 